What a great time we had in Holyoke! Deirdre and I were invited to celebrate an exciting new program. A local farm (http://www.nuestras-raices.org/) has partnered with the YMCA, the Holyoke Health Center, and other community partners to bring local youth to the farm in two week sessions throughout the summer. The kids are getting a chance to be outside, participate in work around the farm, learn about where their food comes from, and basically have a blast! These partners held a press conference yesterday (I will post links to articles as they are published) at the farm with the kids in attendance, who spoke very candidly about junk food, eating fruits and veggies, and how to steer a canoe. The Healthy Weight Team had a great HWC poster and flyers. We always welcome the opportunity to visit participating clinics and see more of your work first-hand.

In line with my last few blog entries, I have also compiled some resources on Hypertension and Children including screening guidelines as well as some related articles. Please feel free to let me know if there are other topics you would like me to research or if have any other suggestions about what would be helpful to you!

Penny

Blood Pressure Tables for Children and Adolescents, NHLBI

Hypertension in Children and Adolescents: http://www.aafp.org/afp/20060501/1558.html

Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Sequelae in Hypertensive Children: http://hyper.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/43/2/214

NHLBI HIN Health Action e-Bulletin

Overweight, Ethnicity, and the Prevalence of Hypertension in School-Aged Children: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/113/3/475