Healthy & Active Lifestyles
Healthy & Active Living Basics
The Delaware Public Health District recommends these key tips for living a healthy lifestyle. If you’re just starting out trying to make healthier changes, first, talk with your health care team. Then when starting to make positive lifestyle changes, try selecting one or two of these activities, and add more to your daily routine over time.
Incorporate a variety of healthy foods in your eating habits. Emphasize fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat free or low-fat milk, milk products and alternatives.
- Read Nutrition Facts Labels to track sugars fats, proteins and other nutrients in foods.
- Include a variety of proteins such as lean meats and poultry, seafood, eggs, beans, peas, soy, nuts, and seeds
- Limit added sugars, high amounts of sodium, and saturated fats
- For child-bearing families, breastfeed exclusively to 6 months when possible
- More information and tips on healthy eating can be found here.
Added sugars are commonly added to processed and prepared food and drinks. One 12-ounce can of regular soda or pop contains about 10 teaspoons of added sugars. “Rethink Your Drink” and try swapping sugar sweetened beverages with unsweetened choices.
The amount of physical activity you need depends mostly on your age but has many short and long term benefits for all ages. However, if you are unable to meet recommendations, try to be as active as you can. Learn more about the recommendations for different age groups here.
- Try to move more, and sit less. Try to get a mix of aerobic, muscle, and bone-strengthening activities each week as appropriate for your age. Aerobic activities make your heart beat faster, muscle-strengthening activities help to build muscles, and bone strengthening activities help you to grow stronger bones. Limit TV and computer time, especially for young children
- The intensity of an activity can be measuring several ways. Moderate- or vigorous physical activity is recommended weekly for everyone 6 weeks and older. More information on measuring intensity is available here.
- Remember that some physical activity is better than none at all. If you have trouble doing physical activity, be as physically active as your abilities and conditions allow.
As you age what you need to be physically active may change, and it’s important to participate in activities that can help improve balance. You can learn more about what you can do to add more physical activity as an older adult here.
Smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke greatly increases your risk of heart disease and respiratory symptoms If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, quitting will lower your risk for heart disease. Too much alcohol can raise risks for developing chronic health conditions, injury, and can cause other harm to those who drink and those around hem
- Learn more about tobacco use and ways to quit at CDC’s Smoking and Tobacco Use website.
- Avoid drinking too much alcohol. Men should have no more than two drinks per day, and women should have no more than one. Learn more at CDC’s Alcohol and Public Health website.
Current and Upcoming Activities, Programs & Events
The Delaware County CHIP is a long-term effort taken on by a multi-sector collaboration of partners and community residents to address health problems through developing goals and strategies which can help prioritize projects and resource efforts. To work toward improving health behaviors outcomes, the following strategies are recommended:
- Adopt healthy food initiatives
- Promote healthy lifestyle practices through education and skill building
- Community fitness programs
- Promotion of physical activity through the adoption of built environment changes and green space
If you are interested in learning more about the 2023-2028 CHIP, and the work we are doing in this area, please reach out to us!
HStepping Up to Prevent Falls (SUTPF) Coalition – Quarterly Meeting
The goal of the Stepping Up to Prevent Falls Coalition is to prevent injuries and deaths caused by falls among older adults by convening a group of committed, local partners to implement evidence-based strategies to prevent falls including increasing falls risk assessment, building systems for home assessment and modifications, and increasing access to balance and mobility trainings.
The SUTPF Coalition meets virtually at least once per quarter. The meeting is held on the 1st Thursday in March, June, September and December from 12pm – 1pm. If you are interested in learning more about preventing falls among older adults or attending the SUTPF coalition meetings, please contact Taylor Jaggers.
Contact:
Josie Bonnette
740-203-2034
Email
Taylor Jaggers
740-203-2039
Email
Aly Hillier
740-203-2025
Email
The Adventure Connection Guide is a partnership between the DPHD and Preservation Parks of Delaware County. This guide includes an index of various outdoor activities, and information about where someone can go to get more information on how they could participate or try out that activity. We hope you are encouraged to use this guide to help find an adventure in your backyard.
Impacts of falling for aging adults are serious and go beyond just the physical harm, but also affect emotional wellness and quality of life. Those who survive falls and/or serious injury may face consequences such as reduced mobility, chronic pain, increased financial burden or healthcare costs, or new fears around falling,
