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Wellnesseveryday.org
The Ventura County Health Care Agency has a wonderful new online resource intended to improve the wellbeing of our community.
From their site:
“Wellness Everyday is committed to supporting the mental, physical and social health of all individuals living within our community. By providing education, resources and information on the latest programs and projects offered within our community, we believe the Wellness of our Ventura County community can belong to each of us.”
The site is nicely designed and easy to navigate. The three main sections: mind, body, and relationships each have many suggestions and links for further resources.
Subtopics include: parenting, exercise, nutrition, creativity, resilience, sleep, and much more. There is even a section dedicated to healthy aging.
This fabulous online resource is available in Spanish.
All-star update
Persistence and collaboration often make success possible. Ventura County 4-H All-Stars Savanna Stanley and Dayle Morris have used both to keep their All-Star project at Ormond Beach moving forward.
Despite many obstacles, they have kept working together with the community to make their goals a reality. Quang Tong, former California State 4-H Program Representative, was quoted in a December 28, 2011 Ventura County Star article as saying…
“Both young ladies have demonstrated what is best about the 4-H program: commitment to the local community, hard work and a hands-on approach to solving problems. Instead of complaining about an issue, they went out, brought people together and made an impact to deal with the issue. Their initial work has grown to involve some serious stakeholders in the community, including local as well as state and national agencies.”
The 4-H program has many positive opportunities for youth and adults too. To find out more, please contact our office!
Gardening can Improve Nutrition and Health
Important nutrients such as Vitamin A, C, potassium, and dietary fiber are under consumed in the U.S., a cause for public health concern for the general public. Gardens can help improve nutrition. Research shows that increasing fresh fruits and vegetables in the diet can help bridge that dietary gap, reduce risk of chronic diseases, and can help adults and children maintain a healthy weight.
In addition to producing tasty and nutritious food, incorporating gardening—of moderate and vigorous intensity into a weekly physical activity routine can help strengthen the heart and other muscles, increase flexibility, relieve stress, and reduce risk of chronic conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, osteoporosis, and obesity.
Gardeners report several positive mental, emotional, and social benefits of gardening. Among these are the satisfaction of growing their own produce and flowers, being outdoors, learning about horticulture, and having an outlet for artistic expression. Many gardeners also find a sense of common purpose while gardening with friends or working in community gardens.
4-H All-Stars working on big project
Ventura County 4-H All-Stars, Savanna Stanley and Dayle Morris are working towards a large goal. They are designing and building a nature-walking path through the Ormond Beach Outdoor Classroom in Oxnard.
The path is being named in honor of Jean Harris and Roma Armbrust two, now deceased, Oxnard teachers who fought for over 30 years to protect the wetlands from being developed and to clean up the toxic waste left at the nearby Halaco metal processing site.
Like most people serious about completing a large project, the Ventura County 4-H All Stars have broken the project down into smaller goals. They have recently completed the following:
- Met with other 4-H members throughout the county to discuss the All-Star Project
- Went to the City of Oxnard and spoke to the Mayor and the City Council at a City Council Meeting. (The City of Oxnard owns the land were the Ormond Beach Outdoor Classroom is located.)
- Wrote, and was awarded, a $1,000 Healthy Living Grant which will help with project expenses
- Met with Dale Dean of the Ventura County Master Gardeners, Nancy Pedersen, Director of the Outdoor Classroom, and members of Oxnard City Corps to begin laying out the trail
The Roma-Jean nature walking tour at Ormond Beach will include 10 information posts each of which will have instructions of exercises children and adults can do. The exercises will focus on flexibility, strength building and proper posture. The 4-H All Stars are working towards having the exercises correlate to the movements of birds as much as possible to make the movements fun for all.
They will also be identifying ten native plants and birds that visitors can look for as they walk through the wetlands, including the resident hummingbird that has followed visitors to Ormond Beach for the last five years.
The ambitious pair is looking for help and donations to complete this project. Specifically they are looking for: building supplies, a wood chipper, mulch, and someone who can help make waterproof boxes or signs. Please contact our office if you are able to help.
MyPyramid tracker
The USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion has a great collection of integrated tools for people to asses their diet quality and physical activity status. The tools are designed to increase understanding of “energy balance status and enhancing the link between good nutrition and regular physical activity.”
Individual dietary assessments are provided online. Participants enter a day’s work of dietary information, click a button and an evaluation is provided within seconds. Nutritional messages, guidance and links to additional information is provided with the evaluation. To track eating and improvements users can view their data for up to one year. Charts and graphs make for easy viewing. Physical activity assessments work similarly.
It is easy to get started and the benefits received provided by a few minutes of data entry are well worth the time spent. To find out more and to begin receiving your individual assessments please visit the MyPyramid tracker website.
