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Cliff Despres

Cliff Despres, who has more than a decade of experience in journalism and public relations, is communications director for Salud America! and its home base, the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio.


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Articles by Cliff Despres

Community Heroes Create Bigger, Better Ways for Families to Play


three salud heroes of play

Kids need places to play to be healthy. Physical activity is proven to help control weight, reduce risk of disease, strengthen muscles, and improve mental health. But Latino families are more likely than white families to live in neighborhoods with no recreational facilities, or unsafe ones. This is according to recent research cited by Salud America!, a national Latino childhood obesity prevention network at UT Health San Antonio and supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. That’s why we at SaludToday are spotlighting heroes who are creating play opportunities for Latino families! Irma Rivera: First Park in the 92701 Irma Rivera saw a child nearly hit by a car while playing in an empty parking lot in park-poor Santa Ana, Calif (78% Latino). She vowed to do fix ...

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A Bad Pepsi Ad, Exploitation of Latino Kids, and the Cost of Obesity


pepsi and kid social justice

Have you seen Pepsi's soda ad that it yanked after big public outrage? It shows a staged protest with good-looking multicultural crowd and model Kendall Jenner. Jenner gives a Pepsi to a police officer. He smiles, everyone's happy. Social justice delivered and police brutality solved—by soda. The ad sparked a storm of criticism, for some obvious reasons. Even scarier is that sugary drink marketers continues to exploit Latino and Black youth, and stir obesity issues in these groups, according to commentaries by Vox's Julia Belluz and The Washington Post's Michelle Singletary. Belluz writes: "The public health community has long argued that big soda’s targeting of African Americans and Latinos is exacerbating health problems in those communities. We now have a big ...

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Hombre latino salva a un compañero de trabajo después de ver video de RCP


heart-news CPR

Para un hombre neoyorquino, el ritual diario de leer el periódico le ayudó a aprender una aptitud que usaría para salvarle la vida a una colega. Cuando va camino al trabajo en el subterráneo, David Martinez hojea The Washington Post en su Kindle para ponerse al día en las noticias de política. En julio del año pasado, al hombre de 55 años le llamó la atención un artículo que publicó el Post sobre un tipo de reanimación cardiopulmonar (RCP) realizada por un espectador, conocida como reanimación cardiopulmonar solo con las manos. La página web del periódico tenía, junto con el artículo, un vídeo que mostraba cómo realizar la reanimación cardiopulmonar solo con las manos al ritmo de una versión a capela y pegadiza de la canción popular de los Bee Gees, ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 4/11: Sleep for Salud


hispanic sleeping lady tired clock

Sleep. Everyone needs it—and wants it. Not getting enough sleep can contribute to heart attacks, diabetes, obesity and other serious health issues that affect Latinos more, CDC reports. For Sleep Awareness Month in April, let's use #SaludTues on April 11, 2017, to explore how much Latinos sleep (or don’t sleep), why sleep is key for good health, and how you and your family can improve sleeping habits. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Sleep for Salud” TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, April 11, 2017 WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludToday CO-HOSTS: Dr. Chris Winter (@SportSleepDoc), American Academy of Sleep Medicine (@AASMOrg) We’ll open the floor to questions on sleep like: Why is it good to have a daily ...

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Study: Liver Cancer in Latinos Linked to Contaminated Food


aflatoxin in corn liver cancer

Even as U.S. cancer rates decline, liver cancer rates remain on the rise, especially among Latinos. But why? A new UT Health San Antonio study found that Latinos with liver cancer had much higher levels of aflatoxins than those without liver cancer. Alfatoxins are cancer-causing chemicals produced by mold that can contaminate improperly stored foods. People can ingest aflatoxins in contaminated corn, nuts, rice, sesame seeds, wheat, and some spices. For the study, researchers gauged aflatoxin exposure in 42 liver cancer cases and 42 non-cases from clinics in San Antonio, Texas. Two-thirds of the pairs were Latinos. Liver cancer cases had 6 times higher odds of having detectable levels of aflatoxins in their blood, compared to non-cases. "This study means that Latinos ...

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Study: Latinas Don’t Eat a Healthy Diet Before Pregnancy


pregnant latina mom

Most Latina and black women do not eat a healthy diet before pregnancy, despite its many benefits, according to a new study. A healthy maternal diet can reduce risk of obesity, preterm birth, and preeclampsia. The study scored the diets of 7,500 women in the weeks leading up to pregnancy. No women in any racial/ethnic group met the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, according to study leader Lisa Bodnar of the University of Pittsburgh. Only about 25% of white, 14% of Latina, and 5% of black women had well-scored diets. Soda was the primary contributor to energy intake among Latina an black women, according to the study. "Our findings mirror national nutrition and dietary trends. The diet-quality gap among non-pregnant people is thought to be a consequence of many factors, ...

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Abril es el Mes Nacional de la Salud de las Minorías


Latin family sitting in the street

Abril es el Mes Nacional de la Salud de las Minorías. Este es un tiempo dedicado para concientizar a la comunidad hispana acerca de los altos riesgos de adquirir ciertas enfermedades entre nuestra comunidad. Visita el sitio web de la Oficina de Salud de las Minorías de HHS para descargar materiales, encontrar eventos y compartir tu historia. Nunca es demasiado temprano para tomar medidas y nunca demasiado tarde para comenzar el manejo de la atención hacia enfermedades de las cuales los latinos pueden ser más propensos, por ejemplo la diabetes, la obesidad y el cáncer de seno. Si se trata de una joven aprendiendo sobre su riesgo de cáncer de seno y cuando empezar a hacerse estudios preventivos, o si se trata de un adulto mayor que busca opciones de tratamiento para ...

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Report: More Latino Youth Are Disconnected, Not in School, Not Working


Latina teen young adult sad depressed

More Latino youths are not in school and not working than white youths, according to a new report. These youth—also called "disconnected"—face hurdles as they become adults where they live. This includes lower rates of education, and higher rates of child poverty, unemployment, and teen births. 1 in 8 U.S. youths ages 16-24 are "disconnected." Disconnection, a new measure in the new 2017 County Health Rankings, creates health and economic issues. "Youth disconnected from opportunity—meaning the chance to advance in school, gain work experience, form relationships, and build social supports in the community—represent untapped potential to strengthen the social and economic vibrancy of our communities," according to the report. How to Help The County Health Rankings, ...

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Water Champions Push H2O for Latino Kids, Families



Water isn't magic, but it can help you stay hydrated, control calories, and fuel muscles. But Latino kids don't drink enough water. In fact, Latino kids drink less plain water and more sugary drinks than white kids. That is according to research by Salud America!, a national Latino childhood obesity prevention network at UT Health San Antonio. That’s why we are spotlighting heroes who work hard to push water for Latino kids and families! Praxina Guerra: 5th-Grader Gets Hydration Station in School San Antonio fifth-grader Praxina Guerra and her mentor, Cathy Lopez, are true Salud Heroes when it comes to creating a healthy school environment. Praxina, spurred on by Lopez, joined the city's San Antonio Student Ambassador program and created a student club to encourage ...

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