1. Enhancing Academic Success through Healthy School Environments
Jean Ragalie, RD
President, National Dairy Council
March 4, 2013
The Wellness Impact:
Enhancing Academic Success through Healthy School Environments

2. 1940 White House Conference on Children and Youth
Dr. EV McCollum
1929 Nutrition Education Program
1941 Guide to Good Eating
1971 Big Ideas
1940 White House Conference on Children and Youth

3. Nutrition & Physical Activity Learning Connection Summit
September 2012
Dr. David Satcher
Summit Chair

4. Physical Activity – Healthy Eating Are Linked With……
Academic Success
Health & Well-being
Risk for:
Obesity
Chronic conditions
Chronic Disease

5. Mutually Reinforcing HIGHER ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
POSITIVE HEALTH BEHAVIORS

6. Benefits of Breakfast at School
Fewer disciplinary referrals
Improved attention
As school foodservice professionals, you know the benefits of breakfast. A benefit that hasn’t been mentioned is breakfast’s positive effect on overall nutrient intake.
Research shows that students who eat breakfast have higher consumption of key nutrients than breakfast skippers and
Do not make up for those missed nutrients from other meals. This also makes breakfast critical for a healthy child.
Now let’s talk about the impact of skipping breakfast.
Even among adequately nourished children, diet can impact learning abilities positively or negatively. Unfortunately,  over half of all teens do not eat breakfast each day. Skipping breakfast can have immediate negative effects on learning, especially for children at nutritional risk.
Healthy kids that skip breakfast also get more distracted because they are hungry and therefore don’t do as well on tests.
Less tardiness
Increased math & reading scores
Improved attendance
Fewer visits to health office

7. Improving School Performance
Brain research and impact on solving math problems
Brain activity was more active in breakfast-eaters, fewer mistakes made
Less brain activity and more effort needed by breakfast skippers; more mistakes, too
Other studies show skippers have worse attention and poorer memories than those eating breakfast

8. Physical Activity and Learning
Benefits to cognition after a 20- minute walk
Imaging shows more brain activity in active person than in person sitting quietly
Other research shows obesity has negative effects on cognition

9. Part of the Solution
FuelUpToPlay60.org

10. Spread the Word