ALBD News

HKHC Director Sarah Strunk speaks with Dr. Ron Hoffman about the promise and impact of Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (podcast)

The American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) just published a supplement to their December 2009 issue that is devoted to the Active Living by Design grant program and community partnerships. Volume 37, Issue 6, Supplement 2 (December 2009) This issue focuses on the ALbD national program and community action model as well as the lessons learned from 15 ALbD grantee communities.

"No matter which country you are in, new research finds those who live in an urban neighborhood are twice as likely to be physically active the those in the suburbs. According to a San Diego State University study published in this month’s American Journal of Preventative Medicine, the biggest single factor influencing physical activity around the world is accessibility to sidewalks."

Now is the best time of year to enjoy fresh produce from the farm or a garden. It is also the season of farmers’ markets, that weekly whirl of crowds, colors, and tastes that even some low-income Americans are getting to enjoy, thanks to the generosity of foundations and the efforts of community groups, as detailed in the article posted from The Washington Post on May 27, 2009

Study finds community gardens are related to increasing property values

“We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us,” Winston Churchill once said. Today, there’s new meaning to Churchill’s often cited quote: A growing number of public health researchers blame our sprawling suburban landscapes in part for Americans’ bulging bellies.

If Americans would watch their steps, their weight might stop climbing the scales. That's the thinking behind several major efforts to inspire Americans to walk more. The latest, America on the Move, is a national initiative launching Monday with a straightforward goal: Get millions of people to wear inexpensive step counters and walk an additional 2,000 steps (about 1 mile) a day, or cut out 100 calories.

People who live in spread-out suburbs are on average 6 pounds heavier than urban dwellers and are more likely to suffer from high blood pressure, hypertension, and other ills, according to the first national study linking health trends and where people live.

Slavic Village Development has won a $200,000 grant to get residents moving - not by car, but by foot and by bike. The money will be used to promote exercise in a variety of forms, from hip-hop for teens to yoga for seniors, as well as to plan a bike-and-hike trail through Kingsbury Run valley, says Bobbi Reichtell, development officer for Slavic Village Development. The nonprofit group serves the working-class neighborhoods North and South Broadway, which have a combined 35,000 residents.