Congressman Bill Owens is urging schools in the 23rd Congressional District to take part in the Smarter Lunchroom Movement, promoting healthier food choices for children.

The Smarter Lunchroom Movement is sponsored by the Cornell BEN Center at Cornell University. The program helps children to make healthier choices by working with schools to change their lunchrooms in ways that actually encourage healthier eating.

Owens says he would like to see more schools build on the success that pilot programs in Saranac Lake and Plattsburgh schools have achieved.

Between 2007 and 2008, more than one-third of children in the nation ages 6 to 19 were considered overweight or obese. In New York, 32 percent of surveyed children in pre-kindergarten through 10th grade were reported as overweight or obese.

Schools from Saranac Lake, Beekmantown, Peru and Plattsburgh have participated in pilot studies that helped to develop techniques that promote healthier eating habits in schools, and Owens says he wants other schools throughout the sprawling district from Lake Champlain to Lake Ontario, including St. Lawrence County, to look into the program..

“Childhood obesity is a serious problem in New York State, and programs like the Smarter Lunchroom Movement help us to tackle this issue head-on,” said Owens. “Providing healthier choices in schools will allow students to live the full and active lives they deserve and, in doing so, prevent disease and bring down the overall cost of health care.”

For more information on how to participate in the Smarter Lunchroom Movement, school administrators can visit www.smarterlunchrooms.org.