Healthy Summer Tips and Ideas from HOST Members

Summer is here, and HOST members are ready with a variety of healthy eating and physical activity tips, actions, and information.

• The National League of Cities shares key steps city leaders can take to support summer meal programs.
• Alliance for a Healthier Generation offers "5 Ways to Engage New Community Partners in Summer Meals."
• June is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month, and the American Heart Association is partnering with Fresh Avocados — Love One Today, a project of the Hass Avocado Board, to share tips and recipes.
• BOKS (Build Our Kids' Success) is also celebrating the month with some ideas for seasonal fruits and healthy drinks.
• No Kid Hungry shares "Three Things To Know About Summer Meals" and summer hunger, and offers sobering information such as the fact that last year, "only about 16 percent of the kids who rely on free/reduced meals during the school year were getting meals in the summer."
• San Antonio is the first U.S. city to conduct a citywide scavenger hunt for free health, wellness, and physical activity events. SaludToday explains the details and origins of this Fit Pass program, which runs from June through July.
• The Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) has released its annual "Hunger Doesn't Take a Vacation: Summer Nutrition Status Report," which finds that after four years of significant growth, national participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs decreased last summer, serving three million children across the country in July 2016, down 4.8 percent from the previous summer. Despite the overall downturn, 22 states increased participation, with eight growing 10 percent or more, "largely as a result of strong outreach efforts by state agencies and partner organizations."