Nutrition Program Leads Teens to a Healthier Future

Carter County Gets a Health Boost

In Carter County, teenagers are being empowered with the skill-set necessary to make healthier food choices for a promising future. Thanks to a joint initiative between an ETSU Health provider and the Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton, teens are learning how to select and prepare nourishing meals and snacks.

Dr. Evelyn Artz, an involved health specialist in the community, is actively working for this cause. Certified in pediatrics, pediatric endocrinology, and lifestyle medicine, Dr. Artz received a Community Access to Child Health Program grant from the American Academy of Pediatrics which facilitated the development of this remarkable educational program.

An Unseen Epidemic

“As a pediatric endocrinologist, I am now dealing with obesity and lifestyle issues that differ substantially from those in my initial years of practice,” Dr. Artz comments. She is increasingly confronting cases of type 2 diabetes in considerably younger people as well as related complications such as elevated cholesterol levels and high blood pressure.

Dr. Artz believes that teenagers often possess the drive to transform their bad habits, but lack the necessary knowledge about their lifestyle’s long-term impacts. Catered cooking lessons, grocery store field trips, and donated kitchen supplies are among the interventions provided by Dr. Artz to educate the participants about taking proactive steps to prevent obesity and adopt healthier lifestyles.

Boosting Knowledge, Health, Spirits

Nicole Hensley, the Teen Director at the local Club, has lauded Dr. Artz’s initiative. Hensley elaborates on the program’s impact, “Dr. Artz’s program extends into homes. She sends fresh groceries home with our Club members after every session. These take-home bags, filled with ingredients the kids used in their cooking project that day, have been met with much gratitude by their families.”

Assisting Dr. Artz are medical trainees from ETSU’s Quillen College of Medicine. Not only does this provide practical lessons for these aspiring doctors about community outreach, but it also allows Dr. Artz to focus on extending and bettering the program.

Unlocking a Healthy Future

The ultimate objective of the program is to guide the participants to a healthier life full of vitality and wellness. The health improvement endeavors of ETSU Health go beyond this program. It boasts of more than 300 healthcare providers across 30 clinical sites, all committed to enhancing health in Northeast Tennessee by offering superior healthcare across numerous specialties.

The journey to a healthier future has begun in Carter County, led by the inspirational and dedicated efforts of ETSU Health and the local Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton. Their objective remains unambiguous: to promote the importance of nutrition education and cultivate a generation of health-conscious teenagers, equipped to face, and overcome, the obesity crisis.