Sometimes a child can eat all of the right foods but still gain weight. This is when parents should examine portion control. From a young age, kids can become conditioned to eat all of the food in front of them, whether they’re hungry or not. Serving appropriate portions to children helps them eat only what they need. Here is a general guideline about how much kids should be eating:

• Toddlers should eat approximately one quarter of an adult-sized portion.

• Children age 4 to 8 should eat one-third of an adult-sized portion.

Even when portion sizes are in check, the ratio of food groups offered can lead to weight gain. According to the “plate method,” one-half of a child’s plate should be vegetables, one-quarter should be starchy sides (including corn, potatoes and peas), and one-quarter should be lean protein. Fruit and low-fat dairy servings may be added. If a child asks for seconds, offer more vegetables.

~ Jennifer Crouse, RD, CD, CDE, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin

When I tell people what I do for a living, often I get a puzzled look when I say, “I advocate for children’s health.” I explain that I work for Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, and it’s my job to make sure our elected officials understand how the work they do impacts the lives of children.

For example, a recent proposed change in President Obama’s budget calls for the elimination of federal funding for Children’s

Thirty-six lab coats hang outside Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin to raise awareness of the impact of proposed funding cuts to resident training programs on health care for children.

Graduate Medical Education. This cut is alarming because it has a real impact on Wisconsin and the health of our children. The funding provides children’s hospitals with much-needed dollars for physician education. In Wisconsin, 60 percent of residents from Children’s Hospital’s training programs choose to stay here when they complete their residency training. Some may practice in primary care by joining a pediatric practice and others choose to train further. All of them help our children.

So, you may ask, how does the elimination of federal funding for this program impact our children? It means we’ll have fewer doctors who specialize in the care of children to take care of our kids.

Please consider contacting your federal elected officials. It truly can have a great deal of impact and only takes a few minutes. In fact, it takes less than 10 individual letters to get an elected official’s attention on a particular issue. To learn more about the funding cuts, visit nachri.net.

Are you interested in learning more about Children’s Hospital advocacy efforts and the work we are doing with elected officials? Sign up to receive updates from Children’s Advocacy Network.

~ Michelle Mettner, vice president, Government Relations, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin

We know that most people understand that child abuse is critical problem on par with child poverty. The Child Abuse Prevention Fund is making a difference. By funding services like in home visits for parents interested in having support, we are able to make a significant difference in the lives of children. Throughout April, we will post information about how home visits are making a difference at facebook.com/CAPFund.  In the meantime consider this information about the prevalence of child abuse across the nation and in Wisconsin.

In 2009, over three million children were reported abused and neglected in the United States.  Of that, more than 56,000 reports of child abuse and neglect occurred in Wisconsin.  This means, a child is reported abused and neglected in our state at a shocking rate of every 9 minutes.

You can help us provide hope. You can help us make a difference in the life of a child.

~ Jennifer Hammel, director, Child Abuse Prevention Fund

I was a single mom with two babies under age 1. This is a struggle in itself, and I had a past that was pulling me in the wrong direction.

I am a survivor of child sexual, physical and emotional abuse. My mom spent several years in prison for selling cocaine and for having firearms. Despite this, I loved my mom and was devastated when she left one day and didn’t come back for three years. I was 12 at the time, so I had to help my grandmother raise my sisters and brother.

It wasn’t uncommon that I looked for love in the wrong places, finding myself with two kids and no parenting skills or family support. I was overjoyed to hear of a program that would help me become a better parent. I became involved in the Healthy Families program, a home-visitation program supported by the Child Abuse Prevention Fund at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. These programs work.

Healthy Families taught me how to set goals. The program taught me how to discipline my children in a positive way. I learned what behaviors to expect from my kids at different ages. My support worker, Shirley Wehmeier, was my mentor and coach. She taught me I could do anything.

I got my High School Equivalency Diploma and went to college for a year. I got my driver’s license, a car and a job in an office.

My family is a product of the Healthy Families program. My kids excel at school and are involved in sports and activities. I provide free credit and budget counseling services to people through La Casa de Esperanza and United Way of Waukesha County. I am a bilingual certified tax preparer, a certified notary and a certified housing specialist, doing pre- and post-purchase counseling for first-time home buyers and foreclosure prevention counseling. I also volunteer my time to help build a stronger community. Most importantly, I was able to break the cycle of abuse and my children are happy and healthy.

The Safe at Home campaign raises money to support home visitation programs like Healthy Families. Help families like mine. Visit safe-at-home.org.

~ Gina M. Sanchez

As a public health professional in Milwaukee, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Children’s Health Education Center in some capacity over the last decade. I recently transitioned to the private, nonprofit sector and serve as director of Health & Life Skills for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee.

One of my primary functions is to assess needs and develop health programming for more than 30,000 youth members. The Health & Life Skills department is one of five core service areas that educates youth about key issues that affect our community. We cover topics such as childhood obesity, teen pregnancy prevention/sexually transmitted infection, substance abuse awareness and healthy relationships. The majority of interventions are provided to youth via traditional instruction, such as classroom lectures, small group style facilitation, hands-on activities and service learning. I’m an avid fan of technology and incorporating innovative tools such as iPads, social networking and video messaging to increase teaching efficiency.

I quickly realized one issue that impacts our department’s ability to reach our youth is how we use technology. We needed to make our health messages relevant and engaging. I found the solution to my dilemma at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Best Practice conference.

The staff from Children’s Health Education Center conducted an interactive session about the BlueKids.org e-learning programs. I was very impressed with the interface and ease of use of the program from the adult perspective. Shortly after the presentation, I met with Bridget Clementi and Clay Anton to explore opportunities for our club members and BlueKids.org. We decided It’s UR Choice youth substance abuse prevention model was the best fit for a pilot, because it neatly fit into an existing substance abuse prevention program we were offering called Smart Choices.

Mr. Jamar Wills, Milwaukee Reality Check Coalition coordinator, organized and facilitated the Smart Choices program, which includes peer education and positive peer modeling. The Boys & Girls Club has received funding from MillerCoors to provide the Smart Choices program to youth members with this program, they have demonstrated increased resistance to drugs and alcohol, greater abuse awareness and positively changing social norms of substance use.

Currently, It’s UR Choice is being piloted at three club sites in the urban area. Our goal is to enable 20 youth members per site to complete the entire program. Use of It’s UR Choice for middle school students has been well received. I am very impressed with the pilot’s progress to date. It is our intent, once the pilot has been successfully completed, to expand access to It’s UR Choice, to all youth in the Smart Choices program.

~ Jeanette Kowalik, MPH, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee