BILL NUMBER: AB 689	CHAPTERED  10/07/05

	CHAPTER  645
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  OCTOBER 7, 2005
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  OCTOBER 7, 2005
	PASSED THE SENATE  SEPTEMBER 1, 2005
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  MAY 31, 2005
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 26, 2005
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 29, 2005

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Nava
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Dymally, Jones, Salinas, and Torrico)

                        FEBRUARY 17, 2005

   An act to add Section 51210.8 to the Education Code, relating to
curriculum.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 689, Nava  Nutrition and physical activity curriculum.
   Existing law requires the State Board of Education to adopt
instructional materials in designated subject areas for use in
kindergarten and grades 1 to 8, inclusive, and to ensure that
curriculum frameworks are reviewed and adopted in each subject area
consistent with the cycles for the submission of instructional
materials. Existing law requires the State Department of Education to
incorporate nutrition education curriculum content into the health
curriculum framework at its next revision, with a focus on pupils'
eating behaviors.
   This bill would require the state board to adopt, on or before
March 1, 2008, content standards in the curriculum area of health
education. The bill would make that duty contingent upon the
availability of funding.  area of health education. Th


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) Physical inactivity and a poor diet account for at least
300,000 deaths in the United States each year.
   (b) According to a 2004 study by the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, deaths caused by physical inactivity and a poor diet
increased by 33 percent over the past decade and may soon become the
leading preventable cause of death.
   (c) The National Center for Health Statistics reports that the
percentage of young people who are overweight has doubled since 1980.

   (d) Of children 5 to 10 years of age who are overweight, 61
percent have one or more cardiovascular disease factors and 27
percent have two or more.
   (e) Over 25 percent of California's 5th, 7th, and 9th grade pupils
are overweight, and close to 75 percent are physically unfit.
   (f) According to the American School Food Service Association's
study of the impact of hunger and malnutrition on pupil achievement,
published in the School Board Food Service Research Review, among
fourth grade pupils, those having the lowest amount of protein in
their diets had the lowest achievement scores.
   (g) Iron deficiency anemia leads to shortened attention span,
irritability, fatigue, and difficulty with concentration.
Consequently, children who are anemic tend to do poorly on
vocabulary, reading, and other tests, as explained in the
Relationship Between Nutrition and Learning: A School Employee's
Guide to Information and Action, published by the National Education
Association.
   (h) A study by the Center on Hunger, Poverty and Nutrition Policy
found that even moderate undernutrition, consisting of inadequate or
suboptimal nutrient intake, can have lasting effects and can
compromise cognitive development and school performance.
   (i) The National Association for Sport and Physical Education
cites nearly 200 studies on the effect of physical activity on
learning, which show that physically fit children perform better
academically.
   (j) In 1997, the Institute of Medicine advised that pupils should
receive the health-related education and services necessary for them
to derive maximum benefit from their education and to enable them to
become healthy, productive adults. Thus, the objectives of the
Healthy People 2010 initiative of the United States Department of
Health and Human Services include increasing the proportion of
schools that provide health education to prevent several health
problems, including education with respect to unhealthy dietary
patterns and inadequate physical activity.
   (k) There is a need for both a sequential physical education that
involves moderate to vigorous physical activity and teaches
knowledge, motor skills, and positive attitudes and activities that
all pupils can enjoy and pursue throughout their lives that are
taught by well-prepared and well-supported staff, as well as health
education content standards that incorporate nutrition and physical
activity concepts, laying the foundation for lifelong healthy habits.

  SEC. 2.  Section 51210.8 is added to the Education Code, to read:
   51210.8.  (a) On or before March 1, 2008, based on recommendations
of the Superintendent, the State Board of Education shall adopt
content standards in the curriculum area of health education.
   (b) The content standards shall provide a framework for
instruction that a school may offer in the curriculum area of health
education. This section does not require a school to follow the
content standards.
   (c) The content standards described in subdivision (a) shall only
be developed if sufficient funds from any source are made available
for that purpose, including state, federal, or private sources.