Call it Diabetes in the Middle School Musical. With one study predicting that half of all Latino children born in 2000 will develop Type 2 diabetes in their life time, health professionals are conducting glucose screenings, cooking with kids, singing the praises of vegetables and having field trips to local bodegas to learn how to shop healthy in an attempt to prevent this dark future.

A study by Venkat Narayan, former Centers for Disease Control researcher and currently Professor of Global Health and Epidemiology at Emory University, predicts that half of all Latino children born in 2000 will develop Type 2 Diabetes in their lifetime. Health experts say the cause is childhood obesity and the poor Americanization of Latino diets. Nutritionists, dieticians and doctors all agree that traditional Latino foods such as rice and beans and plantains are healthy. The problem is children are following up these starchy foods with a trip to the golden arches or the pizza shop or any of an endless number of fast food restaurants. Traditional fried food combined with American high-fat, fast food creates a perfect storm of bad health.

One of the leading causes of childhood Type 2 Diabetes is obesity. When a child gains more adipose tissue early in life, the pancreas produces less insulin and the body is less able to break down food. Usually Type 2 Diabetes is a direct result of the onset of aging for people in their 40s to 60s. Health experts are now seeing it in children nine and 10 years old. The intake of high fat food is causing adult diseases in children. And with teens entering high school tipping the scale at 200 plus pounds, the outlook for dodging the diabetes bullet is grim.

“Children are eating much more calories than they need,” said Rhonda Mona, MPH, a dietician for Group Health Incorporated (GHI), an HMO.

But it’s not just junk food that’s doing harm. Staples such as white rice have been seen as contributing to the problem. Health experts are trying to get parents to cook brown rice instead.

“White rice has a higher glycemic index than ice cream,” said Dr. Zach Rosen, medical director of Montefiore Family Health Center in the Fordham section of the Bronx.

This year Rosen’s clinic plans to launch an outreach program to get local restaurants to cook healthy. Doctors will meet with chefs and restaurant owners in an attempt to convince them to put healthy alternatives on their menus. In addition, they will continue to reach out to bodega owners to convince them to carry healthy items such as low fat milk.

Rosen admits that doctors need to start attacking the environment in order to curb the obesity epidemic. The Fordham Road clinic is surrounded by fast food chains and greasy spoons.

“Being surrounded by drug pushers while on methadone is like being at the epicenter of the obesity and diabetes epidemic and being surrounded by fast food places,” he said.

Gladys Ramos, quality improvements manager of the Ryan Center, a clinic in New York, said she sees children in the South Bronx having potato chips and soda for breakfast and not surprisingly she sees a number of obese children in her clinic. She encourages parents to get their children to become active by taking them to the park. Although she said the ban on trans fats in fast food is a step in the right direction its no magic pill.

One way to drive home the point is to get pointers from a diabetic chef. As part of its “Fit Now in the Bronx” program, GHI had its Diabetic Chef Chris Smith teach students at schools like MS 302 proper nutrition, food prep and shopping healthy at the local bodega. The idea is to make preparing and eating healthy food exciting. Smith, who has diabetes himself, stresses moderation.

“My goal is to create health initiatives to provide realistic recipes without taking away tradition. Latino food helps to define them as a culture,” said Smith. “You can enjoy your favorite foods with moderation. Take away or lower the lard and fat. The benefit will be to everyone, children, parents and grand parents.”

For the more tech savvy chefs, parents can get recipes and a virtual tour of diabetic grocery shopping by clicking on the American Diabetes Association’s website at www.diabetes.org.

Another way to get through to kids about proper nutrition is to have them sing for their supper. Former Rockette turned Registered Dietician Helen Butleroff Leahy teaches children proper nutrition in schools throughout the city. During her nutrition class students are involved in The New Food Guide Pyramid Musical Program, a musical singing the praises of proper nutrition and the new food guide pyramid. Over the course of the class children learn nutrition nuggets about healthy eating while learning how to stage a musical production.

For more information on glucose screenings and diabetes education programs call (800) MD-MONTE.