[OSU Foods for Health] September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, a time to recognize the challenges and opportunities we face in supporting children’s health. As part of our FFH Science Spotlight, we spoke with Carol Smathers, OSU Extension Field Specialist in Youth Nutrition and Wellness, to learn more about her work and how Ohio State is helping kids and families build healthier futures.
What first inspired your work in youth nutrition and wellness, and what continues to motivate you today?
My interest in supporting access to healthy foods and physical activity started when I was a high school exchange student in East Africa. I realized then what a vast range of resources and opportunities children have related to health. When I returned home at age 17, I volunteered with an organization that was establishing one of the first major food banks in Wisconsin. Since then, I have earned degrees in Community Health, Education, and Public Health. My initial work at Ohio State University was with the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk project through Extension’s 4-H Youth Development Program. I later managed the Prevention Research Center in the OSU College of Public Health, which addressed barriers parents face as they seek to maintain a healthy weight in their preschool age children.
In my current role as an Extension Field Specialist, I direct the Ohio Farm to School Program and serve as PI on the CDC-funded High Obesity Program (HOP), which our team prefers to call the “Healthy Opportunities Program”. In each of these roles, I have continually been motivated by cross-sector collaborations that work to bring about increased awareness and knowledge along with policy, system, and environment changes that support healthier choices. [Read full article...]