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Amanda Merck

Merck completed her MPH with a concentration in Physical Activity and Health. She curates content for Salud America! (@SaludAmerica), a Latino childhood obesity prevention project based at the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio. She focuses on the latest research, resources, and stories related to policy, systems, and environmental changes to enhance equitable access to safe places for kids and families to walk, bike, and play.

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Articles by Amanda Merck

5 Facts about Low-Income Latino Families



Understanding the Latino family is vital as organizations work to improve the health of Latino kids, two-thirds of which live in low-income homes, NBC News reports. That's why a new report provides a snapshot of these families. The report, by the National Research Center On Hispanic Children and Families, indicates that family structure looks vastly different depending on if parents were U.S.- or foreign-born, and most Latinos kids are born into two-parent households. Here are five key facts from the report, highlighted by NBC News: -Most births to low-income Hispanics occur in some type of co-residential union, especially among those who are foreign-born. Sixty seven percent of Latinas are either living with a partner or married when their first child is born. -About half of ...

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Report: Latinos Need 5.5M More College Degrees by 2020 to Get U.S. Back on Top of Education



Latinos must earn an additional 5.5 million college degrees for America to regain world leadership in college degrees by 2020, according to a new report. The report, from Excelencia in Education and the United Negro College Fund, examines Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) alongside historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to bring attention to minority student access. While HBCUs and HSIs only represent 20% of all U.S. institutions, they educate nearly half of all black and Latino students, according to the brief. "The combined growth of Latinos and blacks in our population, and in higher education overall, requires more intentional focus on institutions that serve them," said Sarita Brown, president of Excelencia in Education. A few key points of comparison ...

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3 Ways Digital Marketers Push Junk Food to Latino Kids



Latino youth are a prime target of junk food marketing because of their heavy consumption of digital media and use of mobile devices. Check out this new infographic, from our friends at the Center for Digital Democracy, that explains some of the reasons for this large food marketing push in Latino youth, some of the ways they are targeted, and what effect this marketing has one them. The infographic suggests these top ways that that food marketers use get access to Latino youth: Data mining Text-message and social-network infiltration Hispanic-specific content to gain access to Latino youth. What can be done to improve the nutritional value of food/drink products marketed to Latinos? Go here and find resources, stories, and videos of people and groups across the ...

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Tweet with #SaludTues on 10/14/14: “Latinos and HIV/AIDS: Problems + Solutions”



Every year, 21% of new HIV/AIDS cases are diagnosed among Hispanics in the US. Let’s focus on changing this by using #SaludTues to tweet about innovative campaigns to improve prevention and programs to find solutions to HIV/AIDS in the Latino community: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Latinos and HIV/AIDS: Problems + Solutions” DATE: Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2014 TIME: Noon CST (1:00 PM ET) WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludToday CO-HOSTS: @NLAAD (National Latino AIDS Awareness Day), @AIDSgov (AIDS.gov), and @TalkHIV (CDC) On Oct. 14, the eve of National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, we’ll open the floor to your stories and experiences as we explore: Why is HIV/AIDS such a big issue for Latinos? What factors and challenges contribute to increases ...

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Spanish Campaign: Tackling COPD among Latinos



The rising U.S. Latino population makes it important to educate Latinos about the nation's third-leading cause of death—chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). That's why the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST), in collaboration with Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc., launched Tome Un Respiro, the first Spanish-language campaign to raise awareness among Latinos about COPD prevalence, treatment, and disease management. Nearly one of two cases of COPD goes undiagnosed, according to CHEST. “Early detection of COPD is critical in helping to combat this life-threatening disease,” said Mark J. Rosen, MD, Master FCCP, medical director for CHEST. “We see a major gap in awareness and education about COPD in the Hispanic community and want to ensure that everyone has the ...

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Census: More Than 1 in 4 Hispanics Still Have No Health Insurance (Especially Immigrants)



More than 1 in 4 Hispanics still have no health insurance coverage, by far the lowest rates of health insurance coverage in the United States, according to new data from the Census Bureau, Voxxi News reports. Only 1 in 10 non-Hispanic whites lack coverage. Hispanic immigrants overall also are more than twice as likely as U.S.-born Hispanics to lack health insurance coverage, according to the Census data: Hispanic undocumented immigrants: 49% uninsured Hispanic immigrants with citizenship: 21% uninsured U.S.-born Hispanics: 17% uninsured Hispanic immigrants also have higher uninsured rates by age compared to U.S.-born Hispanics. Among those ages 18-64, 24% of U.S.-born and 43% of foreign-born lacked insurances, as well as 2% and 8% of those ages 65 and older, ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 10/14: “Latinas and Breast Cancer: Surviving & Thriving”



Breast cancer is the No. 1 cancer killer of Latinas in the U.S. Let’s focus on Latinas and tweet about the latest progress in breast cancer research, the importance of breast cancer risk, screening and the survivorship experience at the next #SaludTues Tweetchat. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Latinas and Breast Cancer: Surviving and Thriving” DATE: Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014 TIME: Noon CST (1:00 PM ET) WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludToday CO-HOSTS: @SusanGKomen, @KPVivaBien, @KPShare We’ll open the floor to your stories and experiences as we explore: Why is breast cancer such a big issue for Latinas? What roles do culture, screening habits, and lifestyle factors play for Latinas? What are some of the best ways to improve Latinas’ ...

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Poor Body Size Judgment Can Lead to Tolerance of Obesity, Says Study of Mostly Hispanics



Seven in every 10 obese adults underestimate how much someone weighs, according to a new study, Health Canal reports. The study, which analyzed the body image perceptions of 253 mothers and their children (82.2% of them Hispanic), found that mothers of overweight/obese children also underestimated their children’s size. Overweight and obese children also often misjudged their own body size, and their obese mothers’ size. The study found that: 71.4% of obese adults and 35.1% of overweight adults underestimated size, compared with 8.6 percent of people of normal weight. Among overweight and obese children, 86.3 percent and 62.3 percent, respectively, thought they weigh less than they do vs. 14.9 percent of children of normal weight. About 80% of mothers of overweight ...

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Infographic: U.S. Latinos by the Numbers



Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, doesn't just celebrate the Latino culture. Did you know Sept. 15 is also the independence day for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatamala, Honduras, and Nicaragua? And that Mexico's independence day is Sept. 16, and Chile's Sept. 18? These are just a few of the interesting facts about Latinos in a new "By the Numbers" infographic from NBC News. Here are some more tidbits: 17.1% of the United States are Latino 25% of U.S. public school children are Latino Only Mexico has a larger Latino population than the United States 37 members of Congress are Latino 51% of Hispanics/Latinos don't have a preference being called "Latino" or "Hispanic" U.S. Latinos have $1.2 trillion in buying power Check out the full ...

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