Bill Text: NJ A4140 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires certain school districts to include fitness and nutrition wellness program as part of implementation of New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-06-02 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Education Committee [A4140 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-A4140-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman EDWARD H. THOMSON
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Requires certain school districts to include fitness and nutrition wellness program as part of implementation of New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning fitness and nutrition instruction for certain students and supplementing chapter 35 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. Childhood obesity has reached epidemic levels in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for children and adolescents between the ages of two and 19, the prevalence of obesity is 19.3 percent and it affects approximately 14.4 million children and adolescents.
b. Childhood obesity is a complex issue that has biological, behavioral, social, economic, environmental, and cultural causes which over decades have led to an adverse environment for maintaining a healthy weight.
c. Childhood obesity may significantly undermine a person's health and well-being throughout their lives, often leading to social stigma and physical or psychological conditions including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and steatohepatitis (fatty liver disease).
d. Recognizing that many factors play a role in childhood obesity, school districts should incorporate into their curriculum all-inclusive fitness and nutritional wellness programs that teach children, teens, and their families how to live healthier lifestyles.
2. a. A school district that includes grades kindergarten through six shall develop and incorporate a fitness and nutritional wellness program into the district's curriculum as part of its implementation of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education. The purpose of the educational program shall be to reduce childhood and adolescent obesity by promoting healthy lifestyle habits, including physical activity and good nutrition.
b. The program required pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall, at a minimum, include:
(1) an overview of the different types of foods and food groups, including information on how to differentiate between healthy and unhealthy foods;
(2) instruction concerning the impact that an adequate and well-balanced diet has on an individual's overall physical and mental health;
(3) instruction concerning the impact that exercise and maintaining an active lifestyle has on an individual's overall physical and mental health; and
(4) workshops or other events informing students and their parents or guardians of the importance of a well-balanced diet and exercise on an individual's overall physical and mental health.
3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first be applicable in the first full school year next following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires each school district that includes grades kindergarten through six to develop and incorporate a fitness and nutritional wellness program into the district's curriculum as part of its implementation of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education. The purpose of the educational program is to reduce childhood and adolescent obesity by promoting healthy lifestyle habits, including physical activity and good nutrition.
Under the bill, the wellness program is required, at a minimum, to include:
· an overview of the different types of foods and food groups, including information on how to differentiate between healthy and unhealthy foods;
· instruction concerning the impact that an adequate and well-balanced diet has on an individual's overall physical and mental health;
· instruction concerning the impact that exercise and maintaining an active lifestyle has on an individual's overall physical and mental health; and
· workshops or other events informing students and their parents or guardians of the importance of a well-balanced diet and exercise on an individual's overall physical and mental health.
