County report finds more children face issues of obesity, poverty
By Michelle Knight knight@theacorn.com

Contrary to the county's image of bucolic affluence, a report released last week found that one in five families lives in poverty, a situation compounded by the high cost of housing.

The 30-page report "Growing Up in Ventura County; Trends and Issues for Children and Their Families," was compiled by the Community Commission for Ventura County, a group composed of officials from schools, community organizations and city and county government.

"It's a good baseline report card," Supervisor Kathy Long, the commission co-chair, said.

According to the report, nearly 30 percent of the county's fifth, seventh and ninth graders were overweight, and two-thirds of all students failed to meet school fitness standards. Hispanic students had the lowest fitness level.

Families are the fastest growing population in county homeless shelters, with 85 percent headed by single mothers and more than half of the children under the age of 6. Alcohol or substance abuse was involved in at least half of the 7,000 county referrals for child neglect.

County Health Services Agency Director Ted Myers said these issues are interwoven.

Homeless families must resort to eating food that's cheap and available because they don't have a kitchen to prepare and cook wholesome meals. That often means eating fast food, which generally isn't nutritious, Myers said.

In addition to consuming too many carbohydrates, many of the county's children lead sedentary lives, become obese and impact the public health system, he said.

Long said what the report has uncovered will "not go on the shelf." Committee members will make presentations to the board of supervisors this week, and later to city councils.

Action is needed at all levels, Long said.

She said cities can help combat obesity, for instance, by building communities that lure people out of their cars and encourage walking.

"We need to help parents and help one another to make a difference in the lives of children," she said. "How do we make this really matter? By providing the tools and solutions."

Claudia Harrison, executive director of First 5 Ventura County, said the report's findings will influence the programs funded.

"It provides a larger context for our work," Harrison said. "It helps us understand the issues and more importantly leads us to an action plan."

The study can be downloaded from the Internet at www.vchsa.org/ccvc/, click on "2006 Report."