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Stacy Cantu-Pawlik

Stacy Cantu completed both her BS & MPH at Texas A&M University (gig ‘em!), and is passionate about all things public health. She curates content on Healthy Food and Healthy Minds.


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Articles by Stacy Cantu-Pawlik

CDC Report: Latino Youth Have Worse Diets than Their Peers


kids lunch elementary school food eat

A few years ago, Salud America! found that Latino students are exposed to more unhealthy food in and out of school than their peers. This contributed to poor nutrition and high rates of obesity. Sadly, that situation still exists today. Latino high-school students eat fewer fruits and vegetables and don't eat breakfast daily as much as some of their peers, according to new data released in June 2018 from the CDC's 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The Data The CDC's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System monitors health-related behaviors. These behaviors usually develop during childhood and early adolescence and contribute to the leading causes of death and disability as well as social problems among youth and adults in the United States. The CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey is ...

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Study: How Latina Mothers Navigate a ‘Food Swamp’ to Feed Their Kids



We know “food swamps” are linked to obesity. We also know Latinos often live in food swamps─where people lack access to healthy foods and have lots of nutrition-poor food options. For example, many Latino neighborhoods lack supermarkets but have abundant fast-food, according to a Salud America! Research Review. Now a recent study shows how Latina mothers deal with life in food swamps. Latina Moms & Food Swamps The George Washington University study sought to understand how mothers who lived in Washington, D.C., food swamps feed their children. The mothers were Latina and had been in the Unites States for less than 15 years. Each mother had at least one child younger than 10. Latina mothers valued foods that they considered to be traditional and healthy, ...

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Suicide Rates Rising: How This Public Health Crisis Affects Latinos


latina hispanic woman mental health eating disorders

Suicide rates have increased drastically across the United States from 1999-2016, according to a new report released by the CDC. Suicide rates are highest among White and Native American/Alaska Native populations. However, suicide rates for Latinos and African Americans are continually rising, the data shows. There were also significant increases in several states including Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. Additionally, more than half the suicides in 2015 were among people with no known mental health conditions, according to an article in the Boston Globe. On the heels of two recent celebrity suicides - Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain - the “data are disturbing,” Anne Schuchat of the CDC told SCNow. “The widespread nature of the increase, in every state but ...

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Opioid Overdose Rates Rising Among Latinos



In Massachusetts, the opioid overdose rate for Latinos has nearly doubled in three years, reaching twice the rate of whites and African Americans, NPR reports. Massachusetts isn’t alone, either. Latino opioid overdoses are rapidly rising across the nation, according to the CDC. Specifically, the Latino death toll for opioid overdoses rose 52.5% from 2014 to 2016. That’s compared to a 45.8% rise among whites. "What we thought initially, that this was a problem among non-Hispanic whites, is not quite accurate," Robert Anderson, who works at CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, told NPR. "If you go back into the data, you can see the increases over time in all of these groups, but we tended to focus on the non-Hispanic whites because the rates were so much ...

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Webinar: How to Boost Access to Healthy Food in Your Town


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Are you a city or county leader who wants to increase local access to healthy food? You are invited to the Healthy Food Policy Project's new webinar—"Supporting Healthy Food Access: Are There Local Laws For That?"—at 1p.m. EST on Wednesday, June 13, 2018. About the Food Access Webinar Food access is an important issues in our nation. For example, fast food and corner stores outnumber supermarkets in many Latino neighborhoods, according to a Salud America! research review. This creates food swamps where obesity rises. Cities and counties are using law and policy to support healthy eating in many ways. Laws can focus on socially disadvantaged groups, like Latinos. They can focus on environmental and economic goals, too. The webinar will shocase the Healthy Food Policy ...

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Report: ‘Food Swamps’ Are Making Latinos Obese


Fast Food fod swamp sugary drinks

Food deserts aren’t the only thing that drag down health in many Latino neighborhoods. “Food swamps” may be a bigger worry. While a food desert is an area more than 2 miles or 15 minutes away from a grocery store, a food swamp includes the food desert AND a high-density of stores and restaurants that offer high-calorie fast food and junk food, relative to healthier food options. Food swamps also are highly linked to obesity, according to new data from the UCONN Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, The Atlantic reports. “Food swamps had about four unhealthy options for each healthy one,” according to The Atlantic. “The relationship between food swamps and obesity was especially strong in areas where people lacked both their own cars and access to public ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 6/5: Improving Men’s Health in Communities of Color


Doctor measuring blood pressure

Why is men’s health so important for Latino and other men of color? Men die at higher rates than women from the top 10 causes of death and are the victims of over 92% of workplace deaths. Women are also more likely to visit the doctor for annual examinations and preventive services than men. Latino men live five years less than Latinas. They face high incidence and mortality rates due to prostate cancer, are more likely to be smokers, and are more likely to have undiagnosed mental health issues. These issues need our attention. So, for National Men’s Health Month in June, let’s use #SaludTues on Tuesday, June 5, 2018, to tweet about the state of men’s health and emerging strategies to improve men’s healthcare! WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat─Improving Men’s ...

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The Crisis and Stigma of Mental Health among Latinas


latino-kid mental health

More than 1 in 4 Latina high-schoolers have thought about committing suicide. Suicide attempts among Latina teenagers are at a higher rate than their non-Hispanic White female and Hispanic male peers, according to a Salud America! research review. That’s why it is important to explore the reasons why─and what to do about it. Latinas and Mental Health In the Latino community, mental health problems often are not spoken about. There is a stigma attached to it. Or people just don’t know enough about it, according to an article. That’s especially true for Latinas. “The expectations of what makes a ‘good’ Latina are often rooted in propriety and maintaining appearances, specifically when it involves something as personal as mental health or illness,” wrote Liz ...

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How Menu Labeling Will Impact Latino and All Families


calorie menu count

After seven long years, the FDA’s rules for menu labeling have finally taken effect. This is big news for Latino families in particular. These families face less access to healthy food options and struggle with higher rates of obesity, diabetes, and certain diseases than non-Latinos, according to a Salud America! research review. Menu labeling can help Latino and all families make healthier eating choices through clear, easy-to-use nutrition information at the point of ordering. So how did we get here, and how will menu labeling affect families? How’d We Get Menu Labeling? The FDA first proposed menu labeling rules in 2011. After years of tweaking, menu labeling rules had to overcome one final hurdle in 2017. FDA sought public comments on a possible one-year-delay of ...

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