Category: News

September is National Childhood Obesity awareness month. Unity Medical Center wants to be sure our community is aware of the adverse risks that come along with childhood obesity.

The problem is more common than you might think – about 1 in 5 children in the United States is obese (20 percent), while even more are overweight and in danger of obesity.

Children with obesity are at risk for chronic health conditions and diseases as they age, leading to shorter life expectancy and greater risk for other diseases.

For example, obese children are at a higher risk for asthma, sleep apnea, bone and joint problems and type 2 diabetes. This can also lead to heart disease, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

There are other factors to consider – such as adverse mental effects. Obese children are more likely to be bullied and teased – this can lead to social isolation, depression and low self-esteem.

There are many factors that can lead to childhood obesity. Luckily, many of these are controllable for parents and caregivers. Here are a few tips for helping control childhood obesity.

Causes of childhood obesity include:
*Too much time spent being inactive.
*lack of sleep
*lack of places to go in the community to get physical activity
*Easy access to inexpensive, high calorie foods and sugary beverages
*Lack of access to affordable, healthy foods.

As parents, there are steps you can take. Be sure to pay attention to the following steps recommended by our friends at the CDC:

*Provide nutritious, low-calorie foods such as natural fruits and vegetables in place of sugary foods and fats
*Ensure your child drinks plenty of water from an early age. Limit sugary drinks and juices
*Children should get 60 minutes of physical activity each day. This leads to controlled weight and also helps control other weight-factors, such as sleep and reduced anxiety and stress.
*Ensure proper sleep habits. Children 6-12 years-old should actually be getting 9-12 hours of sleep per 24 hours. Children 13-18 should be sleeping 8-10 hours per 24 hours.
*Be a role model! If your child sees you eating properly and exercising, they are likely to follow

Unity Medical Center is located at 481 Interstate Dr. in Manchester, Tenn. Follow them on Facebook.

The Coffee County Fair continues on Thursday.

Thursday is 2-for-1 rides at the Coffee County Fair – two people ride for the price of one. For entertainment, the talent show starts in the grandstands at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Admission on Thursday is $5. See the complete fair book by clicking here. 

We have tragic news to report out of Michigan that involves a Coffee County family.

News outlets in Michigan are reporting that rescue crews are searching for a 12-year old boy after he was swept off the Frankfort Pier on Monday.

Authorities say that no recovery was made on Monday and the situation is no longer a rescue mission, but instead a search and recovery situation.

The family was visiting from Tennessee when three children were swept off the pier. A family member was able to rescue two children, according to reports, but the 12-year old boy is still missing as of Tuesday afternoon.

Thunder Radio is choosing not to release names.

The Coffee County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help identifying a person of interest in an alleged burglary that occurred at a construction site on Blanton Chapel Rd. in Coffee County Monday. 

If anyone has information or knows the person pictured, they are encouraged to contact Corporal Blake Simmons at 931-728-3591. 

The Coffee County Fair continues on Wednesday at the Coffee County Fairgrounds – located at 99 Lakeview Dr. in Manchester.

As it pertains to rides, Wednesday is dollar a ride day. Regular tickets are also available.

For Wednesday night entertainment, By Faith performs at the Grandstands at 7 p.m.

The Coffee County Fair continues through Saturday, Sept. 26. Gate admission on Wednesday is $5.

Rutherford County Mayor Bill Ketron announced Monday afternoon that the Rutherford County Face Covering Order set to expire on September 30 will instead be lifted on Tuesday, September 22, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. CDT.

In a letter to citizens, Ketron writes, “Your compliance with the order which went into effect on July 22, had a significant impact on our numbers going down. This was hard to ignore. We are encouraged by the data trends and want to continue down that path! This does not discount the fact that the virus is here and not going anywhere anytime soon. Therefore, I am asking that as a community, we revert once more to being #RutherfordResponsible.”

His letter goes on to say, “Multiple opinions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have cited that wearing masks works, though we acknowledge that it could be the combination of wearing masks, washing hands, and other recommended health practices (i.e. social distancing) and not just one specific protective measure. Being #RutherfordResponsible means incorporating all these health practices into your daily routine to continue to effectively slow the spread of the virus in our community.”

Finally, Ketron acknowledges that some community members will choose to mask and others will make the decision not to but implores them to remain respectful of one another. “This does not mean that this difference among citizens should cause discord in the community… Rutherford County is a caring and compassionate community. Do not let this pandemic change that, or you!”

Tuesday, Sept. 22 is the first official day of fall, and it feels like it with high temperatures forecast in the low 70s.

In case you were wondering, we are 65 days away from Thanksgiving and 94 day away from Christmas.

For all of you longing for a return to warmer weather, we are 119 day away from the official start of Spring 2021.

Grundy County Sheriff Clint Shrum has announced that due to a spike in COVID-19 cases in Grundy County, inmate visitation at the jail will be suspended through the end of September.

“The health of our staff, inmates and visitors is important,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement. “We do not have any cases in the jail and prefer to keep it that way.”

Attracting future students to agriculture and MTSU’s Fermentation Science program — that’s the objective of a new U.S. Department of Agriculture grant collaboration between Motlow, Columbia State, and MTSU.

It’s a three-year, $300,000 grant proposed by MTSU’s Tony Johnston, who is partnering with Motlow Chemistry Instructor Nathan Fisher and Columbia State’s Karen Kendall-Fite, with faculty from all three schools participating.
“Our collaboration in this grant award is part of a larger, long-term vision. We are very intentional about our plan to introduce a variety of Fermentation and Distillery Science learning opportunities,” said Motlow President Dr. Michael Torrence. “Our vision includes broadening short-term certificate training opportunities, as well as the development of new degree programs. Those programs will specifically seek to cultivate the success of minority and underserved populations in these fields.”

Motlow STEM faculty will be trained in problem-based learning methods to work with students, and the impact of their students’ awareness of fermentation science as a STEM concentration and career will be tracked. Fisher is a former MTSU student, tutor, undergraduate research assistant, and chemistry adjunct faculty member.

“The awarding of this grant creates an exciting new opportunity for students who want to come to Motlow to study fermentation,” said Fisher. “Fermentation is a growing industry in the Middle Tennessee area, and this grant represents the commitment of the USDA to develop competency among our Motlow students. With the grant funding, some students will attend Motlow to study Fermentation before transferring to MTSU or other programs to receive their bachelor’s degree. Additionally, students may be interested in finishing their studies with the planned Associate of Science degree in Fermentation that Motlow is working towards offering. Both options will open fulfilling career paths that will, in turn, help to grow Fermentation and enhance local food security.”

The grant increases awareness of agriculture and introduce fermentation concepts into lower-division undergraduate math and science classes at Columbia State and Motlow, and drives fermentation science as a career option.
“Students, in general, aren’t aware of what fermentation science is, much less that it’s agricultural,” said Johnston, professor, and director of the MTSU Fermentation Science program. “The grant seeks to get more students interested in agriculture as a career.

“Agriculture is an applied STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) field, but it is not traditionally viewed this way,” Johnston said. “The grant provides an opportunity to connect the dots between STEM courses and agriculture and raise awareness of and increase the potential for a student to become interested in the applied STEM career that is fermentation science.”

Johnston said part of the grant would go toward classroom equipment — smartphones and scientific equipment — for Motlow and Columbia State students to learn about chemistry, biology, and math through applications of Fermentation in their freshmen- and sophomore-level courses.

Another part of the funds will pay Motlow and Columbia State faculty to be trained and MTSU math professor Ginger Holmes-Rowell as an independent evaluator.

For more information about this exciting new opportunity, contact Nathan Fisher, Motlow Chemistry Professor, at 615-220-7879 or nfisher@mscc.edu.

Pictured below: Motlow Chemistry Instructor Nathan Fisher leads a partnership with MTSU and Columbia State in growing the fermentation science field through a $300,000 USDA grant. – Motlow Staff Photo.