Some Hurricane Town Elementary students spent Tuesday learning some healthy living habits that can benefit them for a lifetime.

Because a high percentage of fifth graders from Hurricane Town took part last Ffall in a program called CARDIAC Project, they were rewarded on Tuesday with a chance to participate in a health fair where they learned that the healthy habits they practice now, like good nutrition, proper dental care, and getting enough exercise, will help them lead healthier lives, said CARDIAC Project Program Assistant, Tammy Pyle.

"Today we're here because Hurricane Town had the highest percentage of participants in Putnam County," she said of their 63 percent participation.

The CARDIAC Project or Coronary Artery Risk Detection In Appalachian Communities is a chronic disease risk surveillance and intervention program designed to combat the unacceptably high prevalence of heart disease and diabetes in West Virginia, according to Pyle.

Started a decade ago, Pyle said the group sends out a letter each year to the schools and asks if they would like to take part in the program. All fifth grade public school children are eligible. The study protocol is approved by the WVU Institutional Review Board, and written permission for the schools to participate is granted by the 55 county superintendents. If the school wants to take part, the CARDIAC Project group will come to the school at a specified time. For Putnam County, it is in the fall. The students who participate must have written permission from their parents, Pyle said.

The screening consists of an FLP, or fasting lipid profile, which includes their LDL and HDL, (good and bad cholestrol levels), triglycerides, their BMI, which is measured by their height and weight, their blood pressure and an AN or Acanthosis Nigricans, which is a marker for diabetes. The test results are private and confidential and are sent only to the child's parents, according to Pyle.

Although the fifth-grade students were the only fall participants, the entire school got to take part in the fair.

In collaboration with West Virginia Rural Health Education Partnership, a state-funded project that gets medical students out into the community to work in community service activities, four West Virginia University medical students from the Charleston campus were on hand to man each booth and talk to the kids about the importance of healthy eating, getting the proper amounts of exercise, good dental care and the computer-based "Healthy Hearts" Web site.

Susan Ayoubi, a fourth-year medical student, talked to some fourth- and fifth-graders about oral hygiene.

"We're going over the basics of good dental care -- good brushing techniques, the importance of flossing, seeing a dentist twice a year. They're listening. I'm trying to make it interactive," she said with a smile as the group gathered around her.

Steveann White, a fourth-grade student, said she had learned a lot of information.

"I learned how to keep my teeth clean, to exercise and to eat healthy food," she said.

Exercise is pretty easy for her because she enjoys sports.

"I play football outside for fun. I play basketball and soccer," she said.

Fourth-grader Nathan Matney said although he already flossed every day, he would follow their suggestions about eating healthful foods and practicing good dental care.

"I learned about all the healthy foods and things I didn't know about dental care. I'll brush a minute longer, but I already floss every day," Matney said.

He said he already understood the importance of eating the right foods.

"I think I'm doing pretty good. I like granola bars a lot," he said.

Third-year medical student Michael Ararapian told the group they could go to the "Healthy Hearts" Web site and keep a food and exercise diary.

"We stress what foods are important -- what to choose to eat and not to eat. We talked about the importance of eating breakfast, and the need to exercise at least three times a week. Things that will increase their heart rate such as the DDR -- at least three times a week for 30 minutes," he said.

Christian Hanneman, fourth-grade student, said he was going to try to continue the suggestions the medical students made.

"I learned we should exercise several times a week," he said.

Fourth-grader Tanner Goff said he was going to put into practice what he had learned that day.

"I learned you should always eat healthy and brush at least two times a day," he said.

Medical student Nathan Kister manned the Dance Dance Revolution for students, and medical student Arpan Kohli talked about the heart and cholestrol.

Principal Debbie Spicer said they are always looking for new ways to keep the children fit. She said they have bought several pieces of new equipment for the physical education classes recently. She added they sometimes separate the classes into fitness stations.

"They have a station for jumping rope, one for the DDR, one for stretching bands, and one for the balance beams which for safety reasons is made of foam and lies flat on the floor," she said.

She said they also have a walking trail that was a project for an Eagle Scout.

"We try to do different things to motivate them," she said.

Physical Education instructor Shawn Anderson said they try to find things the kids enjoy to keep them interested.

"We need to make it fun," he said, referring to Dance Dance Revolution which he and Spicer said was in all of the schools.

Pyle said she thought the children had listened and learned a lot from the health fair.

"They've been great. We thought they all did really well," she said.

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