Spring 2019 News

LIVE WELL GOODHUE COUNTY ADDS NEW "CREW" MEMBER

Since 2013 Live Well Goodhue County has been working to improve the health of our residents by making it easier to walk, bike, eat nutritious food and live tobacco-free.  In April 2019, we welcomed Megan Roschen as a new, full-time Live Well Goodhue County Coordinator.  Megan is a registered dietitian who has worked with moms, infants and children in WIC at Olmsted County Public Health and one-on-one with patients at DaVita Dialysis.  As part of her new role, Megan will take on grant related tasks that we used to contract out, like evaluation, and she will have the lead role with our Healthy Eating, Health Care, Schools and Workplace initiatives.  When it is time to plan our 2019-2020 work plan, Megan will be putting that together.

Current coordinator David Anderson is staying on, however, he is transitioning into a part-time role.  David will work Mondays - Thursdays 8-1 and focus on leading the Community Leadership Team, Active Living initiatives and Tobacco initiatives.  Recently youth e-cigarette use has risen dramatically in Goodhue County and across the state.  One in four middle school and high school students have tried e-cigarettes (teens call it vaping or juuling).  Half of high school seniors report having tried e-cigarettes at least once.  This staffing change allows us a little more time to address this challenge while maintaining our current initiatives.

Other Healthy Communities staff on the Live Well Goodhue County crew are Ruth Greenslade, Supervisor, Jessica Seide, Community Health Specialist - who assists with Safe Routes to School work- and Laura Smith, Support Staff.  We also continue to contract with Focus Design for graphic design.

Goodhue County is in the top 25% of Minnesota's healthiest counties, but there's still work to be done.  According to a recently released study by the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, Goodhue County scored 19th in statewide county health rankings.  Rankings are determined based on available data on health outcomes and health behaviors.  "Many factors and programs play a part in our rankings.  We're in the top quartile of Minnesota counties for health outcomes, but we actually rank lower in health behaviors," said Ruth Greenslade, Healthy Communities Supervisor.  "Our smoking rate is falling more slowly than it has in the past and our obesity rate is above the state average.  Receiving funds from the Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) allows us to address those behaviors that lead to poor health outcomes in partnership with our communities, schools and worksites.  We're excited to add Megan to the Healthy Communities Unit!"

SHIP IS CREATING HEALTH IN OUR COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE STATE

Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) investments support community-driven solutions to expand opportunities for active living, healthy eating and commercial tobacco-free living, helping all people in Minnesota prevent chronic diseases including cancer, heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.  90% of the nation's health care costs are for people with chronic conditions and the majority of those costs are preventable.


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Live Well Goodhue County is our local initiative of SHIP.  Since good health is created where we live, work and play, we have been partnering with our communities, day care providers, schools, worksites and health care providers to make it safer and easier to walk, bike, eat nutritious food and live tobacco-free. Since 2013 we have partnered with:

Communities

  • Cannon Falls
  • Goodhue
  • Kenyon
  • Pine Island
  • Red Wing
  • Wanamingo
  • Zumbrota

Child Care/Preschools

  • Adventures in Learning
  • Family Day Care by Michelle
  • His Kids
  • Kenyon-Wanamingo Early childhood & Family Education Program
  • Learning Circle
  • Peach Tree
  • Sheri's Preschool & Day Care
  • Sunshine Corner
  • Under the Rainbow

Schools

  • Burnside Elementary
  • Cannon Falls Elementary
  • Goodhue Elementary/Middle/High School
  • Kenyon-Wanamingo Elementary
  • Kenyon-Wanamingo High School
  • Pine Island 5th-12th School
  • Red Wing High School
  • Sunnyside Elementary
  • Twin Bluff Middle School
  • Zumbrota-Mazeppa Primary School
  • Zumbrota-Mazeppa Middle/High School

Worksite

  • Amesbury Truth
  • Bic Graphic
  • City of Red Wing 
  • City of Zumbrota
  • Treasure Island Resort & Casino
  • Goodhue County
  • Cannon Falls School District
  • Goodhue School District
  • Kenyon-Wanamingo School District
  • Pine Island School District
  • Workforce Development, Inc
  • ProAct, Inc.
  • SCS Elevator Products, Inc.
  • Star Tech Computing
  • Three Rivers Community Action

Health Care

  • Accra Home Health Care
  • Mayo Clinic Health System-Cannon Falls
  • Mayo Clinic Health System-Kenyon
  • Mayo Clinic Health System-Red Wing
  • Mayo Clinic Health System-Zumbrota
  • Olmsted Medical Clinic-Pine Island
  • Olmsted Medical Clinic-Wanamingo

Live Tobacco-Free

  • Goodhue County
  • Kenyon-Wanamingo School District
  • Red Wing School District
  • Zumbrota-Mazeppa School District

Additional Partners

  • All Seasons Community Services in Kenyon
  • Cannon Falls Farmers Market
  • Cannon Falls Food Shelf
  • Cannon Falls Senior Center
  • Every Hand Joined - Pepin Woods
  • Hispanic Outreach of Goodhue County
  • Hope coalition/Kid's Count
  • Jordan Towers
  • Kiki's Simple Abundance
  • Pier 55 - Red Wing Area Seniors
  • Pine Island Farmers market
  • Pine Island Food Shelf
  • Pine Island Lion's Club
  • Quiet Waters Ranch
  • Red Wing Family YMCA
  • United Way of Goodhue, Wabasha & Pierce counties
  • Red Wing Community Garden
  • Red Wing Food Shelf
  • Red Wing Farmers Market
  • Zumbrota Food Shelf


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      mapkey      Interested in partnering with Live Well Goodhue County?  Contact Megan Roschen at 651-385-6140 or megan.roschen@co.goodhue.mn.us or  David Anderson at 651-385-6148 or by email at david.anderson@co.goodhue.mn.us.


YOUTH E-CIGARETTE USE IS AN EMERGING PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT

Youth e-cigarette use has risen dramatically in Minnesota in the last 3 years, with an almost 50% increase in high school student use since 20141.  This is a major public health concern.  Youth use of nicotine increases their risk of addiction, and can make them more susceptible to addiction to tobacco products and other substances in the future.  The Minnesota Department of Health recommends immediate actions requiring the participation of parents, educators, health care providers and policy makers.nicotine

Nicotine Primes the Adolescent Brain  for Addiction

Addiction is a form of learning, where the brain learns to connect a stimulus (for example, smoking a cigarette or vaping an e-cigarette) with a response (feeling of pleasure and calming of cravings).2 Each time a new skill or memory is learned, stronger connections-or synapses - are built between brain cells.  Young people build synapses faster than adults. Nicotine changes the way these synapses are formed.  Youth exposed to nicotine are at higher risk for addiction than are adults, because youth brains are still forming and making permanent connections.2 3 4 5  Studies show that symptoms of nicotine addiction can appear among youth within only a few days or weeks after smoking initiation.6 7  

New E-Cigarette Technologies Pose Greater Risks for Youth

Popular e-cigarettes like JUUL have developed new technologies utilizing nicotine salts that are absorbed into the body more effectively and come in record-high levels of nicotine.  According to the manufacturer, a single JUUL pod contains as much nicotine as a pack of 20 regular cigarettes. E-cigarettes like JUUL, come in a wide variety of fruit and other flavors that appeal to youth.  They are also easily hidden, have limited odor and emit aerosol that disappears quickly enabling people to use them in public places where cigarette use is prohibited.

juul2

Opportunity for Action

Given the danger of youth nicotine use, it's important for parents, educators, health care providers and policy makers to be aware and take action.

Parents

Educators

  • Educate yourself to the harms of nicotine exposure, including impact to brain development and risks for engaging in other high-risk activities like use of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana and other illicit substances.
              www.health.state.mn.us/communities/tobacco/ecigarettes/index.html#schoolkit
  • Educate students and parents that nicotine is highly addictive and e-cigarettes almost always contain nicotine.
  • Enforce existing prohibitions of tobacco and nicotine product use in schools.

Health Care Providers

  • Talk to your young patients about the risks of e-cigarette use.
  • Provide education about nicotine including harms to the brain from nicotine exposure and the nicotine in any form  (smoked or vaped) can be addictive.
  • Screen parents for use of all tobacco products, encourage cessation and refer patients to cessation services (e.g., in-person counseling and/or quitline).

Policy Makers

  • Restrict the use of e-cigarettes in public places where combustible cigarette use is already prohibited.
  • Restrict the sale of flavored tobacco to adult-only retail establishments.
  • Increase the minimum legal sales age to 21 years of age.

Stop the Start Campaign - Tobacco 21

Research show that raising the legal sale age from 18 to 21, known as "tobacco 21", would greatly reduce youth tobacco use and prevent kids from starting to smoke/vape, according to a 2015 Institute of Medicine report. Notably, the report estimated there would be a 25% reduction in smoking initiation among 15 to 17 year olds if the age to purchase tobacco were raised to 21.

Nearly all tobacco users start before age 21.9 10 According to a 2017 Minnesota Department of Health advisory on nicotine, teens are especially susceptible to nicotine addiction and the harmful effects of nicotine on the developing brain.  Raising the minimum sale age to 21 would limit youth access to tobacco until age 21, when the portion of the brain responsible for rational decision-making is more fully developed.11   

Join Us

If you would like to join our effort, complete the Stop the Start Campaign form!                                                   

LET'S GO BIKING

Bicycling is a great way to have fun, connect with your family and friends, can be an inexpensive and reliable mode of transportation and can improve your health!  It's also an important skill for children to learn.  Being a smart bicyclist is an important step in the progression of independence and self-sufficiency, especially through developed decision-making skills. Getting kids into the habit of cycling early on encourages physical fitness, awareness of their surroundings and an understanding of their environment that they won't get in a car.  Before you send your children out, make sure to review these important safety tips:

  • Where Bikes Belong - You will often notice that children ride their bikes on the sidewalk while adults ride their bikes in the road.  Sidewalks are for people who walk places.  Children who are still learning to ride their bikes may ride on the sidewalk until they are older.  When they are older and have control of their bicycle and understand the Rules of the Road, they can begin to ride in the roadway.
  • Wear a Helmet Correctly - Wearing a properly fitted helmet can protect our brain from injury and possibly save your life.  Measure your head to find your size; your helmet should sit level on your head and low on your forehead, adjust the side straps to form a "V" shape under, and slightly in front of the ears, buckle the chin strap and tighten it until it is snug (no more that one or two fingers should fit under the strap).
  • Perform an ABC Quick Check - A is for Air, B is for Brakes, C is for Cranks and Chain.  You should always check these before you ride your bike.
  • Follow the Rules - Children should always inform an adult before they ride, wear bright colors when riding so others can see them, look and listen for traffic, ride where they belong, don't carry things in their hands and stop at the edge of a road or driveway to check for traffic.bike

Rules of the Road

It is the responsibility of all bicyclists to follow the Rules of the Road!

  • Follow the Law
    • Your safety and the perception of bicyclists depend on you.
    • You have the same rights and duties as drivers.
    • Obey traffic signals and stop signs.
    • Ride with traffic and use the rightmost land headed in the direction you are going.
  • Be Predictable
    • Make your intentions clear to everyone on the road.
    • Ride in a straight line and don't swerve between parked cars.
    • Signal turns and check behind you well before making a turn or changing lanes.
  • Be Conspicuous
    • Ride where people can see you and wear bright clothing.
    • Use a front white light, rear red light and reflectors.
    • Make eye contact with other road users and don't ride on sidewalks.
  • Think Ahead
    • Anticipate what drivers, pedestrians and other people on bikes will do next.
    • Watch for turning vehicles and ride outside the door zone of parked cars.
    • Look out for debris, potholes and other road hazards.
    • Cross railroad tracks at right angles.
  • Ride Ready
    • Before you ride, do your ABC Quick Check.  Make sure your tires have enough air; the brakes are working; the chain runs smoothly; and quick release levers are closed.
    • Carry tools and supplies that are appropriate for your ride.
    • Wear a helmet.

1.      Evered SR. Teensand Tobacco in Minnesota: Highlights from the 2017 Minnesota Youth TobaccoSurvey: Minnesota Center for Health Statistics, Minnesota Department of Health,February 2018. 
2.      U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.E-Cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults. A Report of the Surgeon General.Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention andHealth Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2016. 
3.      O’Dell LE,Bruijnzeel AW, Smith RT, Parsons LH, Merves ML, Goldberger BA, Richardson HN,Koob GF, Markou. Diminished nicotine withdrawal in adolescent rats:implications for vulnerability to addiction. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2006.186(4): p. 612-619. 
4.      Tarren, J.R.,Bartlett, S.E., Alcohol and nicotine interactions: pre-clinical models ofdependence. Am J Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 2017. 43(2): p. 146-154. 
5.      Watkins SL,Glantz SA, Chaffee, BW. Association of Noncigarette Tobacco Product Use WithFuture Cigarette Smoking Among Youth in the Population Assessment of Tobaccoand Health (PATH) Study, 2013-2015. JAMA Pediatr, 2018. 172(2): p.181-187. 
6.      DiFranza, JR, etal., “Initial Symptoms of Nicotine Dependence in Adolescents,” Tobacco Control9:313-19, September 2000. 
7.      U.S. Departmentof Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking: 50 Years ofProgress. A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department ofHealth and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NationalCenter for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smokingand Health, 2014. 
8.      Centers forDisease Control and Prevention. Keep Kids E-cigarette Free. 2018. 
9.      Institute ofMedicine, Public Health Implications of Raising the Minimum Age of Legal Accessto Tobacco Products, Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2015, https://www.nap.edu/read/18997/chapter/1
10.   United StatesDepartment of Health and Human Services. Substance Abuse and Mental HealthServices Administration. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality.National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2014. ICPSR36361-v1. Ann Arbor, MI:Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor],2016-03-22. http://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR36361.v1
11.   Furlong, A.(Ed.). (2009). Handbookof youth and young adulthood: New perspectives and agendas.Routledge.