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Si el cáncer está en tus genes una vida saludable podría compensar el riesgo, un estudio sugiere



Las mujeres con los genes que están relacionados con el cáncer de mama pueden reducir significativamente el riesgo de la enfermedad siguiendo un estilo de vida saludable, de acuerdo a un nuevo estudio publicado en el Journal of American Medical Association, reporta ABC news. Los factores claves de estilo de vida, los investigadores encontraron que los más importantes fueron: "El mantenimiento de un peso saludable; no fumar; limitar el alcohol; y no usar la terapia hormonal después de la menopausia.” "Las mujeres en la categoría  más alta de riesgo debido a factores no modificables, las que tuvieron  un índice de masa corporal bajo, no beben no fuman, y no utilizan la terapia hormonal de la menopausia su riesgo es  comparable a una mujer promedio en la población general, ...

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Chefs in schools collaborative cooks up farm fresh lunches



Schools across eight Kentucky counties now get to enjoy fresh food from local farmers in their school lunches. The counties involved are Grayson, Boyle, Clark, Oldham, Harlan, Martin, Morgan and Pike. All are now part of the new initiative for healthier and tastier school lunches. Chefs worked with local food service staff in March to launch the "Chefs in Schools Collaborative", where six schools were trained with local Chefs to come up with their own way of spicing up traditional fairs like tacos and meatballs. Kristy Hodges, the school district food service director has worked with Chef Chris Byrd to create lunches that include produce from local farms and are lower in sodium, less processed and use more natural seasonings. According to Hodges, as stated in a ...

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The Best Ways to Make Your Health Plan Work for You



In nearly every community across the country, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is working to increase access to affordable, quality health care. For Latinos, an estimated 8 in 10 who were previously uninsured qualified for Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP), or lower costs on monthly premiums through the Health Insurance Marketplace. To date, over 4 million Latinos (ages 18-64) have gained health coverage, lowering the overall uninsured rate among Latinos by nearly 8%. Also, over 913,000 Latino adults 19-26, who would have previously been uninsured, now have coverage under their parents’ plans. Getting health insurance is an important first step for overall better health. Once you have your coverage, how do you make it “work” for you? The U.S. Centers for ...

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ALDI grocer to partner and invest in schools health initiatives



Southern California schools are about to get help and funding from an unexpected source, a local grocery store. According to a recent article, the ALDI grocery store has recently partnered with Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) to invest in 15 Southern California area schools to improve overall wellness environments through grants and technical assistance for the 2015 to 2016 school year. The investment from ALDI of $175,000 will go towards helping the schools expand and implement school wellness programs like AFHK's Game On program, and engage community members, parents and ALDI employees to promote wellness at school and home environments. In 2011, the company helped schools through partnering with AFHK in Chicago and hopes to continue to expand and benefit the more than 11,000 ...

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Health Crisis Surges in Puerto Rico


puerto-rico-health

Zika virus. A $73 billion debt crisis. Puerto Rico has been in the news a lot lately, but what's the truth about health in this unincorporated U.S. territory with a 99% Hispanic population? Our friends at the Kaiser Family Foundation put together a fantastic 8-part Q&A about Puerto Rico, including several health indicators. Here are some key takeaways: People are older. The percentage of adults age 65 and older rose 22% from 2006-2014. People have worse health overall. About 35% of adults in Puerto Rico report fair or poor general health, compared to 18% in the U.S. They also have higher HIV rates. More people have health insurance. Less people are uninsured in Puerto Rico (6%) than in the U.S. (12%). But almost half are covered by Medicaid due to high poverty, ...

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Middle school program helped students lose weight long term



A new program called Students for Nutrition and Exercise (SNaX) is helping obese students in Southern California have healthier weights for longer periods of time. According to a recent article, SNax combined school-wide environmental changes, encouragement fo healthy eating, healthy foods in cafeterias and peer-led education and marketing to help students change their body mass index (BMI). Over 1,368 students heights and weights were assessed before and after two years of the program in over five schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District where thirty percent of the students were classified as obese at the start of the program. Two years later students showed a "significant decline" in BMI, around nine pounds lower in body weight, according to the article. The ...

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If Cancer Is in Your Genes Healthy Living May Offset Risk, Study Suggests



Women with genes that are linked to breast cancer can significantly cut the risk for the disease by following a healthy lifestyle, according to a new study published in the Journal of American Medical Association, ABC News reports. The key lifestyle factors, researchers found to be the most important were: “Maintaining a healthy weight; not smoking; limiting alcohol; and not using hormone therapy after menopause.” “For women in the highest decile of risk owing to non-modifiable factors, those who had low BMI, did not drink or smoke, and did not use MHT [menopause hormone therapy] had risks comparable to an average woman in the general population,” the authors ...

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Parent speaks out about unhealthy, cheesy school lunch options



Advocate and parent Theresa Turco wants healthier meals for her student's district. Speaking out and giving ideas, while passing out a menu, Turco explained in a recent news article that meals were too focused on unhealthy items like pizza, mozzarella sticks, and nachos. Turco offered up suggestions at a Board of Education meeting on May 224th, 2016, asking about doing surveys in English and Spanish to help figure out what parents and students would like to see on the school's menu. She also suggested affordable ways to incorporate more fresh foods into the school's food environment through taste-tests, salad and smoothie bars, and working with programs like USDA's Farm to School and Chef to School for resources and training. Turco knows that healthy eating is better for ...

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New Health Insurance Literacy Guide: Mi Salud, Mi Voz



Raising Women’s Voices (RWV), a national initiative working to make sure women’s voices are heard and women’s concerns are addressed as policymakers put healthcare laws into action, has finished preparation of Mi Salud, Mi Voz: Una Guía Paso a Paso Para Mujeres Sobre Cómo Usar el Seguro Médico. This guide is a Spanish translation of many popular health literacy materials. RWV Regional Field Manager Cecilia Saenz Becerra worked with three translators—Tony Macias, Jen Hofer, and Lucy Acevedo to produce the Spanish-language guide. “Working with the team of translators, we used Spanish language that was precise and accurate, while also trying to make it accessible to diverse Spanish-language readers,” she explained. Mi Salud, Mi Voz: Una Guía Paso a Paso Para Mujeres ...

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