Food security programs, featuring IHCRC's "Food for Life" Community Food Project, aired on Oklahoma Horizon Sunday, October, 18 on OETA. Oklahoma Horizon is a weekly television show that showcases contributions made by individuals, companies and other organizations across the state to benefit Oklahoma's economic development and quality of life. The show that aired on October 18 featured: Obesity in Oklahoma - The Oklahoma Department of Health is taking action in response to Oklahoma's obesity-ranking of fourth in the nation. Oklahoma's Food Deserts - Work is going on to turn around a growing phenomenon in Oklahoma that leads to a neighborhood's decline, malnutrition and obesity. A food desert is an area where fresh food is unavailable. Food Deserts - State Representative Richard Morrissette discussed the issue of food deserts. Community Gardens - Thanks to a revolutionary new growing method, members of the Women in Agriculture have planted a community garden in the midst of Oklahoma City's urban landscape. McDairy - McDonald's may be more healthy thanks to Oklahoma dairy farmers.
The 30-minute weekly production is a partnership between the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry and the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education. Oklahoma Horizon is broadcast on a network of stations reaching 150 million homes. Oklahoma Horizon also airs on local cable stations, nationally on RFD-TV and in Europe on the Global Broadcasting Network. For information about show times: http://www.okhorizon.com/show_archives.htm. For more information about the IHCRC's "Food for Life" Community Food Project, contact Steve Eberle at (918) 588-1900 ext. 3221 or via email at seberle@ihcrc.org.
Taste of North Tulsa
North Tulsa residents and local food advocates gathered to sample a Taste of North Tulsa, "Better Choices, Longer Life," a special healthy dining out event held Thursday, October 8, 2009 at Tulsa's McLain High School for Science and Technology, 4929 N. Peoria Avenue. The purpose of the Taste of North Tulsa event was to educate the community about making better food choices when eating out at local restaurants. Read more in the Healthy Spirit Fall 2009 issue.
The Problem
In its December 2007 report, the Oklahoma Task Force on Hunger found that Oklahoma is one of the hungriest states in America. Over the past ten years, the percentage of the state's population classified as "food insecure" rose from 13.1 percent to 14.6 percent; the percentage of our state population experiencing hunger, classified as experiencing very low food security, rose from 4.2 percent to 5.3 percent. On both measures, Oklahoma ranks as one of the five worst states in the country. The threat of hunger is especially prevalent among children, as more than one in every five Oklahoma children lives in a food insecure household. Due to their special needs, Oklahoma seniors and disabled individuals are also at high risk of hunger.
Oklahomans face many challenges in terms of household income, current health trends, and access to healthy foods. Oklahoma's food insecurity, is linked to our state's high poverty rate and to our state's obesity epidemic. Nearly one in six Oklahoma families are living in poverty at 15.9 percent. The poverty level in 2007 is $20,650 for a family of four. The lack of financial resources for adequate food budgets makes it difficult for families to obtain nutritious food on a consistent basis, leading to unhealthy eating patterns and poor dietary habits. Among Oklahoma households living below the poverty line, 36.3% are classified as food insecure and 14.8% experience hunger; and in households with income at or below 185% of the federal poverty line, 27.3% are classified as food insecure and 10.7% experience hunger.
Surprisingly, food insecurity can lead to obesity when households are forced to trade food quality for food quantity in order to alleviate hunger. Cheaper foods that are more likely to decrease hunger for a longer period of time include processed foods and foods with excess calories. This trading of food quantity for reduced quality allows the purchase of more calories for the dollar, but can lead to obesity. The body changes its utilization of calories based on the frequency and types of meals it receives. It can quickly become more efficient at storing calories as fat in order to compensate for when food is not available. This dynamic, in conjunction with significant overeating when food is available (thus storing significantly more calories and putting on extra pounds), can also lead to obesity.
Skipping meals, decreasing portion size, and reducing variety (i.e. being classified as food insecure) can lead to a host of problems. In the US, being food insecure can lead to malnutrition, elsewhere in the world it can lead to starvation and death. Food insecurities in America more often lead to more frequent and/or severe illnesses, stunting in physical development, learning disabilities and decreased psychological development (Food Research, 2007).
Photos from recent a video-taping for an upcoming segment on OK Horizon, harvesting vegetables with a family at Jane Addams and a cooking demostration in the home of a WIC mom and her family.
Creating Solutions. . .