Health News
The death rate from heart disease is nearly twice as high in Perry County (Wikipedia map) as in Kentucky as a whole, so there's no better time than now to announce that the University of Kentucky Medical Center is close to finalizing a three-year agreement with Hazard Appalachian Regional Healthcare Medical Center to provide continuing care, outreach and education to local physicians and county residents, including more and better information about heart-healthy food choices. Bailey Richards of the Hazard Herald reports that this last task is daunting, particularly since availability of good food is an issue in remote parts of the county.
Richards writes that a 2011 study of the heart-healthy food options in Perry County "showed that the area severely lacks low-fat and low-sodium options." Kevin Luley, a registered nurse at the UK Medical Center and winner of the "Heart Health in Rural Kentucky" grant, surveyed all of the restaurants and grocery stores in Perry County and found that most do not have many off-the-shelf options for a healthy diet. Of all of the items available at the restaurants in Perry County, fewer than 6 percent were considered healthy. (Residents can consult their own smartphones for that information. It should also be posted or available upon request.) Of a standard list of produce items, on average only 60 percent were found at the local grocery stores, Luley found. (Read more)
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Health News
UK, ARH planning efforts against high rate of heart-disease deaths and limited availability of proper food in Perry County
Richards writes that a 2011 study of the heart-healthy food options in Perry County "showed that the area severely lacks low-fat and low-sodium options." Kevin Luley, a registered nurse at the UK Medical Center and winner of the "Heart Health in Rural Kentucky" grant, surveyed all of the restaurants and grocery stores in Perry County and found that most do not have many off-the-shelf options for a healthy diet. Of all of the items available at the restaurants in Perry County, fewer than 6 percent were considered healthy. (Residents can consult their own smartphones for that information. It should also be posted or available upon request.) Of a standard list of produce items, on average only 60 percent were found at the local grocery stores, Luley found. (Read more)
- Farm To School Program Teaches Perry County Students How To Eat Healthier, Explores Local Food As An Industry In Eastern Ky.
Image from WYMT Mountain NewsPerry County students are learning about nutrition through the Farm to School program, which aims to inform students about healthy food while supporting local food systems, Callie Rainey reports for WYMT-TV in Hazard. "We...
- Health Reform Should Make Medicaid And Medicare More Interested In Preventing Chronic Diseases In Young, Expert Says
Dr. Wayne MyersWhile some rural areas may not have enough doctors (or those who accept Medicaid patients) to treat new patients generated by federal health reform, the key to healthy living is more education, not more physicians, rural medical expert...
- Some School Districts Say They Can't Afford New Federal Program To Give Free Meals To All Students
Many school districts are reportedly opting out of a new federal pilot program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students attending schools where poverty rates are high. They say budget constraints, fear of losing other federal benefits, and...
- September Is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month
September has been proclaimed national Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, with President Obama asking Americans to "take action by learning about and engaging in activities that promote healthy eating and greater physical activity by all our nation's...
- Kentucky Rural Health Assn. Gives First Newspaper Writing Awards; Kentucky Health News Writer Wins For Previous Work
Tara Kaprowy, the chief writer for Kentucky Health News, won one of the first awards given by the Kentucky Rural Health Association for newspaper writing. Kaprowy won the prise for best series in a non-daily newspaper for her five-part series in The Sentinel-Echo...