More than 23,000 people across the nation recently wrote letters to urge the Kellogg Co. to stop marketing sugary foods to families on their Dias Grandiosos website. The letters, which highlighted how Kellogg’s targets Spanish-speaking moms with family-oriented messages for meals that are high in sugar and salt, were collected by Salud America!, an obesity research and communication network funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Salud America! leaders delivered the 23,000 letters to Kellogg’s this week. We will post their response here in coming days. Why is this effort so important? Food and beverage marketing influences kids’ diets and disproportionately focuses on unhealthy products, studies show. We believe families need healthy food options—rather ...
What can be done to help more kids be active? One of the greatest ways to address inactivity in children is to reach kids is where they spend most of their time—at school. Research has shown that programs that offer physical activity, both during school and after school hours, not only help kids remain active and prevent obesity, but also help students perform better academically. On March 31, 2015, let's use #SaludTues to tweet about ideas, tips, stories and strategies to work toward a healthier school fitness environment: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “How to Bring Fitness Back to Schools & Why This Matters”
DATE: Tuesday, March, 31, 2015
TIME: Noon CST (1:00 PM ET)
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: @SaludAmerica
CO-HOSTS: Institute of ...
Unhealthy diets can contribute to obesity. But in many neighborhoods, there are more fast-food restaurants than grocery stores and farmers’ markets, which can offer affordable fresh fruits and vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat milk, and other healthy options. Let’s use #SaludTues on March 17, 2015, to tweet and discuss strategies on how to bring families closer to grocery stores and healthy foods in their neighborhoods: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “How to Get Closer to My Grocer”
DATE: Tuesday, March 17, 2015
TIME: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT)
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: @SaludAmerica
CO-HOSTS: The American Heart Association Voices for Healthy Kids Texas Campaign Team, The Food Trust (@thefoodtrust), and Voices for Healthy Kids ...
Burger King has joined fellow fast-food restaurants McDonald's and Wendy's in ensuring kids' have healthy drink options. Burger King has agreed to remove sugary soda from its kids' meals and menus. Additionally, the company will not market soda as part of its kids’ meals at all. All the changes have been made at headquarters, and individual franchises are in the process of making the switch. Burger King made the change, "as part of our ongoing effort to offer our guests options that match lifestyle needs," said Alex Macedo, president of Burger King North America, in an e-mailed statement to USA TODAY. Instead of soft drinks, the Burger King menu for kids will offer fat-free milk, 100% apple juice and low-fat chocolate milk. Health advocacy groups like CSPI and Mom'sRising ...
Farmers’ markets are a great place to find fresh fruits and vegetables when your local grocery store doesn’t sell them. But when your neighborhood doesn’t have a farmers’ market OR a local grocery store with fresh fruits and vegetables—are you just out of luck? Find out how Michelle Griego, a school teacher-turned healthy food leader, was inspired by her friend to start a farmers’ market in her neighborhood in San Antonio, Texas, so neighbors could not only have better access to fresh fruits and vegetables, but learn how to cook tasty dishes that make healthy eating a delicious way of life.
No Farmer's Market in Your Town?
Awareness: As a computer teacher at an elementary school in San Antonio, Texas, Michelle Griego watches kids choose chips over carrots ...
Schools across the country are revamping their lunch menus to better reflect the updated national nutrition standards. Some schools are going above and beyond the standards and making huge strides to serve healthy, delicious food to students. In Blount County, Tennessee, schools are experimenting with growing their own fresh produce for school lunch. Agriculture teacher Mike Whitehead’s classes piloted the program last year at William Blount High School and William Blount Ninth Grade Academy. Since the program started, the cafeteria has gradually increased its produce orders to meet student demand, said manager Yvonne Buchanan in a news article. Currently, students grow fresh produce for six cafeterias: Mary Blount Elementary School, Friendsville Elementary School, Union Grove ...
Science backs up your mom’s old adage: “Eat your fruits and vegetables if you want to be healthy and strong!” Unfortunately, this message is often lost or unheeded, buried beneath junk food ads relentlessly targeting kids. Leaders in San Antonio, Texas decided to combat the city’s troubling obesity rate with a campaign designed to get kids (and their parents!) to eat more fruits and veggies. The “Veg Out” campaign, backed by science and a coalition of public health, school, city, and other officials, aims to have a lasting impact on the health of families in San Antonio.
Marketing Usually Promotes Unhealthy Food Options
Awareness: San Antonio is a unique, mostly Latino city known for its rich history and traditions. However, some traditions, like the consumption of ...
The Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) was ready to step up the fight to improve health in the face of rising obesity problems. So the BPHC developed a bilingual public health campaign against sugary drinks to help residents make healthier choices.
The Issue of Sugary Drinks and Obesity
Awareness/Learn: Obesity is a big problem. In 2011, the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) tried to get ahead of the curve and target sugar reduction with a bilingual campaign called “Azucar Sabia (Sugar Smarts).” This campaign went up in communities around Boston, educating parents about how sugar-sweetened beverages can cause harm to their children through obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay. This campaign was well received but did not make a major impact on the community, health ...
Eating dinner as a family is linked to all sorts of benefits for both kids and adults: higher grades, better self-esteem, less depression and more. But between after-school activities and other time commitments, it can be hard to get everyone to sit down for a family meal, not to mention a healthy family meal. It only takes a few tweaks to make family dinners happen regularly that are both healthy AND delicious. Join us and our co-host celebrity chef Ingrid Hoffman as we tweet about weeknight family dinner and how to make it healthier at the next #SaludTues Tweetchat. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Family Dinner: Why it Matters & What to Make”
DATE: Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015
TIME: Noon CST (1:00 PM ET)
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
Co-HOSTS: ...
