There are numerous mental and physical benefits to walking; however, many Americans live in nonwalkable communities and face barriers to this most basic form of physical activity. Although walking is an individual behavior, walking can be made easier by improvements to community walkability and by programs and policies that provide opportunities and encouragement for walking. In fact, this is exactly what the Surgeon General is calling for in the Call to Action to Promote Walking and Walkable Communities. Multiple sectors of society can contribute to a culture of walkability, including transportation, land use, and community design; parks, recreation, and fitness; education; business and industry; volunteer and nonprofit organizations; health care; media; and public ...
According to a 2014 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), school meals are healthier than in 2000. The CDC report compared data from 2000, 2006 and 2014 to see how schools have implemented nutrition standards by the USDA that require more fruits, vegetables and less sodium in school meals.Among the findings, the CDC report showed that almost all schools offered whole grains for breakfast and lunches daily, and that as many as 80 percent of schools offered two or more vegetables a day for lunch, compared to 61.7 percent in 2000. It is necessary for Latino students to have access to fresh fruits and vegetables in order to achieve a healthier diet. Studies shows when there are healthier options, Latino kids tend eat more healthy options, such as more whole ...
Several barriers to physical activity and nutritious food still exist within Latino communities, both in and out of schools. It is important for parents and schools to work together to ensure that local, state, and national physical activity and nutrition standards eliminate these barriers in schools, especially due to the growing number of Latino students. Chicago Public Schools offers a variety of tips and toolkits for teachers and parents to help schools incorporate healthy policy changes in an effective and engaging way through their LearnWELL initiative. These include: establishing wellness teams, parent and student engagement, physical activity, physical education, recess, nutrition education, school food and healthy snacks and beverages, healthy celebrations, healthy ...
It is important for public health professionals to improve health equity through evaluation that engages participants and is culturally relevant. Even minor improvements in evaluation will enhance the effectiveness of obesity prevention efforts in disadvantaged populations. In 2013, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released Evaluating Obesity Prevention Efforts: A Plan for Measuring Progress, which provides a framework for planning, implementation, and evaluation of obesity prevention efforts. Part of this report is the Obesity Evaluation Toolkit: Resources for Evaluating Community-Level Obesity Prevention Efforts, which provides the following six key steps and principles for community-level evaluation: 1. Design Stakeholder Involvement 2. Identify Resources for ...
Whole foods offers an ongoing program to provide salad bars to schools across the nation. Let's Move Salad Bars to Schools program for schools helps students enjoy the benefits of healthier diets. Studies show that when fruits and vegetables are available, students eat more healthy options. Helping Latino kids eat healthier may help combat the rising obesity rates in Latino kids. Applying for a salad bar, requires that the school district operates under the USDA National School Lunch Program, and that the school has at least 100 students. All schools interested in applying for the salad bar, are encouraged to read this article first. To learn more about applying, click ...
The Physical Activity Design Guidelines for School Architecture bridges a translation gap between research and the design process of schools. Research suggests that multiple components throughout the design process, from location and placement of school grounds, to type and structure of buildings and facilities, to furniture and equipment for facilities and classrooms, can be relevant to trigger more physical activity in school environments and reduce time spent sitting. The design strategies are organized under the following 10 spatially- and process-oriented ‘designable’ domains: 1. School Sitting and Commuity Connectivity 2. Building Massing and Programming 3. Smart Fitness Facilities 4. Active Classrooms 5. Outdoor Learning Areas 6. Active Play and ...
El cáncer afecta a millones de latinos al año en los Estados Unidos. Con eso mente el National Cancer Insitute (NCI) ha subvencionado programas de investigación y redes comunitarias como Redes en Accion, el cual apuesta a reducir la incidencia de cáncer en la comunidad latina a través de una red nacional de grupos comunitarios, investigadores, agencias de la salud gubernamentales y la población en general. Al frente de esta red está la doctora Amelie Ramirez, quien por más de 30 años ha centrado sus esfuerzos en reducir las enfermedades crónicas y las desigualdades de salud por cáncer en la población latina. Conoce más sobre la doctora Amelie Ramirez en esta ...
An announcement has been made from Local Foods and Local Places, about a grant opportunity for those wanting to build strong local food systems. Spurring on economic growth and health of the community, grantees will receive $800,000 to change their communities access to healthier local foods. Since 2014, the Local Food and Local Places program has existed to assist communities throughout the nation with plans for new farmers markets, to enhance neighborhoods' access to food hubs, to provide SNAP benefits, and to develop walkable community gardens. Various projects funded from the grant from 2014 can be found here. This federal initiative is a partnership between USDA, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the ...
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care law requires most insurance plans to offer a range of preventive services: (1) Breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; (2) Screening and counseling for interpersonal and domestic violence; (3) Screening for gestational diabetes; (4) DNA testing for high-risk strains of HPV; (5) Counseling regarding sexually transmitted infections, including HIV; (6) Screening for HIV; (7) Contraceptive methods and counseling; and (8) Well woman visits. This toolkit is provides: (1) information on the coverage of breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; (2) instructions on how to call insurance companies and how to file an appeal if the plan denies coverage; and (3) draft appeal letters tailored to commonly encountered scenarios. Access ...
