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HEALTHY EATING ACTIVE LIVING COMMUNITY HEALTH INITIATIVE
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Introduction
Healthy Eating, Active Living Community Health Initiative (HEAL) is a project of the Community Activity and Nutrition Coalition of Sonoma County (CAN-C) that is funded by Kaiser Permanente Northern California Region. The goal of HEAL is to empower communities with the capacity to support healthy eating and active living through sustainable policy, systems, and environmental change across four sectors - schools, worksites, healthcare and neighborhoods.
This five-year (2006-2010), prevention-oriented initiative seeks to create conditions that make it easier for community members to eat healthy foods and to be physically active in order to reverse the growing trend of overweight and obesity, and the rise in preventable diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
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Background
During the past 20 years, the rates of overweight and obesity have risen significantly in the Unites States, resulting in about 112,000 deaths annually associated with obesity (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). In California, the Department of Public Health (CDPH) reports that the prevalence of overweight children has increased from 38% in 1984 to 57% in 2003. In Sonoma County, rates of adult obesity nearly doubled between 2001 and 2005 (California Health Interview Survey, UCLA, 2001-2005), and 41% of children ages 5 to 20 from low income households were considered overweight or obese in 2005 (Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System Data, Center for Disease Control, 2005).
According to a recent behavioral survey, in south Santa Rosa 65% of the population is overweight or obese (Community Health Behavior Surveys (CHBS). 2007. HEAL Initiative—RAND Sector Reports). Among children, only 30% of 2-10 year olds are getting the recommended amount of physical activity per week and 57% of 12-19 year olds are overweight or obese (Southwest Santa Rosa Clinic Data. 2008. Redwood Coalition of Health Centers Pediatric Nutrition Project, 2008).
For the first time in recent history, the life expectancy of children today will be less than that of their parents, largely due to health risks associated with overweight and obesity. Obesity is a major risk factor for many diseases and health conditions including
hypertension, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, sleep disorders, depression and other mental health problems, some cancers, and premature death. Root causes of the obesity epidemic include increased access to low-cost high calorie foods, as well as environmental surroundings that contribute to physical inactivity and poor diet. Change at multiple levels, including individual behavior, public policy and the physical and social environments, along with access to appropriate medical care, will be needed to reverse this epidemic.
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Program Overview
In many of the neighborhoods in south Santa Rosa, residents cannot easily buy healthy foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables and the neighborhoods are designed in ways that make it difficult and unsafe to be physically active. There are few accessible parks and green spaces and a lack of sidewalks and pedestrian-friendly routes in the area. In southwest Santa Rosa, 41% of all streets are missing pedestrian facilities (Santa Rosa Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan. 2008. Task One Report—Section Three, pg 2). Additionally, many children and families are not getting enough exercise due to neighborhood security issues and limited physical education options in schools.
Because the choices that people make are influenced by the choices they have, HEAL is working with community members, policy makers, school officials, parent organizations, health care facilities, worksites, and others to increase access to healthy, affordable foods and increase physical activity opportunities for residents of south Santa Rosa.
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The HEAL-CHI Approach
- Apply a Community Action Plan created by residents and representatives from worksites, schools, and health care facilities to stimulate change.
- Focus on sustainable policy, systems, and environmental changes
- Empower community members to drive changes in their own physical and social environments and/or advocate for policies that promote healthy eating and active living
- Focus on efforts that reduce racial and ethnic health disparities associated with poor nutrition and inactivity
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HEAL SECTORS
Healthcare Sector
Neighborhood Sector
School Sector
Worksite Sector
HEAL Implementation Leadership Team (HILT)
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Information and Resources
Fitness Fun Guides
The Fitness Fun Guides, developed by the Sonoma County Community Activity
and Nutrition Coalition, provide information on the many ways families
can participate in physical activity. Each guide is available in PDF format
for printing (both English and Spanish).
Links
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Kaiser Permanente Northern California Community Benefits - Information about Kaiser Permanente’s community programs, including Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL).
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Fruits and Veggies Matter - Tips, serving sizes, and serving suggestions to help people eat more fruits and vegetables. Contains an interactive tool to help individuals determine how many fruits and vegetables they should consume daily.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Obesity and Overweight - This site provides information on obesity and overweight in the United States. Included are trends, contributing factors, consequences, and recommendations for the prevention of adult and childhood overweight and obesity.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Healthy Living - Provides links to a variety of health topics, including healthy eating and physical activity and exercise
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USDA National Agriculture Library - Contains over 1600 links to current and reliable nutrition information and links to several USDA sites, including the WIC Works Resource System.
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Cancer Prevention and Nutrition Section, Network for a Healthy California - Provides information on Network programs, and links to many other nutrition, exercise and chronic disease prevention sites and resources. .Assists local public entities to enhance their nutrition education programs and promotion of physical activity through an ongoing Local Incentive Award (LIA) program. This local assistance program supports nutrition education/physical activity promotion that targets Food Stamp-eligible and similar low-income consumers.
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Network for a Healthy California Champions for Change Northcoast Region – Goals of the network are to increase daily consumption of fruits and vegetables, increase daily physical activity, decrease food insecurity, and decrease chronic disease. The Northcoast region consists of six counties (Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, and Sonoma).
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KidsHealth Nutrition and Fitness - This site contains suggestions for ways to keep kids healthy. It has recipes, nutrition, and fitness information, as well as general health links. It also has fitness suggestions for specific age groups. Most articles are also available in Spanish.
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Kawana Friends - Information about community gardens and physical activities in southeast Santa Rosa.
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USDA Recipefinder - United States Department of Agriculture searchable database for healthy and economic recipes. Can search for recipes based on ingredients, cost, type of dish, and preparation required.
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Champions for Change – Contains tips and resources to help people eat more fruits and vegetables, be more active, and speak up for healthy changes. Resources and information in English and Spanish.
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Champions for Change Fruit, Vegetable, and Physical Activity Toolbox for Community Educators - The Toolbox Kit and this companion Web site were created so that community educators can easily teach low-income adults about eating the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables and enjoying physical activity every day.
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Meals Matter - This site provides healthy recipe ideas, advice on healthy menu planning for your family, and articles about nutrition and physical activity. Resources available in English and Spanish.
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