AROUND THE PARISH

Baton Rouge awarded five Gold Medals for Healthy Initiatives

Oct. 6, 2016
For release: IMMEDIATELY

For more information, contact:
Andy Allen, Outreach Officer, (225) 389-3100
Susan Boudreaux, Mayor’s Office: (225) 389-5101
Michelle McCalope, Mayor’s Office: (225) 389-7957

Mayor-President Melvin L. “Kip” Holden announced that Baton Rouge was awarded five gold medals by the National League of Cities (NLC) for the completion of key health and wellness goals as part of the Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) program. Mayor Holden worked with the NLC and First Lady Michelle Obama through his Healthy City Initiative while chair of the NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education, and Families to address childhood obesity and today’s announcement celebrates Baton Rouge achieving top status in each LMCTC goal area.

The LMCTC program is a major component of First Lady Michelle Obama’s comprehensive Let’s Move! initiative to ensure that kids can grow up healthy. LMCTC works closely with local elected officials nationwide to adopt policies that improve access to healthy affordable food and opportunities for physical activity for their constituents across five goal areas.

“We’ve long worked with the National League of Cities and the First Lady to promote healthier lifestyles and policies in Baton Rouge. These medals are another recognition of our commitment to our Mayor’s Healthy City Initiative’s vision of a healthier Baton Rouge for all,” said Mayor Holden.

In participating in the LMCTC program, Baton Rouge is part of a nationwide movement to support health and wellness. The Mayor’s Healthy City Initiative has been recognized by the American Hospital Association and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as a national example of an effective and innovative collaborative movement and with today’s medals, Baton Rouge has again been spotlighted for taking actions to improve access to healthy, affordable food and increase opportunities for physical activity.

In the LMCTC program, all participants have the opportunity to earn up to five gold medals, one for each actionable goal to which they commit to as part of the initiative. Medals are awarded to local elected officials based on their achievements in each of the following five goal areas:

• Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart: Promoting best practices for nutrition, physical activity, and screen time in early care and education settings.
• Goal II: My Plate, Your Place: Prominently displaying MyPlate in all municipal or county venues where food is served.
• Goal III: Smart Servings for Students: Expanding access to meal programs before, during and after the school day, and/or over summer months.
• Goal IV: Model Food Service: Implementing healthy and sustainable food service guidelines that are aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
• Goal V: Active Kids at Play: Increasing opportunities for physical activity.

More than 500 cities, towns and counties are participating in LMCTC, and 80 million Americans are now living in LMCTC communities that are dedicated to helping young people eat healthy foods and be physically active. Each month, NLC recognizes local elected officials who achieve key benchmarks for the five LMCTC goals. Since July 2012, NLC has awarded 3,243 bronze, silver, and gold medals to recognize local elected officials across the country for their LMCTC progress.

For more information go to http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/places/#Baton+Rouge2CLA.