A win-win for Hopewell Valley’s children and future

GUEST OPINION

By David Knowlton
   During my four decades of work in health care and public policy at the state and national levels, I have come across no more imperative and alarming an issue than that of childhood obesity.
   Consider just one startling fact and you, too, will understand the urgency: The Centers for Disease Control recently suggested that the current generation of American children may become the first generation in our nation’s history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. The primary culprit? The near-epidemic incidence of diabetes in children.
   Fortunately, we will not need to assemble a host of experts and scientists to devise a solution and come to grips with this issue. The answers are simple and they are proven: We have to get our children eating better and exercising more. The fundamental core to this remedy are changes in our children’s everyday lifestyles that promote and encourage a safer, healthier and longer life.
   So it’s ironic that I read in my morning newspaper that the Hopewell Valley Regional Board of Education will restore bus service for children in four neighborhoods in Pennington. This action, according to the board, was without a compelling safety or distance concern to be addressed.
   Children walking more is an important lifestyle change to be encouraged and walking to school or to a nearby bus stop can be an important part of this effort where they can absolutely do so in safety.
   Earlier this year, the organization I lead, the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, with the support of former Gov. Jim Florio, former First Lady Lucinda Florio and Dr. Mehmet Oz, director of interventional cardiology at Columbia University Medical Center, announced the formation of the "Mayors Wellness Campaign" (MWC) to support mayors as champions of community health. The goal of this campaign was to increase opportunities for New Jersey residents to participate in daily physical activity with a long-term goal of reducing health-care costs secondary to obesity. By encouraging mayors to play a leadership role in supporting local opportunities for active, healthy lifestyles, the MWC intends to improve health and make New Jersey a national leader in community based health interventions.
   In less than a year’s time, thanks to the support of the League of Municipalities, particularly its Executive Director William Dressel, and generous grants from Aetna and Benecard, the Mayors Wellness Campaign has seen 70 of the state’s town’s pledge support and cooperation toward its goals.
   Central to the MWC core mission is to promote programs and efforts to attack childhood obesity. Our work in this field is not just necessary, it is urgent.
   The Mayors Wellness Campaign already has identified several programs that may work in Pennington:
   Safe Routes to School — Safe Routes to School (SRTS) is a national initiative to provide daily opportunities for youth to learn about health and gain the level of activity needed to remain fit. It also improves pedestrian safety and builds a sense of community as more people take to the streets. The key aim is to encourage and enable children to safely walk and cycle to school through an approach combining encouragement, education, engineering, enforcement and evaluation.
   Walking School Bus — Today many municipalities are implementing Walking School Bus programs to provide children with a safe, fun, and healthy way to walk to school. The walking school bus concept is simple: safe and easy walking routes are established near a school and students use these routes, much like a normal bus route, to travel to school. Each route is monitored by an adult, the "route guide," who walks the route from beginning to end to ensure that every student makes it safely to their destination. While the Walking School Bus can be a stand-alone initiative, it also can be a component of a larger Safe Routes to School effort. Walking School Bus programs are already working in places like Somerville and Lebanon Borough.
   These are just two of the programs that are described on our Web site: www.mayorswellnesscampaign.org
   In addition, Gov. Jon Corzine’s recently announced "Pedestrian Safety Initiative" will provide $74 million over five years, with $15 million specifically marked for the Safe Routes to School program. With the governor’s announcement, it would appear that the timing is right to launch a new effort in Hopewell Valley that will get children out of their bus seats and moving. We might even help our children lead longer, healthier lives. This could be a "win-win" for everyone.
   
David Knowlton is president and CEO of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, a Trenton-based non-profit foundation. He resides in Pennington.