Allocating Resources towards Access to Healthy Foods Strategies in an Underserved South Florida Community
Allocating Resources towards Access to Healthy Foods Strategies in an Underserved South Florida Community
LocationBroward County
Florida
Organization Florida Public Health Institute
The goal of this HIA was to examine the impact of allocating funding from the Transforming Our Community's Health Initiative in Broward County towards access to healthy food (AHF) strategies, and inform future investment ventures. The HIA focused on the consumption of unhealthy foods and the impact to obesity, with particular attention to impacts in children. The HIA also examined nutrition in public schools and early child care setting, and access to healthy foods in disadvantaged communities. Findings from the HIA were used to inform the funding agency, specifically Broward Regional Health Planning Council, and community partners in the implementation of AHF strategies. The HIA offered several recommendations, including:
Improve nutrition quality of foods and beverages served or available in schools consistent with the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) Nutrition Standards for Foods in Schools.
Increase accessibility, availability, affordability and identification of healthy foods in communities, including provision of full service grocery stores, farmers markets, small store initiatives, and restaurant initiatives.
Improve jurisdiction-wide nutrition policies and practices in early child care settings.
Increase the number of designated Baby-Friendly Hospitals.
The Health Impact Project’s toolkit contains resources that help communities, agencies, and other organizations take action to improve public health. The toolkit offers a collection of health impact assessments, guides, and other research to support policymakers’ efforts to consider health when making decisions across sectors, such as housing, planning, and education.
