Princess Health and Kids Count report finds Ky. remains in the bottom 1/3 of states for children's well-being; is this a predictor of the state's future?. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Kids Count report finds Ky. remains in the bottom 1/3 of states for children's well-being; is this a predictor of the state's future?. Princessiccia

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By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

If Kentucky's future lies in the well-being of its children, there's reason to worry, because a recent report shows that Kentucky consistently remains in the bottom one-third of states for this measure.

The 2016 Kids Count report ranks Kentucky 35th in the overall well-being of its children, down from 34th last year. The state showed a significant improvement in its health ranking and a further drop in its teen birth rate, but otherwise didn't show much change from last year's report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Kentucky Youth Advocates.

"The real issue is not a drop or increase of one position, but rather that Kentucky continues to be in the bottom one-third of all states," KYA Executive Director Terry Brooks said in a news release. "Are we really content with the idea that two-thirds of America's children are better off than Kentucky kids?"

The annual report offers a state-by-state assessment that measures 16 indicators to determine the overall well-being of children. The latest data are for 2014, and is compared with data from the last six or so years earlier. The report focuses on four major domains: economic security, education, health and family and community security.

Kentucky continues to rank highest in health, climbing to 16th from 24th in 2015, 28th in 2014 and 31st in 2013. Contributors included a continued drop in the number of children without health insurance (4 percent); a 15 percent decrease in child and teen mortality, fewer teens abusing alcohol or drugs (4 percent) and improvements in the percentage of low-birthweight babies (8.8 percent).

The state's greatest drop among the rankings was in economic security, going down to 37th from 32nd last year. Education (27th) saw a slight improvement from the past two years and the family and community (38th) rankings remained similar to the past three years.

The release notes that the state now ranks 10th for the percentage of children with health insurance.

"We are seeing better outcomes for kids in Kentucky, and expanded health coverage and access to quality care play a vital role in making that happen," Susan Zepeda, CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said in the release. "Research shows that when parents have health coverage, their children are more likely to also be signed up for health insurance."

Another bright spot in the report is that the state's teen birth rate continues to drop. It declined 34 percent from 2008 to 2014. While Kentucky still has one of the nation's highest teen birth rates, it dropped to 35 births per 1,000 girls aged 15-19 in 2014, down from 39 per 1,000 in 2013 and 53 per 1,000 in 2008. The national average is 24 per 1,000, an all-time low.

Kentucky consistently ranks lowest in the "family and community" domain, with 35 percent of its children living in single-parent families; 12 percent living in families where the household head lacks a high school degree; and 16 percent living in high-poverty areas, which are neighborhoods where more than 30 percent of residents live in poverty.

"Kentucky will thrive when policies that support the whole family, caregiver and child, are implemented," Adrienne Bush, executive director of Hazard Perry County Community Ministries, said in the release.

And though the state's education ranking improved to 27th from 30th, not much has changed in these indicators since the foundation started doing this report. The bottom line is that more than half of fourth graders (60 percent) still can't read at a national proficiency level and that the majority of eighth graders (72 percent) still aren't proficient in math. (In 2007, these indicators were 67 percent and 73 percent respectively.)

"Student performance should alarm parents and business leaders and jolt Kentucky leaders into making fundamental education reform a policy priority to ensure college and career readiness," Brooks said.

In addition, more than half the state's three-and four-year-olds (58 percent) don't attend pre-school and 17 percent of its high school students don't graduate on time.

Perhaps the direst message from the report is about the state's economic well-being. One in four Kentucky children live in poverty (26 percent), a rate that has remained higher than it was pre-recession when it was 23 percent, says the release. Nationally, the child poverty rate is 22 percent.

"Growing up in poverty is one of the greatest threats to healthy child development," says the report. "Poverty can impede cognitive development and a child's ability to learn."

The report also says 35 percent of Kentucky's children live in homes with parents who don't have secure employment, which places the state in the bottom 10 states for this indicator. It also found that 28 percent live in households with a high housing-cost burden.

The release suggested "bipartisan solutions" to improve the well-being of Kentucky's children, including expanding oral health coverage; supporting school-based health centers; education reform that includes public charter schools, expanded child care assistance and family-focused tax reforms.

Princess Health and Wellness coalition in Perry County, where life expectancy is state's lowest, gets funding from Foundation for a Healthy Ky.. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Wellness coalition in Perry County, where life expectancy is state's lowest, gets funding from Foundation for a Healthy Ky.. Princessiccia

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The Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky has funded the Perry County Wellness Coalition's three-year plan to encourage fitness and better nutrition in school-age children, "Kids on the Move!"

The wellness coalition will receive $144,450 from the foundation this year, matched by $124,944 from the community, to increase access to physical activity and provide healthier food options and nutrition education. Perry County has the lowest life expectancy in Kentucky.

"Our children are the most valuable resource we have," said Gerry Roll, executive director of the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, which is serving as fiscal agent for the coalition. "It's the best investment we can make as a community partner."

The health coalition will work with local schools to implement physical activity and nutrition-policy changes, collaborate with local farmers' markets for a strong farm-to-school component, and coordinate with other community agencies to create a lasting and collective impact.

The project also will implement best-practices nutrition and exercise programs in schools, support community gardens, summer feeding programs, and a "Farmacy" program to increase the purchase of healthier produce at farmers' markets and local grocery stores, among other changes to be coordinated by the agencies in the coalition.

The Appalachian Regional Healthcare hospital in Hazard will be the administrative hub for the coalition, providing leadership and sharing its expertise in promoting community health. "We have already begun these efforts by providing fitness fairs and health screenings to over 20 schools in our service area and reaching a little more than 2,500 middle school and high school age kids this year alone," said Hazard ARH Community CEO Dan Stone said.

The coalition is among seven Kentucky communities funded by the foundation's "Investing in Kentucky's Future" initiative, which is spending $3 million over five years to fund communities working to improve the health of their school-aged children. The other groups are in Breathitt, Clinton, Grant, Jefferson and McLean counties, and in Boyd and Greenup counties. Perry County was in the original announcement and recently completed its detailed plan. It shares with Breathitt and Wolfe counties the state's lowest life expectancy, 70 years.

Princess Health and Clark County schools to provide mental health services via contract with agency that can bill Medicaid or private insurance. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Clark County schools to provide mental health services via contract with agency that can bill Medicaid or private insurance. Princessiccia

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Facing a surge in behavioral health cases among students, the Clark County Board of Education has contracted with a mental-health agency services for all preschool through high school students in the district.

Mountain Comprehensive Care will place a mental health therapist in every school to address issues immediately, at no cost to the district, Whitney Leggett reports for The Winchester Sun: "In the past three years, the district has seen the number of students in the home-hospital program because of mental-health issues surpass those with physical ailments."

Greg Hollon, director of pupil personnel and support services, told Leggett, �Previously, about 80 percent of home-hospital students were for physical ailments and 20 percent for mental. Fast forward a couple of years later, and that has switched to 65 percent mental, 35 percent physical.�

Hollon said the therapists at each school will help the district stay on top of problems. �This puts someone in the buildings full time to be there to address issues as they occur,� rather than requiring staff to call Mountain or some other agency.

Mountain, based in Prestonsburg, is able to provide the service without charge because it can bill Medicaid or private insurance.

Princess Health and McDonald's stops sending to schools man who says he lost much weight eating only at McDonald's, including Big Macs and fries. Princessiccia

Princess Health and McDonald's stops sending to schools man who says he lost much weight eating only at McDonald's, including Big Macs and fries. Princessiccia

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Photo via flickriver.com

McDonald�s has stopped "giving nutrition advice to students in schools, pulling back on a program that critics said was a subtle form of fast-food marketing that could imperil kids� health and understanding of nutrition," Roberto Ferdman reports for The Washington Post.

The company had been sending to schools "a middle-aged teacher from Iowa who came to fame after claiming to have lost almost 60 pounds eating only McDonald�s," including Big Macs and french fries, Ferdman writes.

"McDonald�s said in a statement this week that Cisna stopped those visits last fall, after a Washington Post article highlighted how McDonald�s used its relationship with local schools and teachers� associations to get its message in front of students. . . . McDonald�s had long defended the practice, saying that Cisna�s presentation was about choice, not about eating McDonald�s. But critics argued it amounted to little more than a veiled attempt to woo customers at a young and impressionable age."

Princess Health and Studies conclude that abstinence pledges do little to cut youth sexual activity, pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Studies conclude that abstinence pledges do little to cut youth sexual activity, pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases. Princessiccia

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Abstinence pledges�sometimes called purity pledges�don't keep young people from engaging in sex, contracting sexually transmitted diseases or avoiding pregnancy, according to a pair of studies, Denise-Marie Ordway reports for Journalist's Resource. The main problem is that students are not receiving enough sex education. A federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report from December 2015 found that "fewer than half of high schools and only a fifth of middle schools teach all 16 topics recommended by CDC as essential components of sexual health education."(CDC graphic)

A 2005 study by Yale and Columbia universities found that 88 percent of youth who take the abstinence pledge engage in pre-marital sex, Ordway writes. "The study found that pledgers were just as likely to get STDs as those who never made a pledge of virginity."

A more recent study, published in April in the Journal of Marriage and Family, found that among students in grades 7 to 12, "as a whole, young women who did not take abstinence pledges and those who did but broke them were equally likely to acquire HPV, a common STD," Ordway writes. "Approximately 27 percent of each group tested positive for HPV. Of the young women who had two or more sex partners, pledge breakers were more likely to have HPV. The difference was largest among women who had between six and 10 sex partners. One-third of women who had not taken a pledge and had six to 10 sex partners tested positive for HPV. Meanwhile, 51 percent of pledgers who had six to 10 sex partners acquired HPV. About 30 percent of pledgers and 18 percent of non-pledgers became pregnant within six years after they began having sexual intercourse outside of marriage."

"In the U.S, the teen pregnancy rate is higher than in any other western industrialized country, according to the CDC," Ordway writes. "At the same time, a growing number of American teens and young adults have been diagnosed with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). While individuals aged 15 to 24 make up 27 percent of the U.S. population that is sexually active, the CDC estimates that they account for half of the 20 million new infections occurring annually."

Princess Health and Teens who talk to their parents about sex make the best choices; Clark County will offer parenting classes on sex communication. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Teens who talk to their parents about sex make the best choices; Clark County will offer parenting classes on sex communication. Princessiccia

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In an average Kentucky high school class of 30 students, almost 13 of the teenagers say they have had sexual intercourse at least once, but many of them have never discussed sex with their parents.

And while Kentucky parents may think their children are learning about sex in the classroom because Kentucky mandates sex education, they may not realize that the state has no set curriculum for fact-based, comprehensive sex education, and the only thing required to be taught is abstinence -- an approach that has been proven ineffective, Aaron Yarmuth reports for Leo Weekly in an in-depth article about sex education in the state.

This lack of parent-teen communication about sex has prompted a study in Clark County that will include classes to help parents become more comfortable talking about sex with their children, Whitney Leggett reports for The Winchester Sun.

The classes will be led by Shannon Phelps of Winchester as part of her research to earn a doctorate in interdisciplinary education sciences from the University of Kentucky, Leggett reports. It is funded by a $15,700 grant from the Clark County Community Foundation.

�Because the subject matter is not one that many people are comfortable with, part of the objective is to help increase parents� comfort in discussing sexual health topics so they will be more likely to address those topics with their children,� Phelps told Leggett.

"The overall goals of the program are to increase frequency and quality of parent-child sexual health communication, improve parents� comfort and confidence in their communication with their children about sexual health topics and increase openness of sexual communication between parents and their children," Leggett writes. "Topics will range from abstinence to safe sex, contraception, resisting peer pressure and communicating with potential partners, among others."

Phelps said the six week courses will promote parent-child sexual health communication, which is associated with better sexual health outcomes for young people.

�Research tells us that children, especially adolescents, who have parents who communicate with them about sexual health topics have better sexual health outcomes,� Phelps told Leggett. �That follows logic... Sometimes parents are hesitant to talk to their children for fear that they�ll go and have risky sexual behaviors, but research tells us the opposite.�

Phelps told Leggett that studies show that when parents talk to their children about sex, "it can delay the onset of sexual behaviors and reduce unintended outcomes like sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies," Leggett writes.

For more information email Phelps at shannon.phelps@uky.edu, or call 859-621-1065.

A study published in the Pediatric Journal of the American Medical Association found that nearly one-fourth of youth report that they have not discussed sexual topics with their parents, and even fewer report that they have had meaningful, open conversations with them about this subject. The study attributes this poor communication to parental embarrassment, parents' lack of accurate knowledge of the subject, and poor self-efficacy.

It's a topic that needs discussion in Kentucky because almost 10 percent of the state's middle-school students have had sexual intercourse and almost one-third of its high school students are sexually active, according to the 2015 Kentucky Middle and High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey.  The survey found that overall, 41.7 percent of Kentucky's high school students have had sexual intercourse at least once.

And there is an obvious disconnect related to birth control. Kentucky ranks seventh in teen births, at 39.5 births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19, according to America's Health Rankings. The 2015 YRBS found that 14.5 percent of high school students did not use any birth- control during the last time they had sexual intercourse.

Princess Health and Visiting chef at Harlan County High helps incorporate fresh, local foods and flavors into menus; 1 of 8 Ky. districts in program. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Visiting chef at Harlan County High helps incorporate fresh, local foods and flavors into menus; 1 of 8 Ky. districts in program. Princessiccia

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image: foodtank.com

The "Chefs in Schools Collaborative" project, which helps school cooks learn how to incorporate fresh, local foods in their menus, is up and running at Harlan County High School, reports WYMT-TV.

"Fresh ingredients are always important to a cook," Judy Gurnee, visiting chef through March, told the Hazard station. "We like to work with the closest available products that we can get ... the finest quality."

Harlan County is one of eight Kentucky school districts in the program. Its cooks asked the visiting chef to help them better use spices on the local vegetables, so that students, whom they described as their "customers," would eat them.

"I'm for anything that's going to get the children to eat," Kitchen Manager Jan Hicks told WYMT. "That's what we are here for."

Making sure the kids eat their school lunch is especially important because for some, it is the only meal they get a day, WYMT reports.

"Our kids, one in four are homeless," Director of Food Service Jack Miniard said. "That means that they are living with a grandparent or they are living with some other family member ... so, this may be the only meal that they get a day."

The program is led by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture's Farm to School Program in partnership with the Community Farm Alliance and the National Farm to School Network. Participating school districts are in Boyle, Clark, Grayson, Oldham, Harlan, Martin, Morgan, and Pike counties.

Princess Health and 85 percent of Kentucky adults want schools to be tobacco-free, but only 28 percent of the state's school districts are. Princessiccia

Princess Health and 85 percent of Kentucky adults want schools to be tobacco-free, but only 28 percent of the state's school districts are. Princessiccia

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An overwhelming majority of Kentucky adults, 85 percent, want schools to be tobacco-free, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll.

But only 28 percent of the state's school districts have "protected students, staff members, teachers and guests from secondhand smoke by enacting 100 percent tobacco-free school policies," says a press release from Interact for Health, which co-sponsored the poll with the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. A list of the districts is at www.tobaccofreeschoolsky.org.

"Kentucky ranks 50th, the worst state in the nation, in the percentage of secondary school campuses that prohibit tobacco use in all locations at all times," the release says. "Nationally, 65 percent of schools have such a policy." In Kentucky, such policies are set by local boards of education.

The state's tobacco heritage remains strong. In 2015, 23 percent of Kentucky middle-school students reported trying cigarettes, and 28 percent of high school students said they used cigarettes, cigars, or smokeless tobacco.

The poll found large majorities of smokers, former smokers and non-smokers in favor of tobacco-free campus policies, and support was strong across party lines. The greatest opposition was found among the poor, African Americans, people who haven't gone to college and those who said their general health was fair or poor.

Susan Zepeda, president and CEO of the foundation, said in its news release, "A 100 percent tobacco-free campus policy reduces a young person's exposure to second-hand smoke and allows adults to model tobacco-free lifestyles. Notably, Kentucky smokers understand this important issue. Eighty percent of current smokers favor tobacco-free school policies in their communities."

The Kentucky Health Issues Poll was conducted Sept. 17 through Oct. 7 by the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Cincinnati. The sample of 1,608 adults has an error margin of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.

Princess Health and Annual health policy forum set Sept. 28 in Bowling Green.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Annual health policy forum set Sept. 28 in Bowling Green.Princessiccia

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This year's annual Howard L. Bost Health Policy Forum "will offer new insights and opportunities from a range of civic sectors for a shared vision, policies, and actions for community health," says its lead sponsor, the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

"Local, regional, and national speakers will share their knowledge and experiences in building healthy communities, with a focus on transportation and housing, education, food systems and policy, and employers and workplaces," the foundation says. "TED style" speakers will make presentations on each of the forum's four focus areas: education, food systems and policy, employer/workplace, and transportation/housing.

The forum will be held at the Sloan Convention Center in Bowling Green on Monday, Sept. 28. For the registration website, click here.

Princess Health and Lake Cumberland District Health Department using polls in an effort to get school boards to make campuses tobacco-free.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Lake Cumberland District Health Department using polls in an effort to get school boards to make campuses tobacco-free.Princessiccia

education health departments polls schools smokeless tobacco smoking smoking ban smoking bans tobacco tobacco prevention youth

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Countywide smoking bans are unlikely to pass anytime soon in most of rural Kentucky, but more county school districts are making their campuses tobacco-free. Now a multi-county health department is trying to get rural school boards to do that, with public-opinion polls showing that county residents overwhelmingly favor the move.

Department logo has been altered to
show Clinton County in yellow.

The Lake Cumberland District Health Department conducted the poll in Clinton County, and said it found that 86.55 percent were in favor and 7.16 percent were opposed. The rest had no opinion.

Making a campus tobacco-free means that members of the public are not free to smoke at school athletic events, so the poll also asked, �Would you like to see our school become tobacco-free at all events?� The results were virtually the same: 85.3 percent answered yes and 8.7 percent answered no, even though one-fourth to one-fifth of the county's residents smoke and it has a long history of raising tobacco.

"The results are perhaps surprising to some, considering the rate of tobacco usage in the county," reports the Clinton County News. The poll of 749 residents has an error margin of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

The department also surveyed 100 teachers in the school system and found that 77 percent would "definitely" support making the schools 100 percent tobacco-free.

The health department presented the survey and other findings to the Clinton County Board of Education June 15, but the board took no action. The department noted that a recent survey found that 28 percent of the county's students in eighth through 12th grades had used smokeless tobacco in the previous 30 days. "That level was the highest in the Lake Cumberland District," the Clinton County News reports.

The Casey County Board of Education adopted a smoke-free policy after a poll by the health department showed 70 percent of the county's residents favored it, the Casey County News reported.

Princess Health and Clay County 4th and 5th graders participate in UK research of circadian rhythms and obesity, little studied in children.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Clay County 4th and 5th graders participate in UK research of circadian rhythms and obesity, little studied in children.Princessiccia

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The University of Kentucky recently partnered with over 100 fourth and fifth grade students in two Clay County schools to study the relationship between circadian rhythms and weight in children.

Sydney Sester, a fifth grade student at Manchester Elementary School, said in a UK news release that in addition to learning more about science and helping others by contributing to research, participating in the study showed her the importance of maintaining a healthy weight and eating well.

"It made me want to be more responsible with food and be patient with what I eat and only eat when I'm hungry," she said.

The project, "Circadian Rhythm Parameters and Metabolic Syndrome Associated Factors in Young Children," also known as the Clay County Clock Study, is led by Dr. Jody Clasey, associate professor of kinesiology and health promotion, and Dr. Karyn Esser, professor of physiology.

The research team says it hopes to learn about the relationship between circadian rhythms, eating, and activity behaviors and the incidence of overweight and obesity in children.

And while the team is in the process of analyzing the data, Esser told a group at the 10th annual Center for Clinical and Translational Science conference in March that early data show 33 percent of the students in the study are considered obese, their initial blood pressure measurements are on the high end of normal, and the students are less active on weekends and nights than during the school week.

The data was gathered through electronic devices that the students wore for seven days to measure activity, heart rate and skin temperature. The students also kept a daily journal to record their sleep and eating activities each day.

Previous studies have shown that disrupting an adult's circadian rhythm is associated with increased risk for metabolic disease, which is a combination of chronic health conditions that puts a person at a higher risk of heart disease and diabetes. Similar research with children has been limited.

Esser noted that "Clay County and many of the counties in Appalachia have a much higher rate of these chronic diseases."

She also said that while it is known that light exposure affects the body clock, recent findings show that the time that we do activities, like exercising and eating, also contribute to circadian health, and that this is also likely true in children.

This research "could not only influence an individual, but school start times, activity intervention, just so many different areas from personal practice or behavioral choices to public policy, all for the metabolic or physiological good of the individual or collective body," Clasey said.

Princess Health andKentucky gets an $8.1 million federal grant to help teachers, other school personnel recognize students' mental-health needs.Princessiccia

Princess Health andKentucky gets an $8.1 million federal grant to help teachers, other school personnel recognize students' mental-health needs.Princessiccia

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The Kentucky Department of Education has been awarded a five-year, $8.1 million federal grant to teach school personnel how to identify mental-health issues and get students the help they need, Brenna R. Kelly reports for Kentucky Teacher.

KDE was one of 120 state and local education agencies to get an Advancing Wellness and Resilience in Education grant last fall as part of President Obama's "Now Is The Time" initiative to decrease gun violence, increase access to mental health services and increase school safety.

It is estimated that up to one out of five children living in the U.S. experience a mental disorder in a given year, according to the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine.

Gretta Hylton of KDE�s Office of Next Generation Learners believes "that both KDE and local districts will be in a better position to get students the mental health help that they need," Kelly writes.

The grant program, Kentucky AWARE, will also create social media marketing campaigns, community events to promote mental health awareness and offer training on trauma-informed care in each of the pilot districts, to be provided by the Center on Trauma and Children at the University of Kentucky.

�More people will be able to recognize and respond appropriately to mental health issues in children,� Hylton told Kelly, �and will know how to connect those individuals with services in their hometown.�

Kentucky AWARE will be piloted in Jefferson County, Fayette County and Pulaski County schools and then move statewide. Hylton told Kelly that the three districts were chosen partly because they already have some mental-health and behavioral-intervention programs.

In addition to KDE, AWARE grants were awarded to Jefferson County, Fayette County, Bullitt County, Corbin Independent, Covington Independent and Henderson County school districts and to the Northern Kentucky Cooperative for Educational Services, Kelly reports.

School personnel, first responders, parents and anyone who interacts with youth in the pilot counties will be offered Youth Mental Health First Aid training, Kelly writes. Hylton told Kelly that she expected more than 10,000 people across the state to be trained at the end of the five-year grant.

Princess Health andSchool nutritionists' lobbying group, freshly funded by grocery makers, wants more funding and flexibility with school-lunch rules.Princessiccia

Princess Health andSchool nutritionists' lobbying group, freshly funded by grocery makers, wants more funding and flexibility with school-lunch rules.Princessiccia

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School nutrition officials want more flexibility with new school lunch rules to cut down on the waste of unwanted food, Spencer Chase reports for Agri-Pulse, a Washington newsletter. Julia Bauscher, president of the School Nutrition Association, told the House Education and Workforce Committee that the organization supports the rules, but needs more funding to enforce them  and more flexbility to serve foods students will eat. (USDA graphic)

"SNA is requesting 35 cents more in federal funding for each lunch and breakfast that is served in the school lunch program, up from the additional six cents the government provided when the new standards were put in place," Chase writes. Bauscher told the committee, �That will help school food authorities afford the foods that we must serve, but unfortunately that won't make students consume it.�

Bauscher, who said SNA wants Congress "to soften the bill's target levels for more whole grains and less sodium in school meals," said that "in many cases, the new requirements have forced school lunch programs outside of budgetary constraints, forcing them to ask school districts to make up the difference. According to SNA, school districts will absorb $1.2 billion in new food and labor costs in 2010," Agri-Pulse reports. SNA has drawn major funding from some food manufacturers.

Chase writes that 51 percent of students qualify for free or reduced lunches, the first time the number has topped 50 percent in at least 50 years.

Princess Health andCrittenden County Elementary School is latest school in area to restrict nuts to protect the health of those with nut allergies.Princessiccia

Princess Health andCrittenden County Elementary School is latest school in area to restrict nuts to protect the health of those with nut allergies.Princessiccia

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This story has been updated to include information about other Western Kentucky schools with nut restrictions.

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a lunchbox staple for many American children, but they can also pose a serious health risk to those with peanut and tree-nut allergies, especially in the young. The risk has prompted the Crittenden County school district to become the latest in the area to restrict the use of nuts at the Crittenden County Elementary School in Marion.

"Peanut and tree nut allergies plague an estimated 19 million Americans and the number of children with peanut allergies in the U.S. has nearly doubled in just over a decade," The Crittenden Press noted.

After researching the issue and how other schools have dealt with it, the school's parent-teacher council and wellness committee created a policy that restricts but doesn't ban nuts, the Press reports.

The policy asks everyone to be aware that nut products are dangerous to some of the students and asks them to not send those products to school, Principal Melissa Tabor told the Press. She said at least five students have proven nut allergies.

Several other Western Kentucky schools have peanut restrictions,Genevieve Postlethwait reports for The Paducah Sun, including Carlisle County and Fulton County schools, with Paducah and Hickman County schools having restricted peanuts for varying periods of time in the past. (Story is behind a pay wall.)

"We do it on a case-by-case, year-by-year basis," Penny Holt,the district's nutrition director, told Postlethwait of Paducah schools' approach to restricting peanuts and other allergens. "If a child has an allergy that is that serious, we're not going to risk it," she said, noting that they are seeing an increase in all kinds of food allergies.

Another school, Heath Elementary, has a child with an airborne peanut allergy so the school does not serve any peanut products or cook with any peanut products, Sara Jane Hedges, food services director for McCracken County schools. told Postlethwait. Students are still allowed to bring peanut butter products, but " "It's just taken care of very carefully," Hedges said.

Crittenden County Elementary school's policy does not require school personnel to check backpacks or lunchboxes for nut-containing products, but if they see children have one of these products, they ask them to sit at a designated table for that day, where they can ask a friend to join them.

The school sent home a list of nut-free snacks, including safe name brands that do not contain peanut oil, to help parents re-think what to pack in their child's lunch or to send for school snacks or for school parties.

So far, the principal said, parents have been receptive to the policy, and one parent told her that they had successfully switched to a soy butter that tastes like peanut butter because their child wants peanut-butter sandwiches for lunch.

The policy states that those with severe allergies to peanuts or nut products may be at great risk of anaphylactic shock, "an allergic reaction causing swelling, difficulty breathing, itching, unconsciousness, circulatory collapse and sometimes death," if they ingest or are exposed to these products.

"Because of the possibility of cross-contamination, a campus-wide, comprehensive avoidance of foods containing nuts was deemed to be the best solution to reduce the health risks to students with allergens," Tabor told the Press.

Crittenden County School Supt. Vince Clark told the weekly newspaper that he supports the school's policy, despite the argument that it creates a burden to parents of students who love peanut butter.

�There are valid points on each side of the issue,� he told the Press. �Ultimately, we have to support efforts to offer a safer learning environment for the children.� (Read more)

Princess Health andKentucky is one of three states to get Walmart Foundation money to expand farm-to-school programs.Princessiccia

Princess Health andKentucky is one of three states to get Walmart Foundation money to expand farm-to-school programs.Princessiccia

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Gusty 09:50 Add Comment

Kentucky will use money from The Walmart Foundation to partner with the National Farm to School Network to expand efforts to get more local foods into schools.

A project called Seed Change will �jump start� programs that get local foods into schools and enhance food education for more than 1.8 million school children at 100 sites in Kentucky, Louisiana and Pennsylvania, the network said in a news release. Each site will get $5,000 grants, with applications to be accepted later this spring.

The state Department of Agriculture�s farm-to-school program connects schools with local farmers and food producers and helps students "learn to appreciate the importance of local foods and grow into well-informed consumers who demand local foods as adults," the release said. The program served an estimated 364,000 children in about 700 schools in 84 districts in the 2011-12 school year. For more information on the program, go to www.kyagr.com or contact Tina Garland at 502-382-7505 or tina.garland@ky.gov.

Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

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Gusty 13:25 Add Comment

WellCare Health Plans Inc. is improving its Medicaid benefits in Kentucky by removing most members' co-pays and covering the cost of the General Educational Development test and its corresponding coursework for eligible members.

The co-pay and GED benefits will become available on July 1 and continue through the end of the year, except in Medicaid Region 3, comprising 16 Kentucky counties near Louisville. Region 3�s benefits will be determined in fall 2014 to align with its open enrollment. Region 3 is Breckinridge, Bullitt, Carroll, Grayson, Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, LaRue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, Trimble and Washington counties.

Open enrollment for the rest of the state ends Wednesday, June 18, so WellCare is offering the new benefits as an incentive for Medicaid recipients to switch form other managed-care companies.

All WellCare of Kentucky Medicaid members will have no co-pays except for non-emergency visits to the emergency room and, only in the Louisville region, a $4 co-pay for preferred-brand medications.

Recipients  of the GED benefits must be at least 16 years old, must not be currently enrolled in high school, cannot be graduates from an accredited high school and cannot have received a high school equivalency certificate or diploma. Members need to complete the required GED coursework at an adult testing center.

For more information about these and other WellCare Medicaid benefits in Kentucky, please visit http://kentucky.wellcare.com/member or call 1-877-389-9457.

Princess Health and Princess Health andUK awarded $1.9 million to improve recruitment, preparation and retention of science, tech, engineering and math students.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andUK awarded $1.9 million to improve recruitment, preparation and retention of science, tech, engineering and math students.Princessiccia

education philanthropy

Gusty 16:51 Add Comment

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has awarded the University of Kentucky a five-year, $1.9 million grant to improve retention of students in the STEM disciplines: science, technology, engineering and mathematics, through a collection of initiatives dubbed "STEMCats."

The STEMCats project will feature five key components, each aimed at improving the recruitment, preparation and retention of STEM majors: FastTrack courses for Math, Biology, Chemistry and Physics to better prepare incoming students; a STEMCats living learning community; a freshman STEM research course; a team-based summer research experience and an improved introductory STEM curriculum.

Fewer than half of all students who enter college with the intention of majoring in a STEM field leave with a STEM degree, according to the university's press release. Nationwide, 40 percent of students enroll in a STEM program when they enter college, and the rate drops to roughly 20 percent among historically under-represented ethnic groups.

Many first-year college students are not prepared for the rigors of college-level science and math, Professor Vincent Cassone, chair of the UK Department of Biology and STEMCats project director, said in the release. "They have no idea what to expect, and I think it comes as a shock to some of them just how much work is actually involved in passing an introductory-level STEM class," Cassone said in the release. "By the time they realize it, they may already be in trouble. It's not that they can't do the work. They just are not mentally and psychologically prepared for the challenges they face at the university level. The STEMCats initiatives are designed to help students get ready to succeed."

UK is partnering on these initiatives with Bluegrass Community and Technical College, which will allow these students "to work in UK research facilities, live in STEM-designated communities at UK and be part of a FastTrack student cohort designed to remove barriers of success while enhancing STEM opportunities and knowledge," Tammy Liles, associate STEMCats project director, said in the release.

UK is one of 37 research institutions to receive an award, from among 170 institutions competing for a share of $60 million in total funding, according to the release. (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andBerea students' second health fair tackles touchy topics.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andBerea students' second health fair tackles touchy topics.Princessiccia

education health education schools sex education student health youth

Gusty 18:26 Add Comment

Della Walters tries to walk straight while wearing "drunk goggles" at
the Berea health fair. (Richmond Register photo by Crystal Wylie)

Student-run health fairs are becoming more popular across Kentucky, and some of them are touching on touchy topics. At their second health fair recently, for middle- and high-school students, Berea Community High School health students "handled more mature issues" than at their first, for elementary-school students. reports Crystal Wylie of The Richmond Register.

"Although students had their pick of topics ranging from sexually transmitted diseases, drunk driving, smoking, mental health, sugary drinks, learning disabilities and fitness," health teacher Cathy Jones said some students wanted to include 'sexting,' sexually oriented text messages. She allowed their presentation to pair the topic with cyber-bullying; students asked their classmates to sign a pledge against doing both.

�It�s a hot topic and something teenagers encounter,� Jones told Wylie. �They thought it was important to cover.� Jones said she plans to hold a fair twice a year. Meanwhile, Eastern Kentucky University professor Laurie Larkin and her public-health students conducted a health fair at Clark-Moores Middle School, Wylie reports. (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andSmoking persists or even increases in poor, rural, working-class counties; New York Times cites Clay County as an example.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andSmoking persists or even increases in poor, rural, working-class counties; New York Times cites Clay County as an example.Princessiccia

cancer cigarettes county health education health rankings lung cancer poverty rural health rural-urban disparities smoking smoking cessation tobacco tobacco prevention

Gusty 10:55 Add Comment

Clay County has a dubious distinction. It has the highest rate of smoking for any U.S. county with a population under 15,000. Researchers at the University of Washington pointed that out, and The New York Times focused on it in reporting the larger finding: Some poor, rural and working-class counties have increasingly high rates of smoking, while the smoking rates in wealthy counties continue to decline.

Ed Smith Jr.
(NYT photo by Tim Harris)

In Clay County, the smoking rate was 36.7 percent in 2012. �It�s just what we do here,� Ed Smith Jr., 51, told the Times, which reports, "Several of his friends have died of lung cancer, and he has tried to quit, but so far has not succeeded." (Institute for Health and Metrics map shows adult smoking rates by county; Clay and Knox counties are the red area in southeastern Kentucky. The interactive map shows how rates have changed since 1996, overall and among men and women. To view it, click here.)

The smoking rate among adults has decreased 27 percent since 1997, but only 15 percent among poor people, and haven't changed at all for adult smokers living in deep poverty in the South and Midwest, the study found. "The findings are particularly stark for women," Sabrina Tavernise and Robert Gebeloff write. "About half of all high-income counties showed significant declines in the smoking rate for women, but only 4 percent of poor counties did." Education also plays a role. "Americans with a high-school education or less make up 40 percent of the population, but they account for 55 percent of the nation�s 42 million smokers."

Clay County is one of the nation's poorest, and only 7 percent of its people have a college degree. The county seat, Manchester, passed an indoor smoking ban in 2012, and Manchester Memorial Hospital "runs a smoking-cessation program that offers free nicotine patches and gum in an effort to reach low-income smokers," the Times reports. �Smoking cessation is our biggest uphill battle,� Jeremy Hacker, the hospital�s community outreach coordinator, told the newspaper. Smoking is no longer a normal activity in urban places, he said, but in Clay, �It�s not viewed as a problem.� (Read more)

Princess Health and W. Va. plans private-public model to provide school breakfast, improve child health, fight obesity; could this approach help Ky.?.Princessiccia

Princess Health and W. Va. plans private-public model to provide school breakfast, improve child health, fight obesity; could this approach help Ky.?.Princessiccia

breakfast child obesity childhood obesity children children's health education food food security health policy Medicare prevention state government

Gusty 15:47 Add Comment

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

Breakfast has been said to be the most important meal of the day, and it can be important in fighting obesity. Policymakers in West Virginia are pushing for breakfast food programs in schools through public-private partnerships, and a new report says similar programs could save $41 billion in federal dollars long-term by preventing obesity. Does this make sense, and does it make sense for Kentucky?

Like West Virginia, Kentucky has a high obesity rate among middle and high school students but has many children who don't always get the food they need to live a healthy life. Kentucky ranks fourth highest in food insecurity among children because 23 percent of Kentucky's children do not always know where they will find their next meal, according to Feeding America�s "Map the Meal Gap" study. (Here's a link to its interactive map, where you can see food insecurity rates by county in order to find out more about your county. One example appears below; orange dots are headquarters of regional food banks.)

A recent bill passed by West Virginia lawmakers addresses the problems of food insecurity, obesity and education simultaneously and serves as the first example for a statewide public-private funding partnership to improve school meals programs, reports David Gutman of The Associated Press. The bill would also require every county to set up a fund to collect private food donations.

The bill aims to require every school to have breakfast food programs so no student goes without it because of costs, says Gutman. Poor nutrition and diet are sometimes issues of cost and income level since healthy foods can be more expensive than unhealthy ones. For example, a bag of 10 apples may costs $4.99, but a package of Little Debbie oatmeal creme pies could be $1.79. A medium-sized apple has 93 calories and less than 1 gram of fat while an oatmeal creme pie has 318 calories and 13 grams of fat.

What does this have to do with obesity? The research-based logic is that a healthy, daily breakfast improves diet and can replace sugary alternatives such as donuts. Eating a healthy breakfast also improves education by combating hunger and aiding concentration and has been found to be associated with overall health and mental functioning. Overall, these factors may work together to improve education and diet, reports Gutman.

Such a program could help Kentucky address the state's problems related to food insecurity, obesity and education, while generating long-term savings. Similar food programs that provide meals to low-income children could generate as much as $41 billion in long-term federal saving by preventing obesity, says a new report from the Campaign to End Obesity.

The report says that the S-CHIP childhood obesity demonstration project, which combines changes in preventive care with community and school efforts to reduce childhood obesity in low-income communities, could prevent a child from becoming obese, saving an estimated $41,500 for an average female and $30,600 for an average male Medicaid beneficiary, says the report.

Three other programs were highlighted as huge cost-savers because they would prevent obesity and related chronic conditions in the long run, which would reduce health care costs and increase wages, says the report. These include increasing obesity screenings by physicians, bringing the Diabetes Prevention Program to scale and covering certain weight loss drugs under Medicare Part D. Preventive health policies aimed at obesity prevention could significantly reduce government expenditures, could save tax dollars and could improve the overall health of Kentuckians.

Kentucky Health News is an independent news service of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky, with support from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.