Fitness & Nutrition
The Fitness and Nutrition for Disease Prevention Task Force (FNTF) advocates to improve awareness of the obesity epidemic and to improve the health of the community.
Health Risks
Many children and adults in our nation have health concerns caused by their weight. Having an unhealthy weight may contribute to many preventable causes of death and disease. The risk of developing high blood pressure, high cholesterol, certain types of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and other illnesses increases with weight and age. In Wilkes County, one out of every two children between that are middle school age are at an unhealthy weight (source: Ftiness and Nutrition for Disease Prevention Task Force annual Boby Mass Index Screens fall 2010). As a result, nationwide there has been an increase in the number of young people developing Type II Diabetes, along with other illnesses and conditions.Services
The FNTF wants to lessen the burden of obesity and unhealthy lifestyle choices in our community thorough education of healthy lifestyle choices, resource education, and education of the benefits of regular exercise. The FNTF has worked with community partners to make free or low cost exercise opportunities available for the public and assisting companies to develop healthy worksite practices.Resources & Healthy Practices
- Availability of walking/fitness trails at local schools
- Assisted with the implementation of the IsPOD curriculum in Wilkes County Schools
- Working with local businesses to develop wellness policies for employees and patrons
- Providing free smoking cessation classes for local companies
- Assisting with grant writing to help local agencies obtain grant funds to improve resources for the community