HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

11

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2002

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

ENCOURAGING SCHOOLS IN HAWAII TO ENCOURAGE CALCIUM INTAKE, ESPECIALLY IN YOUNG WOMEN, AND SUPPORTING EDUCATION AND AWARENESS OF CALCIUM DEFICIENCY.

 

WHEREAS, calcium deficiencies are an epidemic, costing billions of dollars a year annually; and

WHEREAS, calcium deficient diets are found in all generations, races, and genders; and

WHEREAS, the diseases now known to be associated with calcium deficiencies include osteoporosis, adult-, childhood-, and pregnancy-related hypertension (preeclampsia), obesity, colon cancer, premenstrual syndrome, post-partum depression, kidney stone formation, and polycystic ovary disease; and

WHEREAS, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development recognizes inadequate calcium consumption among children and adolescents to be an epidemic and a serious threat to their later health, growth, and development; and

WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control, over sixty-six per cent of today's children cannot or will not get their recommended daily intake of calcium; and

WHEREAS, bones grow and incorporate calcium most rapidly during the teen years, and establish approximately ninety per cent of adult bone mass by age seventeen, but only thirteen per cent of teenage girls get the calcium necessary to build their bones to peak capacity; and

WHEREAS, weight-bearing exercise promotes a positive calcium balance in the body; and

WHEREAS, many children do not meet their needs for calcium but can receive calcium-rich foods and beverages with small changes in their dietary habits; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2002, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Education is urged to encourage students in Hawaii, especially young girls and women, to increase their physical activity and to increase their calcium intake to reduce the incidence of calcium-deficient disease; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Cooperative Extension Service of the University of Hawaii is requested to assign a high priority to education and promoting awareness of the issue of calcium deficiency; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature supports all programs that encourage an increase in consumption of foods high in calcium such as dairy products, dark green leafy vegetables, calcium precipitated tofu, and orange juice; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature supports all proposed purchase preference legislation that indicates a preference for the purchase of calcium-fortified foods and beverages over non-fortified products in all public institutions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature supports the use of calcium supplements for those who cannot or will not consume a normal daily calcium intake; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature supports the promotion of research programs to assess children's overall daily calcium intake and in-school consumption patterns; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to Director of Health, the Superintendent of Education, and the President of the University of Hawaii.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Calcium Initiative