Coalition wants Greenville to Live Well

By Cindy Landrum  

JANUARY 21, 2011 11:03 a.m. (0)

And they say changing policies, systems and environments is the way to do that.

“Most of us already know that we should be making healthier choices,” said Katy Smith, executive director of the Piedmont Health Care Foundation. “The problem is, sometimes those choices aren’t available to us, or the unhealthier choices are easier or more appealing.”

That can change, said Eleanor Dunlap, lead facilitator of LiveWell Greenville.

Healthier food options can be placed in vending machines and on cafeteria menus, employers can promote and reward healthy living by their employees, child care centers and after-school programs can provide opportunities for physical activity and cities and neighborhoods can provide more safe places to walk, bike and play.

“Strong schools, beautiful parks and trails, community-oriented business, quality health care and vibrant neighborhoods make Greenville County a great place to live,” Dunlap said. “Our goal is to build on those strengths to make it a place to live well.”

The action plan uses strategies that have improved health in other communities.

Piedmont Health Care Foundation helped launch LiveWell with a $75,000 seed grant. The foundation also provided funding and staff support during the 9-month planning process.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and a grant through the National Recreation and Parks Association and the Centers provided other funding support for Disease Control and Prevention.

The YMCA will provide staff and organization support for LiveWell Greenville.

LiveWell Greenville’s plan calls for fresh, healthy food and less unhealthy to be served in school cafeterias and for there to be more physical activity during the day.

To accomplish that, LiveWell Greenville’s goal is to have 25 percent of the food served to be locally grown, for schools and PTAs to be rewarded for choosing healthy fundraisers and for teachers to be provided tools to encourage physical activity during learning and throughout the day.

LiveWell Greenville’s plan calls for doctors to routinely record body mass index and discuss it with their patients and provide practical referrals for healthy eating and active living. That can be accomplished by distributing toolkits to physicians, the coalition said.

In addition, Greenville County residents can incorporate healthy living ideas into their daily routines, Dunlap said.

When serving snacks during programs for children or events for adults, people can choose healthier foods. When running errands, people can decide to walk rather than drive. And when they want to reward a child for good behavior, they can pick a fun activity instead of candy.

The coalition said as the quality of life of Greenville County residents is improved by the strategies, chronic disease and obesity will be reduced, health care costs will be lowered and productivity will be increased.

“Generally, it will make for a healthier community,” Dunlap said.

Comments

Add New

Leave a Comment
Comments are moderated and may not be posted immediately.
Name:
Email:	do not notifynotify
Title:
	Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

3.26 Copyright (C) 2008 Compojoom.com / Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."