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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 28, 2005

Contact: Marisa Ramirez
713.743.8152 (office)
713.204.9798 (cell)
mrcannon@uh.edu

(HOUSTON, February 28, 2005)—A University of Houston researcher wants to BOUNCE nutrition and exercise plans into area schools. Norma Olvera of the Health and Human Performance Department is coordinating her research team to begin a comprehensive program that will increase physical activity and improve nutritional habits of young Hispanic girls.

“The BOUNCE study is about altering behaviors and perceptions about eating and physical activity,” said Olvera. “We want to teach girls to be more active, eat more fruits and vegetables and less fat.”

BOUNCE, which stands for Behavior Opportunities Uniting Nutrition, Counseling and Exercise, focuses on 5th grade girls and their mothers. The three-month BOUNCE study will be structured like a physical education class and will be presented three days a week. The girls and moms will learn about good nutrition choices and learn to kick box and dance. The program also includes a counseling component that builds self-esteem by teaching coping skills to deal with pressures to be thin. The 50 girls will come from Rusk Elementary School where the presentations will be held.

Olvera, who studies how family, environment, and culture affect diet and physical activity, says there is a great need for research to learn about Hispanic families’ perception about obesity and physical activity. She says her studies have found that more than 40 percent of Hispanic children in Houston are overweight, which far outpaces the national average of 11percent of all children.

“What I’ve found is that parents usually believe that if a child is eating, she’s healthy, even if the child is overweight, even if the child is making poor food choices,” said Olvera. “The act of eating is equated to healthy living.”

The BOUNCE study will begin with a few girls in the summertime and begin in earnest in the fall. At the end of the three months Olvera and her research team will determine if the girls’ eating and exercise habits are changing. She hopes to replicate this program in other schools and districts. Eventually, she would like to see programs that allow parents and children to work together toward good health while uncovering the relationship between culture and obesity.

Olvera’s BOUNCE study is being funded by the UH College of Education’s Faculty Research Opportunity Award.

For more information about the UH Health and Human Performance, please visit http://www.hhp.uh.edu/

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