Theoretically, Imperial Valley should be one of the healthiest areas of the nation if you look at food production. With a more than $1 billion agriculture industry growing almost anything under the sun, including artichokes, bamboo shoots, citrus, hay, leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, and more than 100 other types of crops, residents should have a nearly unlimited supply of fresh fruit, vegetables and meat, leading to a health community.
In the richest county in California lies a motley assemblage of residents living aboard a flotilla of weather-worn boats in a narrow bay sandwiched between Sausalito and Tiburon.
"Food deserts" — geographic areas that don’t have access to fresh, affordable, healthy food, such as fruits and vegetables — are often covered from an angle that reports simply on the fact that produce is lacking. But there are plenty of angles to take when tackling this tough subject. Here are just a few.
Diet of fruits and vegetables is ultimately cheaper, but Bostonians are hooked on fast, convenient food
While obesity is a problem for Americans in all walks of life, it’s worse when you don’t live near a park, when access to public transportation is limited, when sidewalks are broken and streetlights are few. In fact, a National Institutes of Health study found that just living in a socioeconomically deprived area leads to weight gain and a greater risk of dying at an early age. In stark terms, people in Culver City live an average of eight years longer than people in Jefferson Park, according to Crump. Yet these two communities in the middle of Los Angeles are only a couple of miles apart.
In West Virginia, some grocery stores are removing the junk food displays near checkout lines and replacing them with fresh and dried fruit, granola bars and other healthy snacks. But will that encourage shoppers to make healthier food choices?
Not everyone has easy access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Three women across the country are doing something about it.
The notion that health is influenced by societal factors has been around for generations. Rudolf Vicherow, known for his advancement of public health, is quoted famously for his 1841 declaration that “medicine is a social science, and politics is nothing else but medicine on a large scale”. The c
A formerly sickly child, West Virginia's top health official finds himself in the position to affect the health of more than 400,000 West Virginians enrolled in Medicaid, DHHR's biggest program.
