Healthy Victories December 2022 | |
Celebrate Healthy Victories! | |
|
Del Norte CalFresh Healthy Living (SNAP-Ed) supports healthy, active and nourished lifestyles by teaching Del Norte residents about good nutrition and how to stretch their food dollars, while also building partnerships in communities to make the healthy choice, the easy choice.
Visit Del Norte CalFresh Healthy Living website and learn more about nutrition and physical activity resources and healthful tips. Let's celebrate healthy victories that lead your families healthier and happier!
Visit Our Website
| |
|
CalFresh Healthy Living Program works with educators in early child care and education (ECE) settings. It promotes seasonal and locally grown fruits and vegetables through the Farm to Preschool Harvest of the Month program.
For December Harvest of the Month, we celebrated "Persimmons". We delivered a Harvest of the Month taste testing/resource kit, including persimmons, Farm to the Preschool Harvest of the Month curriculum to 8 ECE sites, including Head Starts, an early learning center, and a state-run Preschool. We also provided Color Me Healthy parent newsletters and other supporting educational materials to the teachers to implement the Farm to Preschool Harvest of the Month curriculum in their classrooms.
Harvest of the Month is a great way to encourage your child to eat more fruits and vegetables at home. Click Family Newsletter for the Harvest of the Month, Persimmons and learn more about the produce tips and serving ideas of the Harvest of the Month, persimmons. Click Drying Persimmon and watch a video that demonstrates on how to dry persimmons using an oven and make Persimmon Oatmeal Cookies; the healthy recipe we modified, Banana Oatmeal Cookies from Eatfresh.org.
| |
|
Last month, Champion for Change, Oren Selah, joined us in the CalFresh Healthy Living kitchen and shared his experiences of soaking seeds and nuts, its health benefits and how to soak them.
Oren stated that seeds and nuts would begin the sprouting process when soaked. Soaking seeds and nuts enhances nutritional value with increased enzyme activity and digestibility as tannic acid is removed from the skin through the soaking process. They become softer, more palatable and reduce digestive problems, so our body can convert the food's nutrients more effectively.
| |
Meet Our Local Champion for Change, Oren Selah
Nuts and seeds are a rich source of plant protein, dietary fiber, and heart-healthy fats (including plant omega-3 fatty acids) and are low in saturated fats. They also contain many vitamins and minerals (such as vitamin E, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, and manganese) and a collection of plant chemicals with potential antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.1 Vitamin E protects cells in our body from damage and keeps our immune system healthy. Healthy fats are good for our skin and brain and help us feel satisfied after meals.
The American Dietary Guidelines emphasize healthy shifts focusing on small improvements. Choose nuts and seeds instead of less healthful options, like processed foods made with refined grains, such as potato chips.
Aim for a small palmful of nuts and seeds or a tablespoon of nut butter five days a week. Remember, small changes make a big difference!
Click the video link on the left and watch Seed Soaking demonstration led by our local Champion for Change, Oren Selah.
1.Staff, E. (2020, June 19). Health Benefits of Nuts and Seeds. https://www.nutritionletter.tufts.edu/healthy-eating/health-benefits-of-nuts-and-seeds/
| | | |
Program Successes and Impact in 2022 | |
|
As 2022 comes to a close, we would like to Thank you for your support and commitment to creating a healthier community that encourages healthy eating and active living in our community. I appreciate your partnership. Reflecting on 2022, we would like to highlight some of our program impact and successes with you.
We are looking forward to building partnerships with you in our communities to support all people in Del Norte County to make the healthy choice, the easy choice for healthy, active, and nourished lifestyles.
| |
Healthy Eating & Active Living in ECE Setting
Under our current work plan, our main target population is preschool-age children under five years old and their families in the early childcare and education (ECE) setting, including Head Start and State Preschool sites. We reached 233 preschool-aged children via either the train-the-trainer model or directly at the ECE target sites during the Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2021-2022.
According to the end-of-year teacher survey for the Harvest of the Month/Farm to Preschool program, conducted in May 2022, 75% (3 out of 4 sites) answered that their students could recognize the featured Harvest of the Month better after the Harvest of the Month activities. And all teachers who participated in the survey from the four ECE sites indicated that the Harvest of the Month/Farm to Preschool program helped students improve their attitudes and knowledge regarding healthy eating and physical activity. We value our partnership and look forward to working with the ECE partners and communities in 2023 with our expanded capacity through a new grant, Farm to ECE Incubator Grant and CalFresh Healthy Living Program.
| | | |
Farmers' Market Campaign, "Nutrition Across the Lifespan" | |
|
We also promoted good nutrition, focusing on fruits and vegetables at the food assistance sites, including farmers' markets and food pantries.
One of our success stories is the farmers' market promotional campaign, "Nutrition Across the Lifespan", which we launched this summer from June to August 2022 at the Downtown Farmers & Artisan Market, partnered with Del Norte County Public Health. We provided seasonal fruit and vegetable taste-testing activities, a Rethink Your Drink promotion, cooking demonstrations, gardening, and Smoothie Bike.
During this campaign, we offered 14 events and reached mixed-age groups, individuals and families. Through this campaign, we deepened our understanding of each other's program in the Del Norte County Public Health department and community buy-in and needs. We also learned the need for more robust and collaborative strategies in our programming and implementation to leverage our resources and increase our reach and impact in promoting good nutrition and healthy lifestyles across the lifespan.
| |
|
|
Success in Partnership and Collaboration with Pacific North Fresh Mobile Pantry Program
Another great success we found in 2022 is our collaborative actions we have made through the partnerships and collaborations with the community. Partnering with the Community Food Council for Del Norte and Adjacent Tribal Lands' Mobile Pantry Program, we joined with them and visited their Mobile Pantry delivery site in Smith River and Klamath and Crescent City Pacific Pantry's Waste Not Weekly site each month. In November, Winter squash was the Harvest of the Month. 35 pantry participants in Smith River and 40 in Crescent City enjoyed the cooking demonstration and taste testing of "Lightly Curried Butternut Squash Soup".
| | | | |
|
|
Over the last nine years, Sunny Baker has been working as a health education coordinator for Del Norte County's CalFresh Healthy Living program. Sunny was recently promoted to Del Norte County Public Health Program Manager on December 9th, 2022. Sunny will continue to oversee the CalFresh Healthy Living Program and the Farm to ECE Incubator Grant project. Sunny finds great joy in working with young children and families and supporting them to make healthy food choices and be physically active. She is excited to promote the health and well-being of our community in this new role. The Health Education Coordinator position is now open. For more information, please check out the County of Del Norte's website
Please Contact Us, either Sunny Baker or Rose Patchin, if you have questions or comments or request the educational materials and resources.
Thank you for your continued support and partnership!
| | | |
Funded by USDA SNAP, an equal
opportunity provider and employer.
Visit CalFreshHealthyLiving.org for
healthy tips.
| |
| | | |
