CDC's Division of Reproductive Health Launches New Web page for Health Care Providers

CDC's Division of Reproductive Health is pleased to announce a new Web page for health care providers with tools, resources, media, and messages on what they can do to reduce teen pregnancy. Please share and bookmark this new page: http://www.cdc.gov/TeenPregnancy/HealthCareProviders. 

Learn more about—

• Teen Pregnancy Prevention 
• Reproductive Health 

More Employers Pay For Good Health Habits

Health risk questionnaires and other wellness programs are becoming a popular way for employers to encourage employee health and, ultimately, reduce health care costs.

If you feel like your employer is more interested in your health lately, you're probably right.

The Affordable Care Act encourages more employers to offer health insurance plans to their employees. But poor health habits and preventable illnesses are adding to the expense of these plans for employers. A recent survey suggests that, increasingly, employers are seeking to cut healthcare costs from the bottom up — by directly addressing the health habits of their employees.

"[Improving employee health] is the only meaningful way to reduce healthcare costs ... and the first step in the process is to motivate employees and their families to participate in health and wellness programs," says Jim Winkler, chief information officer of health and benefits at Aon Hewitt, the consultancy that did the survey.

 Aon Hewitt asked 1,800 employers in the United States about the health programs they currently offer, and those that they plan to offer in the future. They found that health risk questionnaires, which are surveys meant to raise awareness of health issues among employees, were the most common health program, offered by 68 percent of employers in 2012.

The study reports that employers are also offering more diverse health-related initiatives in 2012; sponsored fitness challenges, stress reduction techniques, and smoking cessation programs are all growing trends for employers.

To read the entire article go to:  http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/08/10/158506049/yoga-on-commission-more-employers-pay-for-good-health-habits?ft=1&f=1001  by Jessica Stoller-Conrad| August 10, 2012

Study Shows Availability of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in Middle and High Schools has Declined

This week, Bridging the Gap published a study in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine examining the availability of competitive beverages in U.S. middle and high schools. The study found that:

• The percentage of public high school students who could buy regular sodas in school declined from 54 percent in 2006-2007 to 25 percent in 2010-2011. 
• A decline was also seen among middle school students (27 percent to 13 percent) over the same time frame. Despite schools’ progress in removing sodas, the majority of middle and high school students still have widespread access to other sugary beverages. In the 2010-11 school year, for instance, 63 percent of middle and 88 percent of high school students could buy some type of sugary drink at school, while 83 percent of high school students had access to sports drinks (a statistically insignificant decrease from the 90 percent in 2006-07). 
• Access to higher-fat milks (including 2%) also declined, but were still available to 36 percent of middle and 48 percent of high school students.
• While access to healthier drinks remained stable for high school students, the percentage of middle school students with access declined from 96 percent to 89 percent, a decline that researchers believe may be attributed to fewer vending machines in some schools. 

The study notes that sugar-sweetened beverages remain the main source of added sugar in children's diets, and having access to these types of beverages at school has been shown to contribute significantly to students’ daily caloric intake. The study comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture prepares to update national competitive food standards.

RWJF weekly update.

USDA Releases 2012 Farmers’ Market Directory

USDA Releases 2012 Farmers’ Market Directory
 Last Friday, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced the 2012 release of the National Farmers’ Market Directory, which found that 7,864 farmers’ markets are currently operating in the United States, compared with 7,175 markets that operated nationwide last year. The top 11 states in terms of the number of farmers’ markets reported, account for 49 percent of farmers’ markets listed in this year’s directory. States reporting the most farmers’ markets are: California (827), New York (647), Massachusetts (313), Michigan (311), Wisconsin (298), Illinois (292), Ohio (264), Pennsylvania (254), Virginia (277), Iowa (227), and North Carolina (202). The report release coincides with National Farmers’ Market week (August 7-13), which is marked by festivals, contests, and cooking demonstrations in communities across the country.