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The average age for having a first baby in 2002 was 25.1 years, an American record, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. And birth rates for women ages 35-39 and 40-44 were the highest in more than three decades. The rate of women having babies, ages 20-24, was on the decline and the rate for those 25-29 was stable, but still the highest of all age groups, at 114 per 1,000 women. In contrast, the rate for teens was 43 per 1,000, a historic low for the CDC. However, the number of births to unmarried women reached a record high of 1.366 million in 2002. The CDC reports that this reflects a growing number of unmarried women rather than an increase in the rate. Higher-order births continue to rise. The twin birthrate increased 3 percent between 2001 and 2002 to 31 twin births per 1,000 births. That's up 38 percent since 1990 and 65 percent since 1980. The rate for triplets and other multiple births dropped slightly to 184 per 100,000 in 2002. This is a reverse in huge climbs that include a 400 percent increase between 1980 and 1998. n Information: www.cdc.gov/nchs. Click on Vital Statistics/Birth Data. apple a day Carefully pack your child's school lunch Mott's Inc. recently conducted a survey regarding the health benefits of apples and the dieting habits of Americans. Below are tips for parents to integrate healthy snacking into a child's diet. ‰ When it comes to bag lunches, a majority of parents (71 percent) pack fruit for their kids. Apples (72 percent) proved to be the most popular lunch bag fruit, followed by bananas (50 percent), oranges (28 percent) and grapes (25 percent). Pack a variety of healthy snacks in your child's lunch throughout the week. Keep an assortment of fruit and other nutritious snacks in clear containers that can be easily reached by children. Allow your child to be part of food selections when grocery shopping. Teach him the importance of choosing healthy snacks that will help boost energy levels throughout the day. Children learn from watching adults. Make sure to set a good example by making healthy food choices for yourself. look to yourself Parents are models for healthy lifestyles Nearly 1,000 dietetic professionals identified parents as one of the most important elements in the fight to reduce childhood obesity. As part of the Quaker Oatmeal Strive for Five program, these experts claim that when parents act as good nutritional role models by consuming more whole grain foods, eating breakfast every day and controlling portion sizes, they can help prevent excessive weight gain in their children. Quaker Oatmeal, along with the American Dietetic Association, created an online resource to assist parents in leading their children to good health. Located at www.quakeroatmeal.com, the program takes 5 to 10 minutes to complete and helps parents organize menus and activities and offers tips, interactive tools and incentives. It suggests making simple but critical changes to the family's lifestyle and suggests the following: Become a good nutritional role model. Assess your own eating and exercise habits and make adjustments. Your children are watching. Introduce whole grains. Fiber-rich foods help reduce weight gain. The online program offers a pantry checklist to help parents incorporate more grains into their family's diet. Eat breakfast daily. Eating breakfast helps keep hunger at bay throughout the morning and lessens the chance of overeating at lunch. Learn correct portion size. A "Portion Distortion" tool helps children understand appropriate portion size. For example, visuals such as a deck of cards or a baseball help kids understand the concept. Measure progress. It's important to show your children the progress your family has made in improving overall health. TEACHERS OF THE YEAR Joseph Balleweg of Chaparral High School in Temecula and Kristin Wagner of Palm Desert Middle School in Palm Desert have been selected as the 2004 Riverside County Teachers of the Year. Balleweg and Wagner will represent Riverside County at the California Teacher of the Year competition in November. Balleweg, who was profiled in January's Inland Empire Family Magazine as one of the 10 Teachers Making a Difference, is an English teacher at Chaparral High School. He is also a journalism teacher and varsity tennis coach at Chaparral. Wagner, a teacher with16 years experience, is currently an eighth-grade humanities teacher at Palm Desert Middle School. She has also worked with the Torres Martinez Indian Reservation on a program called Native Voices. OUTPATIENT CENTER DEDICATED Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation held a special dedication ceremony recently at its new Tamkin Outpatient Center. The ceremony was held to honor Dr. S. Jerome and Judith D. Tamkin, whose gift of $2.5 million to the Casa Colina Foundation supported the opening of the new center in 2003. The Tamkins are long-standing supporters of Casa Colina and have also assisted Casa Colina's Outdoor Adventures program and Education Center in past years. The Tamkin Outpatient Center offers individuals a state-of-the-art venue for medical care, physical therapy, speech therapy, and other specialized health services. At 255 East Bonita Ave. in Pomona. Information: 909.596.7733. QUAKES' NEW GENERAL MANAGER North Johnson is the new general manager of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. He hopes to bring a touch of southern hospitality to the Epicenter, which has already been voted the No. 1 Class A ballpark by Baseball America. Johnson spent 16 years as general manager of the minor league Kinston Indians in North Carolina. Game and events information: 909.481.5252. GRANTS PROVIDED FOR SAN BERNARDINO SCHOOLS County Superintendent of Schools Herbert Fischer recently used his annual State of Education address to announce that his department had received $8.8 million in grants for the 2003-04 academic year. County schools and individual school districts are using this funding to expand educational opportunities for students and professional development for teachers, and to provide additional resources to low-income families and low-performing schools. REBATES TO RIVERSIDE SCHOOLS Alvord Unified School District and Riverside Unified School District have received $450,000 in electricity rebates form the city of Riverside Public Utilities Department to upgrade computer technology. The so-called Energy Star programs provides incentives for non-residential electric customers to purchase new, high-efficiency products that use less energy than standard units. The two school districts purchased almost 5,000 computers between August 2000 and June 2003 that were Energy Star-rated computer products. |
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