February Blog_2020

Blue's Blog February 2020

#bluesblog

February 5, 2020 - pdf version

 

 

Hi everyone! I’m so excited, it’s February, American Heart Month!  That means all month long we’ll be celebrating our hearts and continuing to do things that keep our hearts healthy.   We learned that our heart helps to pump blood throughout the body and that that we need to do 60 minutes cardiovascular activity each day.  This means we are playing, running, swimming, riding our bikes or doing fun things that use the big muscles in our arms and legs.  We should also make sure we are fueling our heart with healthy foods, plenty of fruits and vegetables and not too many sweets! 

 

 

This month we talked to our friend and Glide’s pediatrician, Dr. Audey Lewis Veach, about what kids should do to keep their hearts healthy.  Dr. Lewis Veach currently serves children and families at Duke Primary Care Heritage Pediatric.  When we asked her about what so important about being active and heathy, she said "most children start out life with healthy hearts and it’s important to establish healthy habits early to keep them that way."

 

 

Pediatric cardiovascular health can be broken down into three major categories:

  1. Know your risk factors- high cholesterol, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, genetics, etc.
  2. Get (and keep!) moving-a least 1 hour of physical activity time most days of the week, limited screen time with no devices in bedrooms, and family movement activities.
  3. Eat (and drink!) smart-offer children a variety of foods, ½ the plate should be fruit and vegetables, hide veggies in meals, shoot for 5 servings of fruits and veggies throughout the day.

 

Click here to read more from our talk with Dr. Lewis-Veach.                          

           

To celebrate everything related to your heart, Happy Valentine’s Day!  Love your heart today and all month long by eating right and staying active.  Check out some healthy recipes for kids and activity ideas on our Be Active Kids Pinterest page.   Follow us on Facebook to check out our weekly posts and resources for more activaties to keep you moving!

 

Keep loving your heart by staying active and eating healthy foods.  Share your pictures and ideas on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using #caughtbeingactive, #beactiveblue, and @beactivekids   See you in March for National Nutrition month!

 

 

Blue the Caring Cub

Testimonials

  • Preservice Teachers Learn to Use Be Active Kids in Limited Spaces

    I really enjoyed our class meeting. It was interesting to discover that you can do just about anything with children in the classroom where there may not be much space to encourage them to be active.  A change that I will make in my own life is to be more active, as well as my daughter. I will share this information with my friends that have children such as yoga animals, or Simon Says.

    Cathy Sesta, Parent & Child Care Provider
  • Early Childhood Physical Activity Institute

    Thank you for inviting me to be part of this year’s Institute. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed the experience. You’re doing amazing work and I hope I’ll be able to continue contributing to it a bunch in the future.

    Rae Pica, www.movingandlearning.com
  • Plenty of Resources That I Can Use and Share

    This class was informative, and I look forward to being physically active with young children. On Friday, I volunteered at a Parents Night Out through my daughter's school. When I got there the kids were watching a movie. I got them up to play Simon Says and Red Light Green Light, however, after that I was stuck on what to do. I wish I had the knowledge I gained from this class, to have made it more exciting.

    I enjoyed your Land and Lake Activity.

    Venessa Wright, Parent & Child Care Provider
  • Be Active Kids Trainers Rock!

    I loved the training.  I would have loved it more if I had the other teachers from my center there also.  I am really looking forward to taking my kit to work and sharing it with my staff.  I liked Brittney, she reminded me of myself as far as being very active and motivated.  When I am at work with my little ones we stay busy all day.  I feel like singing my instructions and dancing my actions helps them to focus better on what I need for them to do.  Britney was great and I learned a lot from her. I am always trying to find new little ways to get the kids moving.

    Tiffany Daniel, Sandhill Community College
  • ECPAI

    The Early Childhood Physical Activity Institute was just wonderful!  Thank you again for including me in such an important effort to create and sustain leaders in EC physical activity. I would love to return to NC anytime that you think I can help. I enjoyed meeting the folks who work with you and hearing about all of the great things that are planned. 

    Linda Carson, Choosy Kids
  • Be Active Kids has Much to Offer

    Congratulations to you and everyone who has been promoting PA for young
    children in NC. You have much to be proud of here. Be Active Kids is an excellent source of ideas for promoting active play in unstructured settings. The Be Active Kids website also has resources on promoting unstructured active play. I encourage folks to review these resources. 

    Diane Craft, SUNY Cortland & Active Play Books