According to a new study from the Columbia University Medical Center, most Americans – including a majority of Latinos – who screen positive for depression don’t receive treatment for it. Also, many who do receive treatment, don’t appear to have the disorder. “Over the last several years there has been an increase in prescription of antidepressants,” said Mark Olfson, lead author of the study. “In that context, many people assumed that undertreatment of depression is no longer a common problem.” Olfson found the opposite was true after analyzing the data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys in 2012 and 2013. Asked if they had been screened for adults, 8.4% of the more than 46,000 adults answered in ways suggested they had depression. Only 28.7% who appeared ...
Want a healthy break at school? Why not bite into fresh fruit. Students in some Arizona schools are now enjoying the fresh apples, cantaloupes, and other fruits and vegetables offered as part of the Dept. of Agriculture's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable program, started back in 2002. The program has opened in 94 schools in Arizona with $3.7 million dollars allocated in helping to reimburse school's healthy snack purchases, that can then be disbursed to students throughout the day during class times. Casa Grande Elementary School District (65.7% Latino) is thrilled to enjoy the fresh produce in class, like string beans, and exotic star fruit. The schools that have applied for the program are hoping to encourage students to increase healthier snacking selections even when outside ...
Maria Silva is a registered dietitian and educator in St. Vincent de Paul’s bilingual Family Wellness Program in Phoenix (44% Latino). The program shares its services online on its website, and at local health fairs. But Silva noticed many local people had no Internet access or did not know about the health fairs. They missed opportunities to benefit from the program and free services offered. What other way could Silva promote program awareness and offer nutritional advice, healthy recipes, and healthy eating tips? She found the answer in an old-school magazine.
The Program and the Magazine
The Family Wellness Program began in 1999. It aims to boost the health of local Latino families, from a provision of medical and dental care to healthy lifestyle services for ...
The UConn Rudd Center just released a study today in the Journal of Obesity, looking at how healthier snacks that are "smart-snack" approved, can change the attitude about the food brand and confuse parents and children when shopping for healthier snack options. The study examines how parents and children rated look-alike snacks in taste, healthfulness, and purchase intent. Smart Snacks were considered healthier, but less tasty, however, many parents and kids believed they had seen similar products for sale in stores. This can be a challenge for parents looking for the healthier options in stores, believing that the "copycat" or "look-alike" versions of junk food are in fact, approved by Smart Snack regulations set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2013. Schools are ...
Need to figure out what to do in your school to have safe and clean water access and encourage everyone to drink more water? Watch the video webinar to learn more about how the Wisconsin (58% overweight or obese) created the Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition that has helped with initiatives to increase water consumption, reduce tooth decay and ensure students have access to safe and appealing water resources in schools. Through watching the webinar viewers will: Have a basic understanding of the need to decrease consumption of sugary drinks to increase oral health and reduce tooth decay or cavities
Know about recent research of how low-cost water initiatives bring benefits in the help to fight childhood obesity & tooth decay
Have tools and a guideline to help advocate ...
Guillermina Rice, like many Latina moms, cares about her 13-year-old son, Aero's health. After helping watch over kids during recess, Rice realized that some kids were being discriminated by other kids because of their weight, she decided to do something. Rice, coming from a family with a history of Diabetes, knows the importance of healthy eating and drinking water. She volunteered with the Central Elementary Schools staff to draft a food and beverage policy for birthday celebrations at school, encouraging parents to bring healthy options, like fruit and ditch the soda, candy, and cakes that are usually served at school celebrations. But she didn't stop there. After working with California Project LEAN, Rice learned about the large amounts of sugar that are in leading soda ...
According to the National Vital Statistics System, more people died from cancer than heart disease in 22 states during 2014. This is a substantial uptick from 2002, when only two states (Alaska and Minnesota) had more cancer deaths than heart disease-related ones. “This might be due to obesity, which is a risk factor for both heart disease and cancer,” explained Dr. Paolo Boffetta, a professor of environmental medicine and public health at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who was not involved in the study. “Cancer deaths gaining on deaths related to heart disease might be explained by the fact that treatment for cancer is more complex, and we are not able to treat cancer as effectively as cardiovascular disease yet.” For Latinos, cancer is already the leading cause ...
The new U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidelines for Smart Snack in Schools is working to help students have healthier snacks in schools, encouraging schools to stop selling foods high in unnecessary sugars, salts and fats like candy bars, sodas, and fried foods. In fact, new recommendations from the American Heart Association reveal that children and teens should consume less than 6 teaspoons of sugar a day. Are Smart Snacks in your school? Each snack offered must meet guidelines set by the USDA, including but not limited to sugar, salt, fat and calorie limits. Beverages are limited in schools as well, no soda is allowed to be sold and only 100% fruit or vegetable juice is allowed, although some juices still contain high amounts of natural sugars. Find out more ...
Fresh fruits and plenty of vegetable options will now be offered in Duncan Public Schools in Stephens County, Oklahoma (7.3% Latino) starting this school year, according to a local article. The school is planning to continue following federal requirements on the menus but also plans to join a co-op of other school districts that will help the school save money and have greater purchasing power for healthier choices. Children eat almost half of their daily calories at school, so it is important to offer healthier options like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
The school will allow children to not only have a fresh salad bar daily but also offer students two to three choices of vegetables and fresh fruits.
Researchers from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention have ...
