A soda tax can stir up controversy. Health experts say they curb consumption of unhealthy sugary drinks. Detractors say they're bad for local businesses. Many don't like taxes in any instance. But most people miss what happens after soda tax revenue comes in. That's why we are excited to share a new video series, Health Investments for Berkeley, which celebrates the community-led public health work paid for, in part, by the nation's first-ever soda tax enacted in Berkeley, Calif., in 2014. The series, created by the Praxis Project, an Oakland health justice group, has four parts: Berkeley Unified School District
Healthy Black Families
Multicultural Institute
Ecology Center "This series is intended to flip the national narrative around soda taxes that ...
U.S. Latinos face high levels of poverty, food swamps, and food insecurity—living without reliable access to enough affordable, nutritious food. In Texas, the food insecurity rate is 14.3%. That’s why Texas State Representative Diego Bernal championed legislation that would allow schools to set up school food pantries. Because of this law, schools are helping those who are hungry and food insecure as well as reducing food waste. The law has also inspired others to create change and do good for the community, like Jenny Arredondo, Samantha Almaraz, and Pablo Ramirez.
Diego Bernal & School Food Pantries
Bernal was heartbroken after touring Texas schools and seeing students go hungry, even as "perfectly edible food" was being thrown away in cafeterias. He wanted to ...
Hispanic Heritage Month is here! This annual U.S. observance, from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, celebrates the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. We at Salud America! invite you to think outside the box and celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in these awesome ways.
1. Find Out How Hispanic Heritage Month Started
U.S. Congressmen Edward R. Roybal of Los Angeles and Henry B. Gonzales were among those who introduced legislation on the topic in 1968. President Lyndon Johnson implemented the observance as Hispanic Heritage Week that year. U.S. Rep. Esteban E. Torres of Pico Rivera proposed the observance be expanded to cover its current 30-day period. President Ronald Reagan ...
Targeting foods and drinks high in sugars, salt, and fats to Latinos and communities of color contributes to health inequity. To improve the nutritional quality of products that are directed toward and sold to Latinos and communities of color, advocates need to understand marketing strategies used by the food and beverage industry. A new series of four briefs from Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG), The 4 Ps of Marketing: Selling Junk Food to Communities of Color, explains how each marketing principle works and provides examples to illustrate how target marketing contributes to health inequities. For example, food and beverage companies use marketing tactics founded on the “marketing mix” principles of the 4 Ps—product, place, price, and promotion—to target Latino kids ...
Rates of colorectal cancer, found in the colon or rectum, are on the rise among American adults under the age of 50. A new study, published the American Cancer Society’s peer-reviewed journal CANCER, discovered that the disease is impacting more and more young people by using data from the National Cancer Database registry. The research group, led by Dr. Boone Goodgame of The University of Texas at Austin, examined the data of over 1,185,763 patients. "Several studies have shown that the rates of colorectal cancer in younger adults have risen slowly in the US since the 1970s, but for practicing physicians, it feels like we are seeing more and more young people with colorectal cancer now than we were even 10 years ago," Goodgame, told Wiley. What were their ...
From popcorn bags to pizza boxes, firefighting chemicals—that link to cancer development—contaminate food packages and seep into food. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) contamination is a wide-spread problem. Researchers have discovered their presence in products, water, and food. They are also severely impacting the U.S. military and families. Now PFAS in food packaging is an emerging threat, according to a recent report. “Since the chemicals can migrate into food, and contaminate landfills and compost after disposal, the use of PFAS to treat food packaging can lead to unnecessary long-term exposure to harmful chemicals," according to "Take Out Toxics: PFAS Chemicals in Food Packaging” by Safer Chemicals Healthy Families, Toxic-Free Future, and Mind the ...
When alarmingly high levels of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contaminated Bemidji, Minnesota’s (5.4% Latino) water, the city shut down two of its five wells. The city is planning to build a new $2 million well to ensure clean water. State lawmakers saw the harm PFAS, which are used as flame retardants, pose. So, the Minnesota (1.5% Latino) legislators passed a bill that bans those health-harming substances in many products used by consumers. Even worse, when those items catch fire, they release noxious fumes into the air, which harms firefighters throughout the country. “What we've learned over time is that those chemicals actually don't do much as far as fire protection,” Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn, one of the bill's authors, told Minnesota Public Radio ...
A lack of access to healthy, sustainable food is causing Latino kids to develop severe health conditions including issues with their internal organs. One significant issue of concern is pediatric nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The rate of diagnoses is increasing among Latino kids, Kaiser Health News reports. “Fatty liver disease is ripping through the Latino community like a silent tsunami and especially affecting children,” said Dr. Rohit Kohli, chief of gastroenterology, hepatology, and nutrition at the University of Southern California and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The ailment is also linked to genetics as well as high levels of sugar and fat in diets.
Fatty Liver Disease & Latino Kids
Before 2006, many doctors did not know that children could develop ...
Last month, Washington (12.7% Latino) state lawmakers approved far-reaching chemical legislation, which will regulate toxic substances in consumer products. The bill, which is awaiting signature from Governor Jay Inslee, aims to implement harmful chemical identification, restriction, and prohibition efforts. Toxic-free advocates are describing the law as one of the most substantial pieces of regulatory legislation in the country. “Washington state’s legislature has taken bold action to protect public health and the environment from the dangers of toxic chemicals,” said Liz Hitchcock, leader of Safer Chemicals Healthy Families, in a press release. “Other states and the federal government should follow their lead.”
What Does the Bill Entail?
The Pollution Prevention for ...
