Since 1969, the percentage of children walking and bicycling to school has plummeted from almost 50 percent to about 13 percent in 2013. In #4 of their StreetFacts video series, Streetfilms explores how children have lost the freedom to roam because many families drive their children to school, even when schools are close to home. Streetfilms produces short films showing how smart transportation design and policy can result in better places to live, work and play. For trips between 1/4- and 1/2- mile, children are strapped into a seat rather than allowed to walk or bike and explore their world. This reduction in incidental physical activity adds up and is linked with increased rates of childhood obesity and chronic disease. Learn more about the urgency in fighting childhood ...
A Spanish-only webinar will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 28 from 2:00-3:00pm ET that will discuss helping Latinos understand how to get the most from their healthcare coverage. Hosted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health, the webinar is entitled “From Coverage to Care (C2C)” this free webinar will be an opportunity to learn more about the C2C campaign. In order to reduce health disparities, it is critical to address inequities in programs, practices, and policies. Join our site, connect with others, and get involved. Latinos have made large gains in reducing their uninsured population thanks to the passing of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Participants will be able to provide input and feedback, discuss how to help ...
When did it become cool to eat vegetables? For teenagers, it's when they are fighting injustices and rebelling against the status quo. A new study took place in a school in New Braunfels, Texas (35% Latino) revealing that teens are more likely to choose healthier snacks when they know they are being targeted to eat junk foods. Latino teens are more likely to be targeted for soda and junk food ads. In fact, some students are even targeted by junk food marketing in their own schools! However, the study reveals that if teens know they are being targeted, they are more likely to skip over unhealthy snacks. In the study, two groups of students were given information about healthy eating. One group read about the benefits of a balanced diet while the other group was informed ...
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, which begins on September 15 and runs through October 15, the Connecting Kids to Coverage National Campaign will host a webinar on Wednesday, Sept. 14 from 2:00-3:30 pm ET to discuss “Increasing Medicaid & CHIP Enrollment in Hispanic Communities.” The webinar will bring together a panel to discuss strategies in enrolling more Latino and Hispanic children into Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Latinos have made great strides in reducing their numbers of uninsured, but still remain the largest single ethnic and racial group without coverage. In order to reduce health disparities, it is critical to address inequities in programs, practices, and policies. Join our site, connect with others, and get ...
According to the newly released State of Obesity report, Texas it the 10th most obese state in the country. Now the American Heart Association along with many other organizations are asking parents, teachers, and health advocates to step up for kids health and take action. AHA is asking anyone who is interested in supporting kids in Texas with more physical activity and access to healthier foods, to join the movement through social media and beyond! Latino kids often face limited access to healthy food and physical activity, creating awareness of these inequities is a helpful way to inform communities and get initiative moving for healthier changes. To join the Thunderclap and share the message, click here. To learn more about how you can take action for Texas kids, ...
Is your school on the healthiest schools list? Healthier Generation is asking anyone who cares about healthy schools to join the Healthy Schools Program! They hope to help build healthier schools by giving out free tools to help all kids enjoy physical activity breaks, help schools find healthy ways to fundraise and starting walking clubs. They also give parents and teachers healthy ways to reward kids, as well as free recipes. They even offer all materials in Spanish! To learn more about how you can play a part in creating healthier schools, visit ...
A new analysis of federal data details the serious and widespread problem of chronic absenteeism in public schools. It has long been a belief that skipping one or two days of school in a month has little impact on a student’s academic success has been proven statically incorrect. According to the new study entitled “Preventing Missed Opportunity,” missing just two days in a month can “expose kids to a cascade of academic setbacks,” ranging from lower reading and math scores in third grade to higher risks of dropping out of high school. The data studied showed that the problem of chronic absenteeism was both widespread and concentrated. More than 6 million students were found to be chronically absent and half attended just 4% of the nation’s school districts and only 12% ...
Latino teens on average consume more sugary beverages than their white peers, studies show. In fact, about 74% of Latinos have had a sugary drink by age 5. But what if teens and kids knew the impact sugary drinks had on their health? A new study from Penn Medicine analyzed how teens perceived sugary drinks with health warning labels. Researchers from the Center for Health incentives and Behavior Economics used an online survey to gauge more than 2,000 teens, ages 12-18, perception of their favorite sugary drinks, some drinks included a health warning labels while others did not. The teens who didn't see a warning label on their beverages (77%) chose a sugary drink. The teens who saw the warning labels were 8 to 16 % less likely to select a sugary beverage.
After ...
Everyone needs a safe and reliable way to get to the place where they obtain foods - ideally healthy foods. However, transportation is a major barrier to accessing healthy food, particularly for Latinos. Read about how traffic safety in the U.S. lags far behind other countries here. Disparities in transportation environments are not inevitable; they are due to local decision‐making. The Safe Routes to School National Partnership created a Safe Routes to Healthy Food fact sheet exploring the benefits of making healthy food accessible by foot, bike, or transit. Safe Routes to Healthy Food aims to strengthen policies and practices that make it safer and more convenient to walk, bike, and use transit to access healthy foods. People with access to safe places to walk and bike ...
