Program tackles obesity

Fruits and vegetables, combined with 30 minutes of moderate physical activity, such as brisk walking, can help reduce obesity, social work education professor and project director of the California Nutrition Network for Healthy, Active Families at Fresno State Debra Harris said.

The California Nutrition Network for Healthy, Active Families is offering free items, including refrigerator magnets and cookbooks, designed to help people remember the benefits of eating healthy foods and exercising.

The advantage of eating fruits and vegetables comes from the natural vitamins and energy they give to people, while exercise stimulates the body so calories can be burned, Harris said.

Harris said the idea behind eating fruits and vegetables comes from the food pyramid, which has multiple levels of recommended food types.

The project’s main goal is to wipe out obesity, which contrributes to diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and cancer, she said.

People are getting these diseases at a younger age, particularly in elementary school as heart disease and diabetes are showing up as early as third grade.

Harris said that younger kids have become sedentary, and students in particular who sit and study don’t burn as many calories as someone who is up and walking around.

—Joshua Bacon