El Paso, TX, October 6, 2011 (PAHO/WHO) – Child and adolescent obesity in the Border area is becoming an alarming situation that is why the United-States Mexico Border Health Commission in partnership with the New Mexico Office of Border Health and other organizations held the Child and Adolescent Obesity Summit. About one hundred health, education, and community professionals from both sides of the Border gathered together to discuss the problems and solutions of child obesity in the Paso del Norte region (Ciudad Juárez, El Paso, and Las Cruces). The Summit was held on October 5th, 2011 at the Doubletree Hotel in El Paso, Texas.
Community organizations from both sides of the Border had the opportunity to establish a binational dialogue about education, communications, and operational strategies to reduce child and adolescent obesity in the Paso del Norte region. “The purpose was to showcase, to highlight a lot of the programs, and policy changes towards preventing and reducing child and adolescent obesity since this is a huge problem in our area,” said Liz Castro, New Mexico Outreach Office Coordinator from the New Mexico Office of Border Health.
The summit agenda consisted of about ten different topics from prevention programs to strategies to reduce child obesity; also community engagement, policies, and advocacy. “At the end of the summit we will see how we can combine our efforts and what kind of efforts we can do to work for the whole region in this area,” Castro added.
PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS:
- United States –Mexico Border Health Commission New Mexico Office of Border Health
- Chihuahua Health Secretariat
- Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization
- Paso del Norte Foundation
RELATED LINKS
www.borderhealth.org/
www.nmborderhealth.org/
For more information please contact:
Lorely Ambriz, M.S.I.S, Knowledge Management & Communication Advisor
Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) / A Regional Office of the World
Health Organization (WHO) United States-Mexico Border Office
5400 Suncrest Dr. Ste. C-4 El Paso, TX 79912
Office (915) 845-5950 Ext. 42523 / Cel (915) 449-3040 / Fax (915) 845-4361
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/ www.borderinfo.org