|Courtney Cagle, 14, of Clinton learns| how to cook healthy
spaghetti in UK's Cooperative Extension nutrition program
Reporter James Nold Jr. writes that when experts were asked
about their concerns for the state, childhood obesity was front
and center. The state ties Georgia and Arkansas for the second
highest share of children (37 percent) who are obese, and it
trails only Mississippi among children 10 to 17. That’s more
than one in three kids who are grossly unfit. Also of concern
are Kentucky children's high rates of asthma, abuse, neglect,
and cigarette smoking. The numbers for these are so bad and so
seemingly out of control now that health professionals would be
happy just to see them remain stable in the future, instead of
continuously rising. Nold writes that the experts' urgency on
these matters was palpable. A lot of them talked about the way
poor nutrition can harm children now and throughout the rest of
their lives. They also expressed deep concern for the lack of
dental education and care, the n