77
mester. That’s an increase of four percentage
points from 2012. Teen mothers are less likely to
receive this care than mothers in older age groups.
Teen parents and their children are often at
greater risk for experiencing negative short- and
long-term consequences in the areas of health,
school, and economic success, as compared with
parents who wait to have children.
22
Research
from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and
Unplanned Pregnancy links teen pregnancy to
preterm births, low birth weight, and a host of
social issues, including poverty, responsible
fatherhood, and overall wellbeing.
23
There is good news from the 2019 CAP report.
Girls from 15–17 years are less likely to become
pregnant now than in 2012 (12.4% vs. 4.2%). The
same is true for girls 18–19 years (26.6% vs.
10.6%).
When asked about their mental health, the percentage of CAP overall survey respondents who
had felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for
two weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing
some usual activities increased from 6.0% in 2017
to 8.0% in 2019. In 2019, Latino survey respondents were slightly more likely than White respondents to feel this way—8.0% and 4.2%, respectively.
Adolescent hospitalizations for emotional issues
also increased. For every 1000 children from
5–14 years old, 2.2 were hospitalized in 2016,
along with 9.4 of every 1000 aged 15–19 years.
Healthful diets and healthy body weights
reduce the risk of chronic diseases and promote
optimum health.
24
Efforts to change diet and
22 Kaye K, Stewart Ng A. TEEN CHILDBEARING,
EDUCATION, AND ECONOMIC WELLBEING. Why It
Matters: Teen Childbearing, Education, and Economic
Wellbeing 2012. Available at: https://thenationalcampaign.org/sites/default/files/resource-primary-download/
childbearing-education-economicwellbeing.pdf.
Accessed October 2015.
23 National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned
Pregnancy. Why it matters: Teen pregnancy. 2012.
Accessed November 2015 from: http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/why-it-matters/wim_teens.aspx
24 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Healthy People 2020. Healthy People 2020. Accessed
December 2015 from https://www.healthypeople.
gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/nutrition-andweight-status
weight should address individual behaviors, as
well as the policies and environments that support these behaviors in settings such as schools,
worksites, health care organizations, and communities. For example, having healthful food
available and affordable in food retail and food
service settings allows people to make more
healthful food choices.
25
To address some of these issues, the United
Way established Jóvenes SANOS, a youth advocacy and leadership program seeking to empower,
educate, and raise awareness about childhood
obesity within the community. The purpose is to
shift the local culture by encouraging businesses
to offer healthful food choices and encouraging
people to increase their physical activity.
For example, Jóvenes SANOS has prompted
corner markets to offer more fresh, non- processed
foods; it encouraged restaurants to include more
healthful choices on their menus; and it requested
that the local Metro service include at least 50%
healthful items in its vending machines.
Survey respondents overall have consistently
described their general health as Excellent, Very
Good, or Good (83.7% in 2019) at percentages
exceeding the Healthy People 2020 target of
79.8%. In 2019, Latino survey respondents
(80.6%) were significantly less likely than White
survey respondents (85.7%) to describe their
health as Very Good or Excellent. Over the past
10 years, there has been a steady increase in the
number of overall survey respondents who were
obese and overweight based on BMI calculation
(61.7% in 2019). Latino survey respondents
(76.3%) were more likely than White survey
respondents (53.7%) to be obese or overweight in
2019. Clearly, the organizations across the county
must educate the population and motivate them
to reduce their weight and follow better health
practices.
On a positive note, children in Santa Cruz
County are much less likely than their statewide
counterparts to drink one or more sugar25 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overweight
& Obesity. Healthy Food Environments. Accessed
December 2015 from http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/strategies/healthy-food-env.html
6 How Local Communities Can Align with United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals: A Santa Cruz…
mester. That’s an increase of four percentage
points from 2012. Teen mothers are less likely to
receive this care than mothers in older age groups.
Teen parents and their children are often at
greater risk for experiencing negative short- and
long-term consequences in the areas of health,
school, and economic success, as compared with
parents who wait to have children.
22
Research
from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and
Unplanned Pregnancy links teen pregnancy to
preterm births, low birth weight, and a host of
social issues, including poverty, responsible
fatherhood, and overall wellbeing.
23
There is good news from the 2019 CAP report.
Girls from 15–17 years are less likely to become
pregnant now than in 2012 (12.4% vs. 4.2%). The
same is true for girls 18–19 years (26.6% vs.
10.6%).
When asked about their mental health, the percentage of CAP overall survey respondents who
had felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for
two weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing
some usual activities increased from 6.0% in 2017
to 8.0% in 2019. In 2019, Latino survey respondents were slightly more likely than White respondents to feel this way—8.0% and 4.2%, respectively.
Adolescent hospitalizations for emotional issues
also increased. For every 1000 children from
5–14 years old, 2.2 were hospitalized in 2016,
along with 9.4 of every 1000 aged 15–19 years.
Healthful diets and healthy body weights
reduce the risk of chronic diseases and promote
optimum health.
24
Efforts to change diet and
22 Kaye K, Stewart Ng A. TEEN CHILDBEARING,
EDUCATION, AND ECONOMIC WELLBEING. Why It
Matters: Teen Childbearing, Education, and Economic
Wellbeing 2012. Available at: https://thenationalcampaign.org/sites/default/files/resource-primary-download/
childbearing-education-economicwellbeing.pdf.
Accessed October 2015.
23 National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned
Pregnancy. Why it matters: Teen pregnancy. 2012.
Accessed November 2015 from: http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/why-it-matters/wim_teens.aspx
24 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Healthy People 2020. Healthy People 2020. Accessed
December 2015 from https://www.healthypeople.
gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/nutrition-andweight-status
weight should address individual behaviors, as
well as the policies and environments that support these behaviors in settings such as schools,
worksites, health care organizations, and communities. For example, having healthful food
available and affordable in food retail and food
service settings allows people to make more
healthful food choices.
25
To address some of these issues, the United
Way established Jóvenes SANOS, a youth advocacy and leadership program seeking to empower,
educate, and raise awareness about childhood
obesity within the community. The purpose is to
shift the local culture by encouraging businesses
to offer healthful food choices and encouraging
people to increase their physical activity.
For example, Jóvenes SANOS has prompted
corner markets to offer more fresh, non- processed
foods; it encouraged restaurants to include more
healthful choices on their menus; and it requested
that the local Metro service include at least 50%
healthful items in its vending machines.
Survey respondents overall have consistently
described their general health as Excellent, Very
Good, or Good (83.7% in 2019) at percentages
exceeding the Healthy People 2020 target of
79.8%. In 2019, Latino survey respondents
(80.6%) were significantly less likely than White
survey respondents (85.7%) to describe their
health as Very Good or Excellent. Over the past
10 years, there has been a steady increase in the
number of overall survey respondents who were
obese and overweight based on BMI calculation
(61.7% in 2019). Latino survey respondents
(76.3%) were more likely than White survey
respondents (53.7%) to be obese or overweight in
2019. Clearly, the organizations across the county
must educate the population and motivate them
to reduce their weight and follow better health
practices.
On a positive note, children in Santa Cruz
County are much less likely than their statewide
counterparts to drink one or more sugar25 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overweight
& Obesity. Healthy Food Environments. Accessed
December 2015 from http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/strategies/healthy-food-env.html
6 How Local Communities Can Align with United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals: A Santa Cruz…