Oct 19, 2012 — You may have heard about "food deserts", low income areas in cities where supermarkets won't open because they won't make enough money. Area residents struggle to find affordable and fresh fruits and vegetables. Food deserts are widely considered to be one cause of America's obesity epidemic.

It turns out rural areas have "food deserts", too - even when there's a roadside farm stand right down the road, and the USDA's food desert map shows much of the rural North Country falls into that category.

Cornell Cooperative Extension recently won a $96,000 grant to try to improve both consumer access to fresh fruits and vegetables and local farm production. Jefferson and Lewis County Extension Research Educator Amanda Root spoke with David Sommerstein.  Go to full article

Paul Smiths, NY, Oct 06, 2011 — Between the ages of 20 and 50, the average American doubles his or her body fat. As turkey and trimmings are placed on the table and visions of sugar plums dance, get "the skinny" on fat from Dr. Curt Stager and Martha Foley.  Go to full article

Walton, NY, Jun 30, 2011 — It's officially summer for North Country children whose school sessions ended last week. Their parents and teachers are hoping they carry an important lesson with them into summer break - exercise.

Schools are spending more time preaching the importance of exercise to combat childhood obesity. At Edwards-Knox elementary school in St. Lawrence County, students start every day the same way - with a fifteen-minute walk outside.

Steve Knight joined Denise Koser's fourth grade class for their morning walk - as well as a yoga session - and sent this audio postcard.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Mar 01, 2011 — The state's former health commissioner, Dr. Richard Daines, died suddenly over the weekend. The probable cause of death was a heart attack. Daines was the public figure in former Governor Paterson's effort to pass a tax on sugary drinks. Karen Dewitt reports.  Go to full article

Syracuse, NY, Nov 09, 2010 — A cool glass of milk is an American icon of health. But a New York Times article over the weekend casts milk's dairy cousin, cheese, as a poster child of artery-clogging, obesity-inducing fast food.

The article details the efforts of a USDA-sponsored marketing agency called Dairy Management to get people to eat more cheese. Among its projects is a partnership with Domino's to put 40% more cheese on its pizzas. That effort included a $12 million advertising campaign, paid for by Dairy Marketing.
Meanwhile, the USDA itself says cheese is the largest source of cholesterol-causing saturated fat in the American diet.

The Times article set off a flurry of blog posts and opinion pieces with outraged titles like "Strap on Your Feedbags" and "Cheese Industrial Complex." Some commentators called for the new Congress to axe the program as a symbol of excessive government spending.

Reaction in the dairy industry has been muted. But Beth Meyer of the American Dairy Association emphasizes a fact that appears halfway through the article. Dairy farmers - not taxpayers - foot most of the $140 million a year bill to fund Dairy Management as a part of their monthly milk check.

"It's 15 cents per hundredweight," Meyer says. "Ten cents of that money stays local for organizations such as ours, based in Syracuse, NY, so of that goes nationally. So it's really a program of dairy farmers supporting promotion of their own product, which obviously makes a lot of sense."

Still, Dairy Management did get more than $5 million through the USDA last year to promote sales overseas.

Dairy Management is credited with helping to slow the decline of milk drinking with its popular "Got Milk?" campaign.

Meyer says she doesn't think the criticism of the program will hurt North Country farmers. She says there's a place for cheese in moderate eating. "Cheeses are an excellent source of calcium," Meyer says. "They're a nutrient dense food, and we talk about fitting foods into the daily diet, so we think this continues to be a strong program for the dairy farmers in northern New York and certainly throughout our marketing area."

Dairy Management's efforts raise thorny questions about the balance between supporting farms and promoting good nutrition. Local agriculture groups across the North Country encourage farmers to sell so-called "value added" products like cheeses, maple candies, or jellies and jams. Many of them are high in calories.

David Sommerstein put the issue to Bernadette Logozar, local food specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension.  Go to full article

Washington, DC, May 18, 2010 — These are challenging times for people who run school lunch programs. A national TV show this spring took on the school food system.

Leaders in Washington are debating how much money the country should spend on childhood nutrition. And new concerns about nutrition are an eerie echo of the origins of the public school lunch. Julie Grant reports.  Go to full article

Aug 19, 2008 — Health experts say American children face a growing epidemic of obesity. By some measures, one out of every four kids in New York state is seriously overweight, triggering secondary diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. Yesterday, healthcare experts and activists gathered for a summit in Lake Placid to talk about solutions. But as Brian Mann reports, raising healthier kids may mean making changes beyond the dinner table.  Go to full article

Aug 18, 2008 — Representative Kirsten Gillibrand will be in Lake Placid this morning, hosting a conference on childhood health and obesity. Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article

Apr 03, 2008 — There's a difference between having a "sweet tooth" and being obsessed with food. Overeating often leads to obesity and health problems. Todd Moe talks with a Canton woman about life as a compulsive eater, and the road to recovery. The Potsdam chapter of Overeaters Anonymous is sponsoring a "Minithon," or day of sharing, this Saturday at Trinity Episcopal Church.  Go to full article

Aug 22, 2007 — Childhood Obesity is a major public health problem in New York State. One in five North Country children are overweight. The Eat Well Play Hard Program was launched earlier this year across the region to help prevent childhood obesity and reduce long-term risks for chronic disease. It's part of a national project that promotes eating healthy and getting exercise. Jamie Bentley is coordinator of Eat Well Play Hard at the St. Lawrence County Health Initiative. She spoke with Todd Moe.  Go to full article