This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Latinos are a major participant in federal food assistance
Research on the impacts of healthy food financing initiatives among SNAP and WIC participants is important because a large proportion of them are Latino, and/or belong to underserved populations. Latinos comprise 19 percent of SNAP and 32 percent of WIC participants.36,37 About 50 percent of U.S. Latino children are served by the WIC program.37
Efforts to promote healthier food via federal food assistance
In 2009, the U.S. government revised the “package” of food eligible for WIC food to include a wider variety of healthy foods, including whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and lower-fat milk. Three studies found that the new WIC food package ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Efforts rising to boost healthy food in corner stores
Initial findings on the impact of initiatives aimed at expanding healthy foods in corner stores have been generally favorable, although most studies to date are not large and rigorous in their methods and analyses. Additionally, the majority of studies have not been conducted in areas with significant Latino populations. Two reviews of several studies on corner store initiatives in areas with small numbers of Latinos found that most stores reported that the interventions were linked to increased sales of promoted healthy foods, including fruits and vegetables, low-fat milk, high-fiber cereals, and water.71,72 A small, randomized, controlled study of tiendas in ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Latinos face economic barriers to healthy eating
Focus groups of Latino mothers have revealed that the most significant barrier to establishing healthy eating habits for their children is economic constraint.82 Many Latino families experience intermittent or chronic food insecurity; however, food is usually given the highest priority. Because of financial constraints, lower-income Latino mothers’ food purchases are driven almost exclusively by price.83 Mothers have expressed that they commonly travel to several different locations to purchase specific items at the lowest prices available.82 These practices demonstrate that Latino mothers’ desire to provide healthy meals for their families and protect their ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Conclusions
A large portion of U.S. families lack access to healthy, affordable foods in their neighborhoods. Lack of access is especially prevalent in low-income communities, including Latino communities. In these neighborhoods, convenience stores and fast-food restaurants are widespread, but there is a scarcity of supermarkets and farmers’ markets that can provide fresh and healthy food options. Healthy food financing initiatives are relatively recent, but promising at increasing the availability of healthy foods in low-income neighborhoods. These initiatives involve children and adults and are spread across highly diverse localities with different environments, social characteristics, and obesity rates. There ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Introduction
While a nationwide concern, obesity is especially prevalent among Latino children. Nearly 40 percent of U.S. Latino youth ages 2-19 are overweight or obese compared with 28.5 percent of non-Latino white youths.1 Obesity is linked to increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, asthma, liver disease, and cancer.2 Given that Latinos are one of the fastest-growing U.S. populations, preventing and reducing obesity among Latinos will have an important impact on our nation’s health. Compared with other racial and ethnic groups, Latino children are more likely to live in poverty,3,4 causing diet quality to suffer and increasing the risk for developing obesity.5 Limited ...
Abstract
Fast food and corner stores outnumber supermarkets and farmers’ markets in many Latino neighborhoods. This results in overconsumption of unhealthy foods, and more risk of obesity. Fortunately, healthy food financing initiatives can boost access to healthy, affordable foods. This happens when supermarkets and farmers’ markets get certain incentives to develop their businesses in underserved areas. Groups also can help corner stores to expand their inventory of healthy, affordable foods. Also, more marketing of healthy foods, and less of junk foods, can help spur desirability. Read the Issue Brief in English (PDF)
Read the Issue Brief in Spanish (PDF)
Video in Spanish
Contents
Introduction & Methodology. This Salud America! research review is an ...
A controversy is growing over sugary drinks and their impact on health in largely Latino San Antonio, Texas. Sugary drinks recently surged into the national spotlight with emerging research on the link between too much dietary sugar and health issues like diabetes and obesity, and the growth of sugary drink pricing initiatives by cities to cut consumption and increase revenue for health promotion programs. These issues have prompted push-back by the beverage industry. That push-back reached San Antonio, where beverage industry reps and health advocates sparred over local health, fueled by research by Salud America!, the Latino childhood obesity prevention network at UT Health San Antonio. Obesity and diabetes are grave local and national health concerns with no single cause, ...
The School District of Onalaska is starting a new and healthier way to fundraise through the high schools concessions stands. The new concession stands will still offer the usual options of candy, popcorn and hot dogs, but now they will also offer consumers new healthier options, called "Freddy's Food's. Named after the school's Mascot Freddy, the new food options will consist of freshly made sandwiches, salads, fruit cups, and cheese sticks. The YMCA will be studying this new program initiative, through a Pioneering Healthier Communities study. The study will review how offering new healthier options into schools local fundraising concession stands impacts the health of the school and the overall health of the community. Zach Thomas, one of the students that runs the high ...
The Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation and Westwood Unidos are collaborating on a campaign aimed at Latino families and Latino youth to show that tap water is safe to drink daily. The Cavities Get Around campaign is an initiative of The Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation, hoping to eradicate childhood tooth decay and improve oral health for children. According to recent studies, Latino kids ages 0-5 consumption of sugary drinks is higher than the overall average. Rumors of how the tap water may be safe in the Westwood neighborhood has caused many Latino families to believe that the tap water is unsafe to drink. Also, many families are immigrants and are not used to drinking water directly out of the sink, explained Jessica Mahaffey, a marketing specialist for Denver Water in a ...
