Where your city spends money (public investment) determines if you have access to parks, sidewalks, nutritious food, and public transportation, all of which have a far greater impact on your health than health care. In order for parents to keep their kids active and healthy, communities need to provide safe places to walk, bike, and play. Unfortunately, many Latino neighborhoods are missing these places due to inequitable distribution of public funds. Read more about inequity in public spending here. San Antonio residents (63.2% Latino) have the opportunity get involved in deciding where the city should spend $850 million over the next five years. “In some ways we’re kind of battling against history,” said San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor according to one source. “You go ...
America is currently undergoing an epidemic of prescription opioid abuse. According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine, drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in the country, with 47,055 lethal drug overdoses in 2014. Opioid addiction is driving this problem, with 18,893 overdose deaths related to prescription pain relievers, and 10,574 overdose deaths related to heroin in 2014. While this problem is rapidly reaching critical levels in the United States, Latinos are being affected at lesser rates than whites. Researchers say minority patients, including Latinos and African Americans, use opioids at lesser rates. There are numerous possible explanations for this phenomenon, including lack of insurance coverage and a greater reluctance among minorities to ...
Consumers are looking more for food options low in sugar as they become more aware of added sugars by reading the new nutrition labels. According to Euromonitor Ltd., yogurt sales have more than doubled since 2001. However, many yogurts contain up to 20 or more grams of added sugars. Now with rising demand for products lower in added sugars, Dannon's Chief Executive Mariano Lozano told the press that the company would now offer more products focused around low-sugar options with no genetically engineered ingredients (GMO's). The American Heart Association shows that the average American eats about 22 teaspoons of added sugar every day, and recommends to parents to limit children's sugar consumption to eat less than 3 to 4 teaspoons per day. Added sugars from foods and ...
Enroll America recently announced the results of their 2016 consumer survey regarding consumers and the Healthcare Marketplace. According to the survey, affordability remains the primary concern and reason that many have not enrolled in health insurance through the marketplace. Last month, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released an analysis on coverage and the cost-sharing protections that consumers are getting through HealthCare.gov for the 2016 coverage year. The best way to combat this perception is to ensure consumers are aware of the financial help available to help purchase marketplace plans. In order to reduce health disparities, it is critical to address inequities in programs, practices, and policies.
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From the start of one senior citizen's small backyard garden in Holladay, Utah, to now a flourishing program of over 28 gardens throughout Salt Lake City area, Green Urban Lunch Box helps senior citizens use their back yards to grow fresh vegetables for their community. It all started when Katie Nelson, the nonprofit's Back-Farms program coordinator asked 84-year-old Chiyoko Chiba if they could grow vegetables in her backyard. After much faith and some cultivation from the nonprofit's volunteers, the garden has helped senior citizens access healthier foods. In fact, over 12,000 pounds of fresh vegetables have been harvested since 2015 straight from various backyard farms. "This is a great opportunity to help out some folks who can no longer grow their own food," Nelson told ...
The Internet is an everyday part of millions of people’s lives. The Internet connects people all over the globe to unlimited amounts of resources and information. However, for many people, access and usability still remain obstacles. Health communicators in particular have struggled with overcoming what is known as “the digital divide,” which is a huge disparity among the Latino community. As more and more of the “analog” world moves online (everything from paying bills to buying groceries to signing up for healthcare), it is becoming critical for healthcare professionals to bridge the gap. Latinos currently represent 17% of the overall population of the United States, and in California, Latinos represent the largest ethnic group in the state and outnumber non-Latino ...
Elementary schools in Miss. will now offer healthier school meals as new combination oven steamers will help prepare foods once made with deep fryers,according to local news. The two local elementary schools, Warrenton and South Park, had received funds to change the fryers to combi ovens with a 2106 Nutrition Integrity grant from the Miss. Department of Education office of Child Nutrition and The Bower Foundation. The school district had applied for the grant worth $18,000 per school, allowing them to upgrade older kitchens and outdated cooking appliances. Healthier school meals are vital for kids, who consume most of their daily calories at school.
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Earlier in August, the financial analyzing website Wallethub released a ranking of the states with the best and worst public school systems. Analysts gathered data from several organizations, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in order to grade school systems on their quality and safety. With school resuming session, many parents or guardians might be wondering whether they’ve selected the best school districts to secure their children’s academic success and future successes in life. For many parents and guardians, “quality” is a question of public funding that is available. While that may be true in many cases, more resources do not always correlate with better academic performance, as our findings demonstrate. So what did ...
The Georgia Department of Transportation and Pedestrians Educating Drivers on Safety (PEDS) are developing an action plan aimed at increasing safety for people who walk. First, they are gathering input from Georgia residents about the challenges they face while walking in their community. It is essential for decision makers at the city and state level to seek community input to ensure that new plans, programs, and policies recognize and address barriers that are important to often-overlooked disadvantaged populations. The survey only takes five minutes and is available in English and Spanish. It will be used to prioritize solutions that you feel are most important to your community. Take the survey and spread the word. Learn more about why pedestrian safety is so ...
