- UnitedHealthcare provides $40,000 grant to Arizona 4-H to fund
specially made smoothie bikes and support youth-sponsored events
designed to burn calories and promote healthy eating
- Eat4-Health partnership trains Arizona 4-H’ers as health
ambassadors to reach youth through positive messages and fun,
energetic community events
Company Website:
http://www.uhc.com
SONOITA, Ariz. -- (Business Wire)
UnitedHealthcare and Arizona 4-H are expanding a successful partnership
called Eat4-Health that helps tackle obesity by promoting healthy eating
and active lifestyles among youth and families.
Ruben (12) and Keishla Bolivar (12) from Calabasas Middle School create their own healthy smoothies using specially-made blender bikes donated to Arizona 4-H by UnitedHealthcare as part of a $40,000 grant announced today at the Santa Cruz County Fair that will promote healthy living among youth (Photos by Tom Freeland for UnitedHealthcare).
UnitedHealthcare is providing the University of Arizona Cooperative
Extension, which administers 4-H programs in Arizona, a $40,000 grant to
support youth healthy-living programs. Part of the grant is being used
to purchase pedal-powered blender bikes that will be used for fun,
energetic events where young people can create their own healthy
smoothies through exercise.
The specially made stationary bikes are equipped with a blender
mechanism that makes smoothies when pedaled. The smoothie bikes were
unveiled today in at the Santa Cruz County Fair where young people made
a healthy smoothie in return for a little “sweat equity.” At the
fairgrounds, 4-H youth trained through the “Eat4-Health” program lead
smoothie bike demonstrations and shared tips and recipes for creating
easy, healthy smoothies and maintaining active lifestyles, among other
activities.
“Arizona 4-H is very excited to participate at the Santa Cruz County
fair where we can engage youth to make healthy choices and stay active,”
said Elizabeth Sparks, 4-H Youth Development Program Leader at the
University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. “With the support of
UnitedHealthcare we are able to use the smoothie bikes to demonstrate a
fun and easy way to eat a nutritious snack.”
The grant, along with the smoothie bikes and other exercise equipment,
will be used to support community events and programs through spring
2015 in which youth and families can learn about easy ways to promote
healthy lifestyles. Recipe cards, educational information and other
resources will be distributed as part of the program. The goal is to
encourage young people and their families to eat more nutritious foods
and exercise regularly.
The University of Arizona 4-H Cooperative Extension has developed a plan
to provide innovative, hands-on learning and target specific community
needs in the state. Many of these activities support healthy-living
programs led by 4-H that encourage youth and community participation.
UnitedHealthcare employees will help organize and host many of these
events and will support 4-H with planning and implementing projects that
lead to positive, sustainable change at the community and individual
level. The company has already provided the University of Arizona
Cooperative Extension with $100,000 to support the Eat4-Health program
since 2011.
“UnitedHealthcare is grateful for the opportunity to continue our work
with Arizona 4-H to help educate young people about healthy lifestyles
and exercise in their daily lives,” said Beth Soberg, President and CEO,
UnitedHealthcare of Arizona. “These bikes and educational resources
provide a unique way to deliver these messages in a positive and
meaningful way.”
UnitedHealthcare is providing $520,000 to National 4-H Council to
support youth healthy-living programs. In addition to Arizona, other
state 4-H programs receiving grants include Florida, Louisiana, New
York, Mississippi, Nebraska, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.
Eat4-Health, which began in 2011, has already reached more than 210,000
young people and families across nine states through a positive campaign
that has trained thousands of 4-H teen youth health ambassadors to
promote healthy lifestyles in their communities.
According to America’s Health Rankings®, an annual comprehensive
assessment of the nation’s health on a state-by-state basis, obesity is
a leading risk factor for diabetes, heart disease and many cancers.
According to the report Arizona ranks 16th in obesity with 26 % of
adults and 10.8% of youth estimated to be obese. Obesity continues to be
at epidemic levels and is one of the fastest-growing health challenges
confronting the nation. The report can be viewed and downloaded at www.americashealthrankings.org.
About 4-H
4-H, the nation’s
largest youth development and empowerment organization, cultivates
confident kids who tackle the issues that matter most in their
communities right now. In the United States, 4-H programs empower six
million young people through the 109 land-grant universities and
Cooperative Extension in more than 3,000 local offices serving every
county and parish in the country. Outside the United States,
independent, country-led 4-H organizations empower one million young
people in more than 50 countries. National 4-H Council is the private
sector, non-profit partner of the Cooperative Extension System and 4-H
National Headquarters located at the National Institute of Food and
Agriculture (NIFA) within the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA). Learn more about 4-H at www.4-H.org.
About UnitedHealthcare
UnitedHealthcare
is dedicated to helping people nationwide live healthier lives by
simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and
wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care
providers. The company offers the full spectrum of health benefit
programs for individuals, employers and Medicare and Medicaid
beneficiaries, and contracts directly with more than 800,000 physicians
and care professionals, and 6,000 hospitals and other care facilities
nationwide. Globally, UnitedHealthcare serves more than 45million people
in health benefits and is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group
(NYSE: UNH), a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company.
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Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20140919005962/en/
Contacts:
UnitedHealthcare
Molly McMillen, 612-353-7778
or
Arizona
4-H Youth Development
Elizabeth Sparks, 520-241-0695
Source: UnitedHealthcare
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