The School of Nursing is working to prevent diabetes — one dance step at a time.
From last fall to this spring, the Nursing School collaborated with local Sayre High School and Bernett Johnson Sayre Health Center to implement a dancing program — Dance for Health — for children ages 4 to 12.
The collaboration between the Nursing School and Sayre High School first began in 2005, when a group children were identified as “at risk” of developing diabetes.
However, the issue of preventing diabetes first began when Nursing professor and pediatric nurse practitioner Terri Lipman began working heavily at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia with children afflicted with diabetes. She soon understood that many children developed diabetes from inactivity and poor eating.
“I was very cognizant of the fact that patients came from an inner-city environment. Parents said that they didn’t want their children to go outside and play,” Lipman said.
Since parents felt that the community was not a safe place for their children, they often relied on after-school programs to watch their children and give them a safe environment to play in. Budget restrictions, however, ended many after-school programs in Philadelphia school districts.
Two years into the program, the Nursing School’s research team found that 30 percent of its participants exhibited at least one diabetes risk factor. Risk factors include a high body mass index, a high waist circumference and dark, leathery folds in skin that suggest insulin resistance. While the program always addresses the issue of diabetes, it makes small changes in its structure from year to year.
This past year, the program — funded by the Barbara and Edward Netter Center for Community Partnerships — first incorporated dancing lessons in an effort to encourage children to be more active. The dancing classes were first inspired by Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign against childhood obesity.
The dance team from Sayre High School taught dance classes, while members from the Nursing School educated the children on healthy eating and exercise habits. Children involved in the program were given pedometers to help track their daily activity. Results showed that the children took twice as many steps on the days that they danced than on the days that they didn’t.
This year, the program is making new changes. The Sayre Health Center started the Fitness Leadership Program at Sayre Health to improve healthy living.
The program hosts a number of activities on different nights. Lipman’s dance night takes place on Thursdays and now incorporates the children and their families in line dancing and hip-hop classes.
Dancing has also had a healthy impact for Penn students.
Penn Hype describes itself as a student-run, multicultural hip-hop group. It hosts multiple performances throughout the year and works toward a final performance during the spring semester.
Penn Hype dancers often go through a rigorous practice schedule, spending four to six hours a week rehearsing as a group, excluding personal practice time. However, College sophomore and Penn Hype Vice President Brian Hsia and Wharton senior and Penn Hype President Nenna Akpaete agree that the group has had a positive impact on their health.
“When you don’t [dance] for awhile, you feel less, less everything: less energetic, less motivated,” Akpaete said.
