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How Menu Labeling Will Impact Latino and All Families


calorie menu count

After seven long years, the FDA’s rules for menu labeling have finally taken effect. This is big news for Latino families in particular. These families face less access to healthy food options and struggle with higher rates of obesity, diabetes, and certain diseases than non-Latinos, according to a Salud America! research review. Menu labeling can help Latino and all families make healthier eating choices through clear, easy-to-use nutrition information at the point of ordering. So how did we get here, and how will menu labeling affect families? How’d We Get Menu Labeling? The FDA first proposed menu labeling rules in 2011. After years of tweaking, menu labeling rules had to overcome one final hurdle in 2017. FDA sought public comments on a possible one-year-delay of ...

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Latina Researcher to Examine How Nutrition Policy Affects Minority Children


Emma Sanchez-Vaznaugh

Emma Sanchez-Vaznaugh, a former Salud America! grantee, has received a $3.2 million federal grant to study how federal and state nutrition policies and community environments affect the health of different racial/ethnic populations. Sanchez-Vaznaugh is an associate professor of health education at San Francisco State University. Over the next five years, Sanchez-Vaznaugh and her team will investigate whether the policies—which attempt to improve school nutrition standards and reduce childhood obesity—are effective across different racial/ethnic populations, according to a news release. The study will also evaluate whether the policies are more effective when children attend school in neighborhoods with healthier food options. “We hypothesize that the [federal and state ...

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6 Unconventional Ways to Celebrate Cinco de Mayo


Caesar Valdillez southtown community garden san antonio

What are you doing for Cinco de Mayo? Many will use it as an excuse to party with margaritas and tacos. We at Salud America! invite you to think outside the box and celebrate Cinco de Mayo in one of six unconventional ways. 1. Find Out What Cinco de Mayo Really Means Cinco de Mayo ("Fifth of May") does not celebrate Mexico's Independence Day. Mexico won independence on Sept. 16, 1810. Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican Army's unlikely victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla, on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza. Still, it has evolved into an observance of Mexican heritage. "In the 1950s, Chicano activists turned Cinco de Mayo into a commemorative holiday used to educate Mexican Americans about their cultural heritage," ...

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Ramirez to Receive ‘Icons in Healthcare Award’


amelie ramirez health equity in 2014

Congratulations to Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, who has received the "Icons in Healthcare Award" from CentroMed, a San Antonio health and human service agency! The award recognizes individuals and groups for their important contributions to community healthcare. Dr. Ramirez has more than 30 years of experience developing robust health research and communication models to reduce cancer and improve health among Latinos locally and nationally. The award will be presented at a gala on Nov. 1, 2018. "I'm very thankful for this award and its recognition of our ongoing progress to boost Latino health in San Antonio," Ramirez said. Dr. Ramirez's studies and programs have contributed to increased cancer screening, better cancer risk ...

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Conference Pushes for Progress in Latino Cancer Research



Latino cancer is the top killer of U.S. Latinos. In response, the Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos conference brought together more than 225 cancer experts from 23 states and Puerto Rico to tackle Latino cancer on Feb. 21-23, 2018, in San Antonio. The conference was co-hosted by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez’s Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio (the team behind Salud America!) and Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson. "It was the first time Latino cancer researchers came together to share what we know about cancers in Latinos,” and the energy was palpable, Ramirez told Elaine Ayala of the San Antonio Express-News. The conference welcomed lab investigators, doctors, public health workers, community leaders, health ...

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Hey, Communicators: Join the Team at Salud America!


mobile social media tablet communication

We want YOU for the Salud America! team! Salud America!, a national program to inspire people to drive community change for the health of Latino and all kids, is hiring for several positions: Digital Content Curator. This position mines Latino childhood health online resources to identify, collect, organize, write, and promote multimedia content (policies, case studies, resources, etc.) for the Salud America! website and e- and social communications in order to build awareness of Latino childhood health issues and drive policy and environmental change among stakeholders. Scientific Writer. This position aims to provide high-quality, experienced scientific editorial skills to the development of manuscripts and other technical and lay-friendly publications produced by the ...

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Where Are Latinos at the Oscars?


latino actors

No Latinos actors are nominated for 2018 Oscars, Variety reports. In 2017, actor/composer/poet Lin-Manuel Miranda's original song for “Moana” was one a very few Oscar-nominated performances by a Latino. Why don't Latino performers in Hollywood get more recognition? First, data show there are not a lot of Latino roles to begin with. Latinos had less than 5% of speaking roles in the top-grossing films, according to USC. Second, when they are available, they're often filled by non-Latinos. Ben Affleck played Mexican American CIA operative Antonio Mendez in 2012's Argo and Jon Favreau played a Cuban food truck entrepreneur in 2014's Chef, according to an L.A. Weekly op-ed. "The dearth of Latino storytelling and overlooking of Latino talent is especially remarkable when you ...

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Watch: How to Add a Water Bottle Fountain to Your School



Looking for an easy way to improve your school's health? Look no further! Watch the new Salud America! webinar How to Get a Water Bottle Fountain at Your School to get all the info you need to bring all-day access to clean water to your school or district. The webinar features our very own Salud Hero, Cathy Lopez, an elementary school teacher at South San ISD in San Antonio, who raised funds and worked with school and community leaders to add her school's very first water bottle fountain! The webinar also provides information on: Why all schools need water bottle fountains; How Lopez rallied support from students, parents, and school and community leaders; How Lopez worked with her school's maintenance staff to install a water bottle fountain in less than 6 months and ...

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Follow #LatinoCancer2018 for the Latest from ‘Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos’ Conference


Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos

Latinos are expected to face a 142% rise in cancer in coming years. That's the reason for the first-ever conference, Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos, which will unite over 200 cancer researchers and leaders to tackle Latino cancer from all angles on Feb. 21-23, 2018 at the Marriott Plaza San Antonio. The conference is co-hosted by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez’s Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio (the team behind Salud America!) and Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson. The conference will feature some amazing events: Eliseo Perez-Stable, Director, National Institute on Minority Health & Health Disparities, “The Science of Latino Cancer,” 6:00 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 21 Edith Perez, VP of US Medical Affairs ...

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