Health is formed long before we need a doctor or a hospital. It starts where we live, learn, work, worship, and play. Opportunities for healthy choices and actions happen everyday for us as individuals and for us as communities.
It starts at home and in communities
- There’s no place like home
Homes are the most influential environment on health. Homes free of lead hazards, pests, and other environmental hazards prevent asthma and other chronic conditions. Stable, well-constructed, affordable homes, are linked to individual and community well-being.
- Connecting with each other
Communities that are connected, with transportation opportunities, including walking paths, bike lanes and public transportation, create health. Sprawling communities generally have more overweight members than those built more compactly. Communities that focus on safety, with reduced crime, well-maintained recreation areas, and freedom from toxic contamination promote health.
- Education is fundamental
Education leads to better career opportunities and longer, healthier lives. Dropout rates matter – communities that invest in education reap multiple health and civic benefits.
- It works in the workplace
Workplaces that create smoke-free environments, encourage physical activity, pay a living wage, and provide job security have healthier employees and better bottom lines.
- Have some faith
Faith Communities that offer healthy foods at gatherings, promote physical activity among their members, and care for the body as well as the soul through health ministries, create healthier communities.
How can we create a healthier Eastern Shore by improving the environments where we live, learn, work, worship and play?