You wanted healthier guidelines and spoke up to make it happen! To fuel change in Latino and all communities, Salud America! recently asked its national network to take action by submitting comments to the USDA, as it works to develop its 2020-2025 national dietary guidelines. USDA received 5,800 public comments, including 639 from Salud America! members (11% of all comments)!
2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans
Every 5 years the USDA updates the national dietary guidelines in order to promote healthy living and prevent chronic disease. Regular updates to the guidelines are mandated through the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990, according to regulations.gov. As the next cycle of updates rapidly approaches, many are looking to the USDA in ...
Capri Sun or 100% juice. Milk or flavored milk. The drink you put in your child's lunch can make or break a healthy lunch. In fact, drink choice is linked to the overall dietary quality of the food packed in lunches by parents for their preschoolers (ages 3-5), according to a new study led by the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut. What does this mean for Latino preschoolers and the health of their lunches?
Latino Kids and Sugary Drinks
Latino infants are twice as likely to be fed sugary drinks than their non-Latino peers. They are also more likely to have had a sugary drink by age 2 (74%) than their white peers (45%), according to a Salud America! research review. Ads that push sugary drinks are a problem. Latino preschoolers saw 23% ...
Several recent studies have shown that childhood obesity is on the decline. But are they right? Maybe not. New research indicates obesity rates among 2-5-years-olds have "sharply increased" and are at their highest since 1999, according to an interview by NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro of Dr. David Ludwig of Boston Children's Hospital. Garcia-Navarro's interview with Dr. Ludwig explores what science and "short-term studies" got wrong about obesity. "When you look at short-term studies, movement in the result numbers can go up and down without any real meaning. Looking back, public health experts now know that the changes we thought we saw were really just statistical flukes, and that obesity rates among children are the highest ever," according to Dr. Ludwig on NPR.
What Science ...
Sugar isn’t always sweeter. Latinos and many other families live in food environments with an abundance of unhealthy high-sugar food and drink options. They have less access to fresh produce, clean water, and other healthy options. This situation, sadly, sets the stage for obesity, diabetes, and more. Let’s use #SaludTues on Tuesday, April 3, 2018, to tweet how to increase the availability of and access to healthy food and water for Latino and all families! WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: How to Improve Access to Healthy Foods/Drinks
TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, April 3, 2018
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: @SaludAmerica
CO-HOSTS: Voices for Health Kids (@Voices4HK), Healthy Schools Campaign (@healthyschools), First 5 LA ...
Latinos say they face bigger transportation struggles and public health issues than non-Latinos in Atlanta, and they're willing to pay higher taxes to improve public transportation, according to a new survey. The Atlanta Regional Commission's annual survey ask Atlanta residents their views on transportation, education, health, and more. Overall, residents tabbed transportation as their top concern for the fourth straight year. Transportation is a big deal because it affects day-to-day life. It also affects mental and physical health, professional success, and climate change. Yet, transportation looks very different across the country. Cities with poor transportation options are often burdened by health disparities, economic segregation, and poor air quality. For example, many ...
Bonita Springs, Fla. (31% Latino) and Las Cruces, N.M. (60% Latino) were among 12 cities recognized in "The Best Complete Streets Initiatives of 2017" report by the National Complete Streets Coalition of Smart Growth America. Complete Streets policies direct transportation planners and engineers to design streets with all users in mind. That includes people who walk, bike, take public transit, carpool or drive. This, in turn, helps address chronic disease, equitable economic growth, and reduced car dependence. The National Complete Streets Coalition sought exemplary examples of Complete Streets and advocates in 2017. Using their 100-point grading system, they selected the 12 Best Complete Streets initiatives. In many communities, roads and streets are barriers to access ...
Does your city, county or state have a Complete Streets policy to promote the safety of drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and all? Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago would love to know! You can nominate of public health agencies and advocates who help develop, adopt, and implement Complete Streets policies from 2013-2018 for a "Complete Streets and Public Health" recognition. Nominations are accepted from now to March 30, 2018.
Why Complete Streets?
Many Latino communities lack safe places to play and be active, according to a Salud America! research review. This can often lead to fewer opportunities to be physically active. Complete Streets policies can help. Complete Streets are equitable for all users—drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and commuters ...
Swimming is one of the most promising physical activities to get Latino kids active in and out of school. But as many as 6 in 10 Latinos do not know how to swim. Fortunately, people are stepping up to help. A Florida program gives out coupons for free swim safety classes. Detroit is combining swimming and literacy. And recently a Holocaust survivor helped a YWCA put together the Los Pecesitos ("The Little Fishes”) program to help Latino kids learn to swim in Tulsa, Okla. "What we know is that the drowning rates for children of color are two to three times higher than that of Caucasian children,” said Lacey Thompson Caywood, director of health and wellness for the Tulsa YWCA. “So there was a need for basic swim lessons.” In addition to preventing drowning, swim ...
Isabella Jimenez of San Antonio isn't a normal 13-year-old. When Isabella watched in shock as her classmates ate only potato chips or candy bars for lunch day after day, she didn't just shrug it off. She gave herself a call to action. "Why not create a kid-friendly app with recipes and health tips for [students and] the whole community?" Isabella asked.
Isabella's First Step In many Latino communities, like San Antonio (68% Latino), students are more exposed to unhealthy food in and out of school, according to a Salud America! research review. Isabella saw this in her school, Lee High School in North East ISD in San Antonio. "It's mainly concerning, because [chips and candy bars are] what they're putting into their diet,” Isabella said. Isabella wanted to find a ...
