The Commercial Appeal reports on a visit from First Lady Michelle Obama:
“Our children are not eating properly. We have a lot of parents who don’t know how to serve nutritious meals. If we could teach them to let McDonald’s go, it would have a big impact,” said White, who is president of the West Park Neighborhood Association, where Pecan Park Elementary is located.Obama was joined at Pecan Park Elementary School by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and his wife, Marsha. School Principal Wanda Quon told Obama that the playground equipment was paid for with grants.
The first lady’s campaign on obesity has four parts: helping parents make better food choices, serving healthful food in school vending machines and lunch lines, making healthful food more available and affordable, and encouraging children to exercise more.
Tennessee has a huge problem with obesity ranking 3rd in the nation with a 30.6% obesity rate according to 2008 numbers. Teaching kids to eat more healthily and engage in more activity is the best way to fight against this growing problem.