Preventing Diabetes
According to the latest research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 25 million adults have been told by a doctor that they have adult diabetes. What’s even more concerning is how this number is poised to skyrocket. Another CDC study predicts that, based on our current trajectory, the number of Americans with adult diabetes will grow to one in three adults by 2050.
Health Is in the Air You Breathe
October 21-27 is Respiratory Care Week, and, in the spirit of lung health awareness, I’d like to focus on a health problem plaguing this country for far too long: smoking.
Cardiovascular Disease: A Health Crisis That Extends Beyond Our Borders
Cardiovascular disease is our nation’s leading cause of death, claiming more lives than the next three leading causes of death combined. It’s also our nation’s most prevalent illness, affecting about one of every three (33%) adults. And if current trends persist, prevalence will surpass 40% by 2030.
Everybody Deserves a Shot
Remember when you were a kid headed to the doctor’s office for a yearly check-up? You wouldn’t be alone if you said you dreaded getting shots. Because August is National Immunization Awareness Month, I want to spend some time discussing why vaccinations – pesky as they may be – are so essential.
A Whole That’s Mightier Than Its Parts
As president of United Health Foundation, I am guided by a singular passion to make a difference and to help create a brighter future for us all. The Foundation has many separate activities that support this goal, and nothing makes me happier than when our various initiatives come together to form a whole that’s more powerful than the separate parts.
Using the Web to Bring America’s Health Rankings® to Life
When it comes to improving health, I am a firm believer that knowledge is power and that, as Maya Angelou says, when you know better, you do better. That’s why I was so excited to learn that United Health Foundation has once again been recognized with a Web Health Award for the America’s Health Rankings® website.
Partnerships to Support Community Members in Achieving and Maintaining a Healthy Weight: Our nation faces an epidemic that we must work together to address
Nearly every community in America is in the midst of an epidemic. Approximately 27.5 percent of Americans are obese, according to the 2011 America’s Health Rankings®. Incredibly, that’s an increase of 137 percent since 1990. Another 35 percent of Americans are overweight, and right now, more Americans live at an unhealthy weight than at a healthy weight.
Take Action Now
We at America’s Health Rankings® get truly excited when we think about the subtitle of our report: A Call to Action for Individuals and Their Communities. While we enjoy the process of assembling and communicating the data and drawing conclusions about the overall health of our nation and individual states, we never forget that our main purpose is to stimulate personally appropriate health behaviors and targeted community initiatives to improve health.
America’s Youth Take a Stand Against Tobacco on Kick Butts Day. Despite progress, Surgeon General warns youth smoking is still a “pediatric epidemic.”
Across America, youth are making a huge difference in the fight against tobacco—the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. We’re educating each other about the dangers of tobacco, pushing back against tobacco marketing and calling on public officials to support tobacco prevention policies.