Articles by Amanda Merck

Video: Children Have Lost the Freedom to Roam

September 15, 2016

Since 1969, the percentage of children walking and bicycling to school has plummeted from almost 50 percent to about 13 percent in 2013. In #4 of their StreetFacts video series, Streetfilms explores how children have lost the freedom to roam because many families drive their children to school, even when schools are close to home. Streetfilms produces short films showing how smart transportation design and policy can result in better places to live, work and play. For trips between 1/4- and 1/2- mile, children are strapped into a seat rather than allowed to walk or bike and explore their world. This reduction in incidental physical activity adds up and is linked with increased rates of childhood obesity and chronic disease. Learn more about the urgency in fighting childhood ...

Our Zeal for Child Safety Might be Misdirected

September 13, 2016

There is no doubt people are zealous about children's safety; we are zealous about children's health. What if these two groups of enthusiasts worked together? They would reduce time spent riding in a car: To reduce unintentional injury and death due to motor vehicle crashes; and To increase time spent walking and biking to reduce obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. Motor vehicle traffic crashes are the leading cause of unintentional injury deaths for children age 5 through young adults age 24 and the second leading cause of unintentional injury deaths for children ages 1-4, after drowning. Keep in mind, this is with the latest advancements in child safety seats. Latinos, in particular, face disparities in traffic injury and death, as well as obesity, heart disease, ...

Senior Cheer Squad Proves You are Never too Old to Play

September 12, 2016

Louise Gooche, a retired nursing professor and director of nursing education from Durahm Technical college, founded Durham Divas 'n Dude, a senior citizen cheer squad in February 2004. Gooche was an aerobics instructor at the YMCA of the Triangle, in Raleigh, North Carolina (10.7% Latino). After seeing senior cheerleaders perform at the North Carolina Senior Games, Gooche posted a sign-up sheet at the "Y" and volunteered to coach a cheer squad. The "Y" agreed to sponsor the team. The Divas volunteer their time and services to various "Y" programs and the "Y" provides them with a place to rehearse twice a week, as well as uniforms, sweat suits, pom-poms, megaphones, and flags. "I love to perform for the elderly in the nursing homes, and bring a little joy to their hearts, ...

Fact Sheet: Safe Routes to Healthy Food

September 8, 2016

Everyone needs a safe and reliable way to get to the place where they obtain foods - ideally healthy foods. However, transportation is a major barrier to accessing healthy food, particularly for Latinos. Read about how traffic safety in the U.S. lags far behind other countries here. Disparities in transportation environments are not inevitable; they are due to local decision‐making. The Safe Routes to School National Partnership created a Safe Routes to Healthy Food fact sheet exploring the benefits of making healthy food accessible by foot, bike, or transit. Safe Routes to Healthy Food aims to strengthen policies and practices that make it safer and more convenient to walk, bike, and use transit to access healthy foods. People with access to safe places to walk and bike ...

Columbia Parks and Recreation Makes it Easy for Residents to Flag Problems

September 7, 2016

Residents in Columbia, Missouri (3.4% Latino) can now alert Parks and Recreation staff to maintenance and other issues through an online tool. Park and trail users can report a problem, pin the location, and upload a photo to an interactive map here. They can also follow their report to track progress. Access to safe parks plays a huge role in overall health and wellness by promoting physical activity and improving mental health. Unfortunately, Latinos are disproportionately burdened by lack of access to healthy resources like safe places to walk, bike, and play. Technology can play a major role in identifying reducing social and environmental barriers, such as broken fences, poor lighting, litter, and crime. Ensuring that residents have the power to identify and ...

The World’s First Fully Accessible Water Park Under Construction in San Antonio

September 7, 2016

The first ever water park for people with special needs is under construction in San Antonio, TX (68% Latino) and should open in spring of 2017. Gordon Hartman, CEO of The Gordon Hartman Family Foundation, opened Mogran's Wonderland, an amusement park with special-needs individuals in mind in 2010. Since 2013, he has been working with water park consultants, local doctors, and special-needs therapists on Morgan's Island Inspiration, the soon-to-be water park with special-needs individuals in mind. In 2013, Hartman built Toyota Field-an attempt to bring MLS to San Antonio-as well as the South Texas Area Regional Soccer Complex for youth and adult club soccer. He announced plans for the new $9.9 million water park the day after he sold to the City of San Antonio and Bexar ...

Parents and PTAs: Apply For School Grants Today

September 6, 2016

Are you looking for funding to support school physical activity projects and nutrition initiatives for this school year? Action for Healthy Kids is granting over $1.6 million to schools for the 2016-2017 school year! Grants range from $500 to $1,000. Funding can be used to support initiatives such as: Recess, Play Space/Gymnasium Refurbishing, Physical Education Equipment, Classroom Physical Activity Breaks, Nutrition Education, School Gardens, Healthy Celebrations and more! Physical activity is critical to improve Latino kids mental, emotional, and physical health. SELECT states are eligible to apply: CA, IA, IL, KS, *MO, NE, PA, TX, WI. Application deadline is Friday, September 16, 2016. Learn more and apply here. ...

President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition Launches #0to60 Campaign!

September 2, 2016

In partnership with the National Foundation on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition and in honor of the President's Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition 60th Anniversary, the Council and Foundation released a mobile-ready website and #0to60 app to inspire a healthier lifestyle for individuals of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.. There are countless benefits of living a healthy lifestyle. Physically active adults are more productive, confident, and able to sleep better. Moreover, when students are active it can lead to higher test scores, improved attendance, increased focus, lower rates of childhood obesity, and create healthy habits that carry into adulthood. Read about the important distinction between physical activity and exercise here and about the urgency in fighting ...

The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America

September 1, 2016

What is the state of obesity in your state? New interactive maps & data released by the Trust for America’s Health and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America. Some key findings of the report, based data from 2014-2015, : 9 of the 11 states with the highest obesity rates are in the South and 22 of the 25 states with the highest obesity rates are in the South and Midwest. 10 of the 12 states with the highest rates of diabetes are in the South. Adult obesity rates are at or above 30 percent in 29 states for Latinos and 16 states for Whites. Why disparities in the South and among Latinos? Latino kids have limited space to be physically active-download the issue brief for free here-and Latino kids have limited ...

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Amanda Merck

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