On Monday, First Lady Michelle Obama will host a kids' "State Dinner" in honor of 54 child chefs who won a healthy recipe contest sponsored by the White House and food and entertainment website Epicurious.
The contest and State Dinner - actually a luncheon - is part of the First Lady's Let's Move! campaign aimed at helping to solve the problem of childhood obesity within a generation.
The contest, which was opened up in May, asked kids and their parents to think up and enter an original lunch recipe "that is healthy, affordable and tasty, and followed the nutritional guidelines set by USDA's ChooseMyPlate.gov site."
Epicurious, the Department of Education and the Department of Agriculture then chose the 54 winners to be honored at next Monday's event. The event will involve a luncheon at the White House with the First Lady, a performance by Nickelodeon music group Big Time Rush and a tour of the White House Kitchen Garden.
The winners range in age from 8 to 12 and represent all of the states plus three territories and the District of Columbia. Some of the winning recipes included 12-year-old Minnesotan Riley Sorensen's Stuffed Red Peppers and Banana Oat Stacks and nine-year-old Californian Sean Reichbach's 3-Pepper Soup.
According to the Let's Move! website, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled in the past three decades with nearly one-third of all American children falling into the category today.
"If we don't solve this problem, one-third of all children born in 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives. Many others will face chronic obesity-related health problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, and asthma," the site states.
Let's Move! strives to put children on the path to a healthy future by giving parents helpful nutrition and fitness information for kids, providing healthier foods in our schools and ensuring every family has access to healthy, affordable food.
Let's Move! was launched on February 9, 2010 by Mrs. Obama, a long-time proponent of fitness and healthy living.
by RTT Staff Writer
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