United States Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, so it only makes sense that she visits the Bronx, which has been rated as having the least access to healthy foods in the State.
Senator Gillibrand visited Montefiore Children’s Hospital on Monday, May 9 to tour the hospital’s Healthy Eating Fair. She stopped by stands, run by Montefiore nutritionists, intended to educate people on healthy diets.
Gillibrand also met with Dr. Steven M. Safyer, President and CEO of Montefiore and Dr. Philip Ouzah, physician-in-chief of the children’s hospital to discuss strategies for improving health and nutrition throughout the borough.
“We need to do much better,” Gillibrand said. “When children are obese they suffer. They can’t concentrate. They get made fun of. It means teaching them about nutrition, making sure healthy foods are served in schools and we keep junk food out.”
Gillibrand said she went to Montefiore because she saw it as an effective way to reach people in the Bronx.
“It’s important to come to Montefiore because it’s a source of health care for so many people in the region,” she said.
According to the site CountyHealthRankings.org, which is run by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, the Bronx is the least healthy county in New York State.
There is also the less access to healthy foods in the Bronx than any other New York county, according to the site’s metrics.
Montefiore has been trying to combat the Bronx’s health crisis through its Food Education Project, which the Health Eating Fairs are a part of. The fairs take place roughly every week at different Montefiore locations.
Lauren Graf has been a pediatric nutritionist at Montefiore for six years and she had a stand at the most recent health fair. Graf said that while genes are a factor in obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure, the majority of the cases she sees are a result of behavior.
“Probably 80 percent of the time it has to do with consumption,” Graf said. “I see some kids that are drinking nearly two liters of soda a day.”
Graf’s main focus is helping children and teenagers combat high blood pressure, which often comes from high-sodium food and drinks.
Despite the borough’s ranking and reputation, Graf said finding low-sodium and low-sugar food options in the Bronx really is not that difficult. In her experience, getting people to change their habits is the hard part.
“There are Green Carts, CSAs, and you can buy frozen vegetables,” she said. “It’s more challenging to change your taste preference than find healthy food.”
Phelbia Butler of Concourse Village was also present as a therapy partner for a friend who was a patient.
“I think it’s wonderful,” Butler said. “These nutritionists are resources, and I think a lot of people are hyped up about eating healthy. This is right up my alley.”
