With childhood obesity on the rise in the United States, Carbon County is hoping to educate children on how to make better lifestyle choices that will curb this rising trend.

On Thursday, the county commissioners voted to declare Wednesday, May 14, as county "Pop-out" day, a day to substitute sugary drinks such as soda, sports drinks and juices for water.Georgia Farrow, 4-H program assistant from the Penn State Extension, received the proclamation from the board and thanked them for their support. She also handed out bottles of water."Right now the big issue is sugar," Farrow told the board, noting that television personality Katie Couric is currently holding a 10-day challenge to everyone asking that they go 10 days without consuming sugar. "That means reading a lot of nutrition labels because there are many types of sugar out there."The proclamation, which was read by Commissioner Thomas J. Gerhard, states, "The youth of Carbon County is one of the county's most valuable resources. One out of every five children in the United States is obese or at the risk of becoming obese. Obesity is now proven to be a direct cause of health-related diseases and costs business and industry millions of dollars each year."Data has proven that there is a direct relationship between increased soft drink consumption, inactivity and overweight children. It is further understood that high-sugar beverages provide limited nutritional value and should be consumed on a limited basis as per the food guide pyramid. There are other beverages available that offer nutritional advantages such as water, 100 percent fruit juices and milk."Therefore, the Carbon County Board of Commissioners do hereby proclaim May 14, 2014, as 'Pop-out' day in Carbon County and urge all children, their parents and the citizens of Carbon County to restrain or restrict their consumption of empty calories as in soft drinks, iced tea and sports drinks."Farrow added that Weatherly Area School District is affected more than other schools in the county because it has an active wellness council.The school asks students to sign promises to be more aware of the drinks they consume."Pop-Out" day is part of a wellness project created by the Wellness Council of America.Carbon County has declared one day of the year as a day to choose healthier drink alternatives in the hopes of bringing awareness to the growing epidemic of childhood obesity.In a related matter, the commissioners adopted a proclamation recognizing the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Smith-Lever Act, which established the cooperative extension service at universities across the country.The act, introduced by U.S. Sen. Hoke Smith of Georgia and Rep. A.F. Lever of South Carolina, was signed on May 8, 1914, creating a partnership between the United States Department of Agriculture and the nation's land-grant universities to create educational programs through a state-by-state network of extension educators and expand the vocational, agricultural and home demonstration programs.Commissioner William O'Gurek commended the Carbon County Penn State Extension office for all their work in the community."They are a great organization and it is a testimony of the great work they are doing at Penn State," he said.For more information on the 100th anniversary of the Smith-Lever Act, visit

http://www.extension100years.net.