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Amelie Ramirez

I am director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio. I have spent 30 years directing research on human and organizational communication to reduce chronic disease, cancer, and obesity health disparities affecting Latinos.

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Articles by Amelie Ramirez

Active Spaces & Latino Kids Research: Unpleasant Neighborhood Characteristics


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This is part of our Active Spaces & Latino Kids: A Research Review » How sidewalks and the built environment impact physical activity Characteristics of neighborhoods and the built environment—man-made features in the community, such as sidewalks, streets, buildings, parks and playgrounds—may prevent Latino children from using available physical activity sites.46–59 These include: availability and accessibility of competitive transport alternatives and infrastructures (e.g., transit, sidewalks, bike lanes; availability of local government and highway funds for sidewalks and bike lanes; frequency of non-motorized transportation (variation by trip purpose and/or trip distance); presence of integration between residential and commercial land use in dense population ...

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Active Spaces & Latino Kids Research: Shared Use Agreements


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This is part of our Active Spaces & Latino Kids: A Research Review » The goal to increase access to schoolyards after school One of the goals for Healthy People 2020 is to increase the access to school physical activity facilities during non-school hours, with a current goal of having 31.7 percent of U.S. schools providing access by 2020.11 The previous target, from Healthy People 2010, was to have 50 percent of schools allowing access by 2010; however, data showed that no progress was being made so the goal was revised.31 In fact, fewer schools provided access to their physical activity facilities in 2006 (29%) than the baseline in 2000 (35%), although the difference was not statistically significant. Before 2010, the School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) sought ...

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Active Spaces & Latino Kids Research: Access to Active Spaces


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This is part of our Active Spaces & Latino Kids: A Research Review » Latino children lack access to active spaces Latino children living in underserved communities in the United States have limited access to physical activity sites. Increasing access to physical activity sites may increase physical activity among Latino children in these communities. Children in underserved communities often have insufficient access to physical activity sites, such as trails, recreational facilities, and parks.18–23 A study investigating the availability of recreational resources in neighborhoods of three diverse areas of the United States—Baltimore city and county, Maryland; Forsyth County, North Carolina; and Manhattan and the Bronx, New York—found that Latino neighborhoods were less ...

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Active Spaces & Latino Kids Research: Introduction and Methodology



This is part of our Active Spaces & Latino Kids: A Research Review » Introduction Nearly 40 percent of U.S. Latino youths ages 2-19 are overweight or obese compared with 28.5 percent of non-Latino white youths.1 Physical activity is important for good health, physical and cognitive growth and development, and maintaining a healthy weight.2 However, Latino children in underserved communities often have limited opportunities for physical activity.3,4 In a national survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, fewer Latino (70%) than white (82.5%) respondents described their neighborhoods as having safe places for children to play.5 A study conducted in Southern California found that children of racial/ethnic minorities living in poverty have less access to parks and physical ...

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Active Spaces & Latino Kids: A Research Review



Abstract Latino kids and families have limited spaces to be physically active. What are the best ways to improve Latino families’ access to “active spaces” like gyms, athletic fields, parks, and playgrounds? Many schools do not provide public access to physical activity facilities. Shared use agreements set up rules for public use of schoolyards after class. Repairing sidewalks, installing street lights, and improving parks can stimulate more physical activity. Creating safer streets can people to walk or cycle to schools, parks, and other family destinations. Also, using marketing and technology to change Latino kids’ physical activity patterns. Read the Issue Brief in English (PDF) Read the Issue Brief in Spanish (PDF) Contents Introduction & Methods. This ...

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Food & Latino Kids Research: Future Research



This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review » Future Research Needs This review of the evidence indicates that researchers should conduct additional and more rigorously designed studies, such as experimental or quasi-experimental studies with less reliance on self-reported data whenever possible. Future research should examine the degree to which increased access to local healthy foods impacts dietary habits and obesity in Latino communities. Researchers also should: Identify other multilevel factors (for individuals, at homes, in neighborhoods, counties and cities), that contribute to obesity and health outcomes. Such factors include stressors, lack of time or interest in preparing healthy foods, prices for healthy foods that far exceed those for unhealthy ...

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Food & Latino Kids Research: Access to Healthy Food


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This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review » Increased access to healthy foods in low income neighborhoods does not necessarily ensure that it will lead to improvements in residents’ diets. Some studies some no affect on dietary improvement Two studies of low-income neighborhoods that have reported findings without racial sub-analyses have shown that increased access to healthy foods does not affect diet quality in low-income neighborhoods. A national study using longitudinal data observed that proximity to a supermarket was not related to diet quality in low-income young to middle-aged adult populations.27 In addition, the first controlled (one intervention neighborhood and one comparison neighborhood), longitudinal study of a PFFFI-funded project found that ...

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Food & Latino Kids Research: Supermarkets


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This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review » More access to supermarkets results in less obesity risk Greater neighborhood access to supermarkets catering to underserved populations is linked to a lower prevalence of obesity in adults and children. Evidence from systematic reviews, longitudinal and cross-sectional studies collectively show the relationship between greater access to supermarkets and lower prevalence of obesity. Only two studies have analyzed the relationship between lack of local supermarket access and obesity over a period of time (2 years and 4 years). The data from these studies show mixed evidence in adults and children. One study reported that an increase in accessible supermarkets was associated with decreased BMI for adults who moved ...

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Food & Latino Kids Research: Farmers Markets


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This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review » Access to farmers markets is lacking among Latinos In the past decade, the number of farmers’ markets in the United States has more than doubled.51 However, many of these markets had not previously been accessible to underserved and Latino populations. Efforts to increase number of farmers markets A number of food financing initiatives have increased the number of farmers’ markets operating in underserved communities.52 For example, through the activities of community groups, there are nearly a dozen farmers’ markets in underserved neighborhoods in Oakland, California. Latinos comprise 25 percent of these communities.53 Similarly, the Y USA’s Pioneering Healthier Communities initiative prompted the ...

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