Healthy Future US Blog

I get so tired of hearing this: "It costs less to buy a burger from McDonald's that to eat healthy food from the supermarket." "Low-income families just buy processed food, they don't cook their own food anymore." That always sounded questionable.  Here is a study showing in great detail that fast food is much more expensive than healthy food bought at the supermarket . Also, it turns out that the vast majority of meals eaten by low-income families are prepared at home: Blisard N, Stewart H. How low-income households allocate their food budget relative to the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan. Economic research report, United States. Washington, DC: Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, 2006;20. What is true is that buying healthy vs. unhealthy foods can cost $1.50/person/day more, at retail prices.  However, when health cost consequences are factored in, unhealthy foods cost twice as much .

As Warren Buffett pointed out in May, we have had a long sad march in health care costs, from 5% of GDP about 50 years ago to approaching 18% of GDP today.  So it is irritating to hear "good news" like this:  health costs "only" went up 4-5% last year.  When wages are going up 2-3%, that's a huge cost increase for most families.  A 2% "real", inflation-adjusted annual increase adds up to a 28% increase over 10 years.  That means health care costs passing 10% and heading toward 15% of household incomes.  At the same time, many economists are puzzled as to why wages are not increasing much more rapidly?  As Buffett implied:  It's the health care costs, stupid!   Let's use the "golden rule", putting ourselves in employees' shoes:  If you are given a choice of higher wages and no health insurance, or keeping your health insurance but sacrificing some potential wage increases to pay for health inflation, what would you "choos

Much appreciated receiving the Presidential Award from Arizona Health and Physical Education in November for our advocacy work with them.  We are making progress on increasing school recess time and adding physical and health education points to the state's A-F school accountability formula.  I love working with our dedicated PE and health ed teachers and the hard-working Association leadership to get kids more active and developing healthier habits!

Many more students than we realize have poor vision and need eyeglasses. When they get them, academic achievement improves:  http://www.politico.com/…/how-free-eyeglasses-are-boosting-…   But why do so many kids need eyeglasses? It turns out that lack of recess and inadequate outdoor time contribute to near-sightedness:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4495846/   Yet another example of the failings of narrow, tunnel-vision, non-whole-child perspectives.  Let's make sure that kids have enough recess AND eyeglasses.

Example of outcomes-based partnerships between advocates and the food and beverage industry.  Corporations see the long-term writing on the wall.  This is progress, but there is so much more they can do to develop and market tasty yet low-calorie & healthy products (excerpted article): ... On Thursday, more than a dozen food companies, including candy maker Mars and convenience chain Cumberland Farms, announced new initiatives with Partnership for a Healthier America, a foundation that Obama chairs and helped found. The initiatives will bring smaller candy bars to checkout aisles and more water to gas stations, among other things. They will also provide a rare bright spot to public health advocates at a time that has seen President Trump’s administration freeze other key parts of the former first lady’s healthy-eating legacy. ... “Washington is Washington, but progress will continue,” said Larry Soler, the chief executive of PHA. “We’re proving the private sector can play

CHRISTINE DAVIS Madison School District, Arizona I organized Madison Parents for Recess (now Arizonans for Recess) last school year when our K-4 school went from two recesses a day to one — and made the kids sit quietly in the library during that one recess on high-heat days in August and September. When I asked why the students couldn’t go to the gym for recess, school administrators said it was "because the kids would feel free to run around in the gym." The shock of that answer, indicating a presumption against movement/physical activity, compelled my action, as did a few calls confirming that most large/urban schools in Arizona had gone to one short daily recess, combined with a hurried lunch. Word of the Facebook group spread quickly and I learned many parents had been wanting to gather around the recess issue. As we began advocating with school and district officials, and ultimately our school board, teachers and administrators (both active and retired) began

This discussion with Figure It Out summarizes some key aspects of what we are working on: http://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-q8ieu-67c172

Americans' are increasingly concerned about health care costs, now way at the top of their worry list. As we keep failing to prevent the unhealthy behavior, which drives the vast majority of these costs, these costs & worries will mount. K-12 is the essential setting for us to start transforming our physical activity and nutrition habits.  https://www.monmouth.edu/polling-institute/reports/MonmouthPoll_US_020717/