Access to safe parks plays a huge role in overall health and wellness by promoting promoting physical activity and improving mental health. Parks even have the potential to reduce health care costs. Unfortunately, there are inequities in Latino kids' access to parks and safe places to play; therefore, they are at increased risk for mental and physical health problems, according to a Salud America! research review. Learn more about why equitable access to safe places to walk and play are so important here. The National Park Service celebrates 100 years of stewardship the week of August 22, 2016. To celebrate this milestone in American history, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health blog's editorial team asked six leaders to their reasons why parks matter for ...
Pete Garcia spent several years as a personal trainer in San Antonio, learning first-hand that many residents in at-risk parts of the city struggled with obesity and related health problems. So when Garcia became the city’s supervisor of athletics and programs, he wanted to develop and implement programs that would increase access to physical activity opportunities for at-risk residents across the city. With grant funding and the city’s formation of the Mayor’s Fitness Council a few years ago, Garcia was able to capitalize on partnerships and collaboration to develop the “Fitness in the Park” program to provide free fitness classes in parks in each of the city’s 10 council districts.
San Antonio Inactive and Unhealthy
Pete Garcia worked for many years as a personal ...
By Amanda Merck, Salud America! Many studies show that breastfeeding can positively impact a child’s physical and mental development and even reduce the risk of childhood obesity. Unfortunately, many Latina mothers barriers in access to breastfeeding support: participation in federal food assistance programs that offer free infant formula, pain/discomfort, embarrassment, employment, inconvenience, lack of maternal access to breastfeeding information, not being properly instructed on how to breastfeed by hospital staff, and other cultural, social, economic, political, and psychosocial factors. Breastfeeding mothers need to feel safe, supported and welcome to nurse or pump in all public spaces in order to meet their own personal breastfeeding goals. Let’s use #SaludTues on ...
Healthy ATC is a data portal created by Central Health, the City of Austin Health & Human Services Department, and Travis County Health & Human Service and Veterans Service to help community members and policy makers learn about health indicators that affect the health and quality of life of Austin Travis County (33.8% Latino) residents. Healthy ATC focuses on the four priority health indicators in their area which include diabetes, tobacco, obesity, and HIV. It provides local health data, resources, best practices, news articles and information about community events. Their goal is to strengthen and build healthier communities through the provision of state-of the art web-based assessment and improvement tools to support the systematic adoption, implementation, and ...
Lo más seguro es que ya estés enterado sobre la aplicación que, en tan sólo unos días, tiene más usuarios que Twitter y otras aplicaciones populares. Estamos hablando de Pokémon Go, una aplicación de juegos de realidad aumentada basada en GPS que obliga a los jugadores a salir y explorar al aire libre con el fin de "atraparlos a todos” (criaturas de Pokémon). De acuerdo con expertos en salud mental, esta nueva aplicación del juego puede ayudar a las personas con depresión, obligándoles a salir de su casa y hacer actividad física e interactuar con otras personas y amigos. "Los desarrolladores de Pokémon Go no tenían la intención de crear una aplicación de juego de salud mental", el psicólogo John M. Grobol escribió para su sitio, PsychCentral "Pero lo han ...
Urban planning plays a significant role in addressing the health equity and health disparities of Americans, especially Latinos. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), environmental, social, and economic conditions in cities can have both positive and negative impacts on human health. Urban planning plays an important role on these conditions. Air and water quality, the location of affordable housing, and access to public transportation are all factors that shape health. Perhaps no place in the world is more known for its “urban form”—its physical layout and design—than metropolitan New York City (29% Latino population). From the towering skyline of Manhattan, the neon lights of Times Square, the rolling hills and paths of Central Park, New York has built an ...
By Rosalie Aguilar, Salud America! Project Coordinator At least 76% of U.S. Latinos connect to the Internet by mobile phone—many of which are connected to social media networks according to the Pew Research Center. Social media and online communities can be a great way to share information and tools to drive social change. Salud America! uses its website and online community to keep educators, parents, leaders, and members of the health care industry informed about the latest stories, policies and systems change to reverse Latino childhood obesity. This week we’ll be chatting about online communities and resources that can activate change. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Online Communities & Tools For Healthy Change” DATE: Tuesday, July 19th, 2016
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The conditions in which you live, learn, work, and age affect your health. The Public Health Institute's (PHI) Public Health Alliance of Southern California collaborated with health departments across the state of California (38.8% Latino), developed the new California Health Disadvantage Index to look into these social, environmental, economic, and political factors, called social determinants of health. "The Health Disadvantage Index provides a fine-grained illustration at a geographic level that makes sense to the decision makers that have the greatest ability to impact these social determinants: local elected officials, planners, engineers, investors, NGOs and others," says Tracy Delaney, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Public Health Alliance of Southern California. "By ...
Kids who are physical activity are scientifically proven to achieve higher school grades, better attendance, improved behavior, and improved health. So where can kids find infinite options for physical activity? Nature. Many studies show that spending time in outdoor physical activity can positively impact mental and physical activity and health. But Latinos tend to lack availability of and safe access to parks and other natural spaces.. Let’s use #SaludTues on July 5, 2016, during the #NatureWalks theme month and #SuperJuly National Parks and Recreation Month, to tweet about the “Power of Nature” and how parents, schools, and communities can improve awareness of and access to nature among Latinos and everyone. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “#NatureWalks & ...
