Benchmarks for Child-Care Nutrition

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In this month’s journal from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics there is an article that assesses whether or not child-care providers are meeting the recommendations for healthy preschool meals. In 2011, a position statement was released that contained benchmarks for nutrition promotion in child-care. This is similar to the ones that we have been looking at in Management of Food and Nutrition Services. This article assessed whether the established benchmarks are currently being used or met by child-care facilities. The results showed that Head Start programs were the closest to meeting the Academy’s recommendations. This could be due to the fact that Head Start mandates nutrition policies to be in place, while other child-care centers are not required to develop nutrition policies. These policies help to promote a healthy eating environment, healthy eating behaviors and reduce the risk of obesity.

This can be helpful for community dietitians interested in this population. Head Start is a good example of how to implement the Academy’s benchmarks. These policies need to be expanded throughout more child-care settings to help promote healthy eating behaviors in children.

  -AA

Reference:
Dev, A.D., and McBride, B.A. (2013). Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics benchmarks for nutrition in child care 2011: Are child-care providers across contexts meeting recommendations. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. 113 (10):1346-1353.

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