Childhood obesity is a severe problem in the United States and Texas, where 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese, including almost half of the state’s Hispanic children. Currently, more than 1.1 million little Texans spend time at the state’s nearly 20,000 early childcare and education (ECE) programs. Unfortunately, over 30% of Texas’ children between the ages of 2 and 4 are already overweight or obese.
Healthy living matters. Promoting physical activity in ECEs is a critical step in reducing obesity at an early stage. It also encourages healthy behaviors that support children during early development and later in life. Early childhood is a critical time for obesity prevention because it’s a phase where children begin to develop taste preferences, learn to walk and play, and copy the behaviors they see.
In working together to ensure that these opportunities for quality training exist, we provide children with a greater likelihood to be at a healthy weight, prevent chronic diseases, and improve academic success and classroom behaviors.
We are working on preventing childhood obesity and invite you to join our “Calls to Action” and commit to providing and promoting quality training opportunities in obesity prevention.
We aim to serve as the location to offer resources to prevent childhood obesity through this page. See below for more information.
ECE Professional Resources
Sign our ECE Professional’s “Call to Action” to commit to helping prevent childhood obesity.
Statewide opportunities
- Texas Association for the Education of Young Children- Healthy Child Care Texas: Healthy Child Care Texas is a state initiative dedicated to promoting optimal health, safety, nutrition, and development for children in out-of-home child care programs while training Child Care Health Consultants and offering other means of support.
- Scholarships are Now Available for Early Education Apprenticeship Program in the State of Texa: T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Texas is partnering with Camp Fire Early Education Apprenticeship Program (EEAP), an educational and career pathway for early educators in licensed child care programs.
County-specific opportunities
- OLE! Texas Network Expansion: Childhood Obesity Prevention Collaborative in Harris County: Outdoor Learning Environment (OLE!) Texas is a statewide initiative that promotes healthful, nature-based outdoor spaces at early childcare and education (ECE) programs. A healthy outdoor environment helps preschool children be more physically active while playing, discovering, and connecting with nature.
- Harris County Texas Healthy Building Blocks Pilot: The Texas Department of State Health Services and partner agencies are actively recruiting early childhood programs in Harris County interested in participating in the THBB pilot project. The pilot project’s goal is to use, evaluate, and improve THBB for use throughout the state of Texas. Other partners for the pilot program in Harris County include GO NAPSACC, Texas Minimum Standards, and Texas Child Care Licensing.
Trainer Resources
Sign our Trainers’ “Call to Action” to commit to helping to prevent childhood obesity.
Statewide opportunities
-
Texas Association for the Education of Young Children- Healthy Child Care Texas: Healthy Child Care Texas is a state initiative dedicated to promoting optimal health, safety, nutrition, and development for children in out-of-home child care programs while training Child Care Health Consultants and offering other means of support.
County-specific opportunities
- Harris County Texas Healthy Building Blocks Pilot: The Texas Department of State Health Services and partner agencies are actively recruiting early childhood programs in Harris County interested in participating in the THBB pilot project. The pilot project’s goal is to use, evaluate, and improve THBB for use throughout the state of Texas. Other partners for the pilot program in Harris County include GO NAPSACC, Texas Minimum Standards, and Texas Child Care Licensing.