Many kids lack access to active spaces and safe streets where they can be physically active. These streets are often plagued with speeding cars and lack of sidewalks. Research shows that when communities adopt a “Complete Streets” policy and organize events such as “Open Streets,” more kids and their families become physically active, according to our new infographic on safe streets. The infographic is part of Salud America!’s Active Spaces and Kids research package, which tackles the latest issues on the physical activity environment and offers recommendations. Share this infographic today! Salud America! is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded national childhood obesity prevention and communication ...
Only 70% of Latinos say their neighborhood has safe, active spaces for kids. Research shows that when communities address challenges to park use such as broken fences, poor lightening and sidewalks, more people visit community parks, according to our new infographic on safe neighborhoods. The infographic is part of Salud America!’s Active Spaces and Kids research package, which tackles the latest issues on the physical activity environment and offers recommendations. Share this infographic today! Salud America! is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded national childhood obesity prevention and communication ...
Physical activity is scientifically proven to improve health outcomes. But some kids have less safe physical activity opportunities, including fewer parks and places to walk and bike in their neighborhoods and less time for recess and P.E. in their schools. Join #SaludTues on December 15, 2015, at 1:00 PM EST to tweet about how we can use new research and stories to redefine physical activity for lifelong health, and how parents, schools, cities, nonprofits, and parks can collaborate and ensure access to #ActiveSpaces for all kids. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “How to Increase Active Spaces for Kids”
TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. EST Tuesday, January 12, 2016
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: @SaludAmerica
CO-HOSTS: @AL_Research @kaboom @americawalks ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
More access to supermarkets results in less obesity risk
Greater neighborhood access to supermarkets catering to low-income populations is linked to a lower prevalence of obesity in adults and children. Evidence from systematic reviews, longitudinal and cross-sectional studies collectively show the relationship between greater access to supermarkets and lower prevalence of obesity. Only two studies have analyzed the relationship between lack of local supermarket access and obesity over a period of time (2 years and 4 years). The data from these studies show mixed evidence in adults and children. One study reported that an increase in accessible supermarkets was associated with decreased BMI for adults who moved from ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Federal food assistance
Research on the impacts of healthy food financing initiatives among SNAP and WIC participants is important because a large proportion of them are Latino, and/or belong to communities impacted by non-medical drivers of health. Latinos comprise 19 percent of SNAP and 32 percent of WIC participants.36,37 About 50 percent of U.S. Latino children are served by the WIC program.37
Efforts to promote healthier food via federal food assistance
In 2009, the U.S. government revised the “package” of food eligible for WIC food to include a wider variety of healthy foods, including whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and lower-fat milk. Three studies found that the new WIC food package significantly ...
This is part of our Food and Latino Kids: A Research Review »
Many people face financial challenges to healthy eating
Focus groups of Latino mothers have revealed that the most significant barrier to establishing healthy eating habits for their children is financial constraint.82 Many Latino families experience intermittent or chronic food insecurity; however, food is usually given the highest priority. Because of financial constraints, lower-income Latino mothers’ food purchases are driven almost exclusively by price.83 Mothers have expressed that they commonly travel to several different locations to purchase specific items at the lowest prices available.82 These practices demonstrate that Latino mothers’ desire to provide healthy meals for their families and protect ...
A controversy is growing over sugary drinks and their impact on health in San Antonio, Texas. Sugary drinks recently surged into the national spotlight with emerging research on the link between too much dietary sugar and health issues like diabetes and obesity, and the growth of sugary drink pricing initiatives by cities to cut consumption and increase revenue for health promotion programs. These issues have prompted push-back by the beverage industry. That push-back reached San Antonio, where beverage industry reps and health leaders sparred over local health, fueled by research by Salud America!, the childhood obesity prevention network. Obesity and diabetes are grave local and national health concerns with no single cause, and no single cure. “But you simply cannot ...
Latinos tend live in neighborhoods with few supermarkets and other sources of healthy, affordable food options, but several promising solutions are emerging, according to a new package of research from Salud America!, a national network for childhood obesity prevention and communication funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Salud America!’s Better Food in the Neighborhood research package includes an in-depth review of the latest science on the U.S. food environment and recommendations based on that research. It also includes an issue brief, animated video, and infographics. The research shows that Latino neighborhoods have one-third as many supermarkets as non-Latino ones, corner stores with few healthy options, and more marketing of unhealthy foods. Promising ways to ...
Our @SaludAmerica (formerly @SaludToday) health social media handle was honored to be nominated for the Best Health channel to reach people through Tech Innovation and Social Media award from LATISM, a nonprofit group that empowers people through tech innovation and social media. Although we didn't win (congrats to our friends at the American Heart Association!), we love being part of a huge push to improve health. During the LATISM conference, our social media coordinator, Carlos Valenzuela of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center, was honored to speak on behalf of IHPR Director Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez about how we’re using using our social media accounts and digital communications via Salud America! to raise awareness of childhood ...
