Arely Perez loves to step outside her comfort zone. In college, she studied and enjoyed kinesiology—the study of human movement—but wasn’t as familiar with how it translated to the health of the community. So, as a graduate student at UT San Antonio, she got jobs in the labs of Drs. Meizi He and Zenong Yin, where she learned all about public health and coordinated studies of local programs to improve nutrition and reduce obesity in child care centers. “I became passionate about improving people’s health, thanks to both Drs. He and Yin, who gave me great opportunities to expand my knowledge and skills,” Perez said. Today Perez is applying her passion for health as a researcher at the Institute for Health Promotion Research at The UT Health Science Center at San ...
Find the latest advances in Latino health—like new studies to reduce obesity in Latino kids, develop cancer-fighting food plans, and navigate Latinos to better health—in the IHPR Noticias E-newsletter. IHPR Noticias has lots of info on the latest local and national health disparities-related news, resources and events: Story: Using Counseling, Texting to Help Latinos Fight Obesity (Pg 1)
Profile: Latina Steps Outside her Comfort Zone to Help Others...The Story of the IHPR's Arely Perez (Pg 2)
New Study: Rx for Better Breast Health (Pg 2)
New Study: Navegando Salud (Pg 3)
Story: The Power of Community Health Educators (Pg 4)
Story: Physical Activity is Essential, Not Optional (Pg 6)
Report: Bleak Picture for Latino, Other Minority Kids in Public Schools (Pg ...
About 23% of U.S. public school students are Hispanic, but only 8% of teachers are Hispanic, too, according to new studies, Fox News Latino reports via the Associated Press. Overall, 48% of public school students are minorities, but less than 20% of teachers are minorities. This is a so-called "diversity gap" and more should be done to help teachers more accurately mirror the students in their classrooms, according to the study developers, the Center for American Progress and the National Education Association. According to the article:
Teachers are always pushing their students to excel, said Kevin Gilbert, coordinator of teacher leadership and special projects for the Clinton Public School District in Clinton, Mississippi.
It becomes easier for students to believe "when ...
Breast cancer survivors can now join a new study to learn how certain foods may reduce the risk of cancer recurrence. The study, Rx for Better Breast Health, is funded by Susan G. Komen for the Cure and led by Dr. Amelie Ramirez, professor and director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. Breast cancer survivors who participate will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. Each group will get different cancer nutrition tools, possibly six cooking demonstrations by Chef Iverson Brownell, who creates innovative culinary recipes that taste great and promote health (see his video). Call 210-562-6579 to see if you qualify. “We want to teach survivors the importance of a dietary plan full of foods with ...
The gap in college graduation rates between Latinos and Whites across the United States dropped from 14% to 9% over the past two years, although data varied from state to state, according to a new report by Excelencia in Education. The report collected state-level data on student populations, educational attainment of adults, multiple comparative measures of equity gaps in degree attainment, the top five institutions enrolling and graduating Latinos, and examples of promising, evidence-based practices in each state for improving Latino college completion. Nationally, the top-five institutions awarding bachelor's degrees to Latinos were: Florida International University, University of Phoenix (online), The University of Texas at El Paso, The University of Texas - Pan American, ...
Check out this great profile of Latina public health research Dr. Larissa Avilés Santa. The profile, by CienciaPR, chronicles Avilés Santa's career development, from how she got interested in anatomy and endocrinology in 4th grade in elementary school, studied medicine and translational research in Puerto Rico, worked in heart disease prevention and diabetes clinical trials at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, and joined the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) in 2006. Now she is directing the largest-ever study on U.S. Latino health (the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos). Avilés Santa said the initial results from the large study indicate high risks for diabetes and heart disease among Latinos, creating new opportunities for ...
What does it mean to live along the U.S.-Mexico border? Why is the border where it is, and how does the fence work? How violent is Ciudad Juarez? What are the health and wellness concerns of people? The answers to these questions can be found in National Pubic Radio's new Borderland Broadcast Series, a catalog of Steve Inskeep's travels along the more than 2,000-mile border to photographically illustrate what it means to live along the binational borderline for Latinos in the United States and Mexico. Follow along with the interactive series or listen to series ...
U.S. Latino, black, and American Indian children have greater obstacles to success than white and Asian children, according to a new report, NPR reports. The report, called Race for Results from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, explores the intersection of kids, race and opportunity. The report includes a score that compares how racial/ethnic children are progressing on 12 key milestones from birth to adulthood—such as math proficiency, high school graduation data, teen birth rates, employment prospects, family income and education levels, and poverty levels—at the national and state levels. The higher the score (up to 1,000), the better children fare. Asian children have the highest score at 776, followed by white children at 704. Among Latinos, only eight states had ...
Latinos are at high risk for asthma because prevalence, illness and deaths are strongly correlated with urban air quality, indoor allergens, lack of patient education and inadequate medical care, according to an American Lung Association report. Both asthma and allergies are caused by the body's immune response to environmental triggers, such that some allergens can also trigger asthma, according to Kaiser Permanente. Other irritants can trigger asthma, too, such as the flu. So what can Latinos do? To make an action plan, visit Kaiser Permanente's bilingual website. You can also check out Spanish-language resources from the American Lung Association: Breathe Well, Live Well is an adult asthma self-management education program led by an American Lung Association-trained ...
