A recent study by the Economic Policy Institute that, while the economy has bounced back from the Great Recession, new college and high school graduates, especially minorities such as Latinos, will still have a difficult time dealing with unemployment, underemployment, and living wages. A detailed study looked at the economic outlook for the Class of 2016. Despite officially ending in 2009, the Great Recession had a lasting effect on the employment prospects of young people. The recession left millions unemployed for prolonged stretches of time. The slow recovery has meant that eight classes of graduates have entered into a very weak labor market and have had to compete with more-experienced workers for limited job opportunities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there ...
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has officially helped move the FDA to publish sodium-reduction targets for 150 categories of packaged and restaurant foods. The CSPI group explained in a recent article that the average American consumes almost twice as much as the recommended federal dietary guidelines of sodium daily. CSPI hopes that these new reductions of excess sodium in foods will help prevent billions in health care costs and save lives from preventable heart attacks and strokes. To learn more about this healthy change in foods, click here to read the full CSPI report. Copy & Share on Twitter: Good News! @US_FDA issues voluntary sodium reduction targets! Thanks @CSPI #BetterFoods! ...
Working together, local government and non-profits in Santa Barbara, Calif. (43.74% Latino) are redesigning the food environment to focus on health and sustainability. According to a local article, over half of county residents are overweight or obese, and face difficulties in access to healthy foods, affordable housing, health care and more. A Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) report on health behavior shows that over 70% of adults or 214,354 adults over the age of eighteen within the county have inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption- consuming less than five servings of fruit and vegetables each day. "Population growth in the county is expected to increase by 100,000 people", Sigrid Wright of the Community Environmental Council told the Pacific Coast Business Times, ...
Researchers at the newly created Women’s Cardiovascular Research Center at the University of California San Diego and San Diego State University have started a four-year, $3.7 million study to look at the link between sedentary habits and cardiovascular health among Hispanic and Latino women over 55. The study is funded by the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women Strategically Focused Network. The study will recruit 250 Latino women to track their sitting and analyze their cholesterol, blood sugar, and other bio-markers related to cardiovascular health. Investigators will also analyze data collected from 400 women who participated in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos, a long-term survey of more than 16,000 U.S. Latinos. Although worldwide research ...
Soda taxes may not be the only way to help consumers choose healthier beverages in Philadelphia, now a new tax proposal may help corner stores look at healthier beverages in a different light. Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown purposed to a new "healthy beverages tax credit" to allow corner stores to get a tax break for stocking more healthier beverages into their corner stores. The tax would give a tax credit against their business taxes for what they spend on healthy beverages for one year and the difference for the next year's expenses, benefiting stores like delis, pharmacies, and corner stores that stock healthy beverages versus the common sugar-based sweeteners of high-fructose corn syrup. According to a recent article, Brown hopes the tax will encourage more consumption ...
Joining the movement of many health groups, certain groups in Maryland want to label sugar-sweetened beverages. This doesn't come as a surprise, as many cities are starting to discuss soda taxes across the country including three cities in California, with big pushes in various cities in Calif. and in Philadelphia, Illinois. "There's a national movement working to reduce rates of heart disease, tooth decay, diabetes that are directly related to sugary drinks, here in Maryland, particularly in Baltimore, we are focused on education, ... this measure is about transparency, this is really about a consumers the right to know, " said Robi Rawl director of Sugar-Free kids Maryland, in the local news video. About 22 percent of Latino high-school students drink three or more sugary ...
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 ...
According to a local news article, by this summer local convenient stores and large chain stores who sell food in the city of Minneapolis must offer healthier fresh food options. Most corner stores throughout the nation offer junk foods, that are usually high in sodium, added sugars and low in nutritious benefit- an unhealthy food environment for Latinos- who are currently reported to have the highest rates of obesity in the city (31.7% of Latino Adults Obese) and the overall nation. This new law is the first of it's kind in the nation, hoping to help combat diabetes, obesity, and other diet-related health risks by offering more convenient access and healthier foods throughout the city's corner stores and convenience stores. The law asks businesses to stock protein items, milk, ...
Open Enrollment for health insurance as part of the Affordable Care Act through a 2106 Marketplace plan is over. However, for those who qualify for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), you can get health insurance any time of year, with coverage starting immediately. Medicaid provides health coverage for many low-income families and children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Many states have expanded their Medicaid programs to cover all people below particular income levels. CHIP provides the same type of low-cost health coverage to children in families that are above the pay threshold for Medicaid. In some states, CHIP is provided to pregnant women, as well. According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), 95% of ...
