Kids in the Kitchen | Junior League of Alexandria

The goal of the Junior Leagues' Kids in the Kitchen initiative, which is supported by The Association of Junior Leagues International Inc. and its member Leagues, is to empower youth to make healthy lifestyle choices and help reverse the growth of childhood obesity and its associated health issues. The events will provide lessons and demonstrations related to preparation of healthy meals and snacks that are both tasty and affordable. The Junior League of Alexandria will conduct the education program in partnership with local community organizations – the TREE House Children’s Museum and the Alexandria Zoo - in order to raise awareness and provide solutions for this growing problem.

Our local celebrity Chef Denise Wood, owner of Portabella Restaurant, has been providing cooking demonstrations and teaching kids important nutrition tips since the inception of our program. The Association of Junior Leagues International provide materials to support the success of these activities and also continues to distribute recipes and tips on nutrition on a new website, which is http://kidsinthekitchen.ajli.org/.

The program was launched in 2006 by Junior Leagues in over 225 communities and continued in 2007 with participation by over 255 Leagues. By joining together to make an impact on the future health of our youth, Junior Leagues are committed to empowering today’s youth to make choices that help them lead healthy lives.

The initiative illustrates the power of voluntarism to address community problems on both the grassroots and international levels. Recognition of the need for the Junior Leagues’ Kids in the Kitchen program is apparent to community leaders in healthcare and is increasingly gaining attention in the media. This attention is focused on alarming statistics related to the percentages of overweight and obese children and adolescents in all four countries where Leagues exist, and the fact that these youth have increased chances of developing health problems such as Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Educating both children and their families is key to alleviating this growing problem. The Junior Leagues’ Kids in the Kitchen initiative aims to make an impact in this area by educating the public at the grassroots level regarding solutions that they might adopt.

Key to the impact of the initiative is the Kids in the Kitchen website, which includes fitness and nutrition tips from Kids in the Kitchen program partners the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), American Dietetic Association (ADA), Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and many more! The Kids in the Kitchen website also includes a virtual recipe collection from celebrity chefs, local restaurateurs, celebrity moms and nutrition experts, designed to teach young children healthy eating habits at an early age. These recipes are available in electronic and downloadable formats on the new website, http://kidsinthekitchen.ajli.org.

Educational Partners and Supporters:

Cartoon Network's® “Get Animated” http://www.getanimated.com
American Dietetic Association (ADA) http://www.eatright.org
Batter Up Kids! http://www.batterupkids.com
Healthy Kids Challenge (HKC) http://www.healthykidschallenge.com
National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's “We Can!” http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan
School Nutrition Association http://www.schoolnutrition.org
Share Our Strength http://www.strength.org
Texas Dept of Agriculture's “Square Meals” http://www.squaremeals.org
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) http://www.usda.gov
U.S. Centers for Disease Control http://www.cdc.gov

Outreach and Results
In 2006 and 2007 to date, over 200 million people have been reached with messages about the Kids in the Kitchen program and ways to fight the spread of childhood obesity through Public Service Announcements and media coverage. Volunteer national spokespersons, Abby Ellin, author of Teenage Waistland, and George Stella, former Food Network chef and author of Eating Stella Style, have appeared on numerous television programs. In addition, AJLI President, Sandi Kemmish, discussed the initiative in an interview for Sky Radio, which aired on Northwest and American Airlines in March and April. League leaders and local spokespersons have also been featured on television and in print media. The Kids in the Kitchen website attracted over 50,000 unique visitors per month during the height of the media outreach in National Nutrition Month (March) and continues to reach visitors throughout the year. Close to two million people have played the interactive nutrition game.