This is Part 2 of a two part video filmed at the Mount Sinai Childrens Environmental Health Centers 2nd Annual Greening Our Children Benefit. In this video, Dr. Philip J. Landrigan discusses the current state of pediatric health and its environmental threats. In particular, Dr. Landrigan notes that: • The diseases affecting youth today are not acute illnesses but are instead chronic. Those with the largest incidence include asthma, learning disabilities, cancer, obesity, birth defects, and allergies; • Since the 1970s, the rate of childhood leukemia has increased at a rate of approximately 1% per year; • Increasing incidence of disorders of the male reproductive system have been observed including decreased sperm counts and increasing rates of testicular cancer and hypospadias; • Rates of obesity continue to rise especially among children of poor socioeconomic backgrounds. In Mount Sinais own backyard, East Harlem, 42% of 5 year old children entering kindergarten are obese. Dr. Landrigan states that the combined evidence shows that genetic factors alone cannot account for these rapidly increasing rates of chronic diseases; something else must be to blame. Evidence points towards environmental factors, particularly the large number of synthetic chemicals released into our environment every day. The message to take away is one of hope: these diseases are preventable. With good research, strong political action and the will of the populous we can catalyze change and again …
cancer
Healthy Kids Tool Kit
The Healthy Kids Toolkit is a unique online interactive educational tool created for the Apps for Healthy Kids contest. The Toolkit has been designed to educate parents about how they and their families can live healthier lifestyles through better nutrition and physical activity. It combines healthy eating and exercise behavior resources from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) into one place. By incorporating emerging digital technologies such as avatars and ‘edutainment gaming’ designs, and leveraging them with interactive opportunities for the user to create and share additional content, the Healthy Kids Toolkit delivers a set of creative and informative tactics to bring web content to life. By making web content more engaging, the main messages will hopefully be better retained. The Healthy Kids Toolkit uses contemporary digital communications tools to appeal to new parents who don’t necessarily know healthy nutrition behaviors themselves. It is designed to provide an engaging and interactive opportunity for new parents to rehearse and assess the “important role that he/she plays in the formation of nutrition and physical activity habits in young children. There are countless opportunities every day to positively impact the children’s lives; small changes in the child care provider’s attitudes and …