WESTMORLAND – From visual aid sugar diagrams to the shocked look on children’s faces as they realize how much sugar they consume in their favorite drinks, the “Rethink Your Drink” Day event at Westmorland Union Elementary School served as a kick off for a greater Valleywide, and statewide, healthy initiative.
The Imperial County Public Health Department (ICPHD), Westmorland Union Elementary School District, and Innercare held the “Rethink Your Drink” event as part of a statewide effort form the California Department of Public Health’s Cal Fresh Healthy Living Program to “raise awareness about the health risks associated with sugar drinks and promote healthier beverage alternatives for adults and children,” according to an ICPHD press release.
The event saw booths complete with “sugar displays,” free giveaways to promote health such as reusable water bottles and toothbrushes, flavored water alternatives to sugary drinks, and more in order to curtail unhealthy drinking habits to promote better long-term health, said Dr. Maximillian Chambers of the Innercare Dental Department.
Chambers, a clinical dentist and Imperial resident, was recently nominated by the ICPHD Cal Fresh Healthy Living Program and the Local Oral Health Program to complete a two-year fellowship with the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Champion Provider Fellowship. Chambers is the first and only dentist serving as a Champion Provider Fellow for Imperial County, according to the press release.
“My role is trying to highlight and emphasize that aspects that oral health has on the overall health of a person. It’s something that Imperial County is now truly embracing,” Chamber said in an interview.
Chambers said sugary beverages like (soda) “pops,” juices, and sports drinks “are the No. 1 leading sources of sugar that we have in our diet as Americans, and we don’t tend to think about it so much, especially in an environment where it is hot all the time and we tend to just go for a cold drink.”
“We have to think about choosing the right drink,” Chambers said, as over time sugary drinks like those the dentist mentioned could lead to not only childhood cavities but long-term illnesses such as Type 2 diabetes, “which we are trying to prevent.”
“In our children at Innercare it is a huge issue,” Chambers said, “but by focusing on minor changes we, in time, should see huge and significant results in emphasizing health education.”
“This event allowed us to go out there and make that one-on-one connection with our community in a non-clinical setting,” Corina Ojeda, Cal Fresh Healthy Living Program Supervisor at ICPHD, said.
Chambers and Ojeda agreed that these programs exist to “create best practices and how to re-think your drink and choose water.”
Ojeda said the Westmorland school children were not only shocked to see the displays which visually illustrated how much sugar are in their favorite drinks, but they were also pleasantly surprised to taste healthy, tasty water infused with fruits and herbs.
“I think they were able to see that water is not that bad,” Ojeda said. “If you have the right recipes you can still get a good flavor without all the sugar.”
“It’s always fun to see the kids’ reaction to drinking pineapple water, or strawberry or cucumber flavored water,” she said.
Chambers also added that part of the program is to educate adults to help them see that there are health care programs and access to health care locally because “many residents mistakenly think they have to go out of county to get these type of services.”
“Currently I’m gathering hard date to see how many health care professionals are referring (patients) when they see the warning signs,” Chambers said, “and that’s one of the things I’ve been working on, involving pediatrics, OBGYNs and family physicians.”
“It’s really about establishing the interconnection of all of these health care professionals that is necessary to achieve the goals that we set for ourselves,” Chambers said. “Establishing communication (between entities) is vital, and that’s what we’re working towards: Truly interconnecting communities within this county so that the people we service understand they are truly supported.”
“We have the infrastructure, it’s just rearranging the pieces to get a better picture,” Chamber said.
As the next steps of the fellowship and Cal Fresh Healthy Living Program take shape, Ojeda said the program hopes to “reach out to other schools locally that have active school wellness committees, to update and provide technical assistance.”
“It’s something that when everyone is working together … and we do this correctly, it’s going to transform Imperial County … into a model county,” Chambers said. “If we can help other counties by setting the example then I want Imperial County to be that place.”
“It’s time to re-envision and re-approach how things have been done in the Valley,” Chambers said.
