El Paso launches campaign to fight obesity by eating well by Danielle Ortiz, Journalism in July 2014 // July 24, 2014 // Health & Environment
Anabel Ramirez and her business partner, Carla Riojas, started selling vegan coffee and pastries in Ciudad Juárez this past summer. They moved to El Paso, and set up a stand named, Do Not Try This At Home at the Downtown Arts and Farmer’s Market in Union Plaza. (Danielle Ortiz/Journalism in July)
“Would you like fries with that?” is probably the biggest decision people encounter when eating out. But, what if there’s a bigger choice: whether to eat out, but healthier.
The “Eat Well! El Paso” campaign is aimed at trying to reduce the obesity rates that are affected by eating unhealthily. They teamed up with 17 local restaurants to provide healthier food options on children’s menus.
“The focus and biggest concern of our program is battling childhood obesity. As we began to look at what people eat and how they spend their money, we saw the shocking fact that half of our food budget goes to eating out”, said Joy Leos, director of the campaign. “We know through research that food prepared outside of the home tends to be higher in calories, fat, and sodium which when eaten in excess can lead to obesity.”
Leos said that they saw this as an opportunity to work within the community and restaurants to help them serve a more healthy and well balanced meal to children.
“Our intention with this program is not to force anyone to eat healthy. Rather, we want there to be an option for those that do want to eat healthy,” she said.
The menu items have to meet certain requirements, such as having at least one healthier adult menu option and replacing children entrees and side dishes with healthier alternatives. The participants get help from a registered dietician to come up with nutritious foods that would fit in with their restaurant. Soda is not offered with the meal. Instead, only unsweetened items are available such as low-fat milk and 100 percent juice.
“This program gives families options to be able to enjoy dinner out with the family while having the peace of mind that they are receiving a better balanced portion controlled meal that is incorporating important fresh fruits and vegetables that they may not get at home,” Leos said.
According to Leos, about 32 percent of children in the county don’t have access to fresh fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. Statistics from the Texas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System says that El Paso is the perfect reflection of the 34 percent national average rate of obesity.
One of the restaurants that is participating with the “Eat Well! El Paso” program is The Green Ingredient, located in Downtown El Paso.
The Green Ingredient serves organic, all-natural and genetically modified organisms (GMO) free dishes. They focus on giving customers a place to eat out, while serving the right kind of food.
“When someone goes out to eat, they make a choice that they’re going to be really satisfied and eat inexpensive or, they come to a place that sells natural, organic, unprocessed food. That’s more expensive, that’s one of the main drivers, but if people would understand that if you eat the right food, it’s like health insurance,” Ulises Cordova, owner of the Green Ingredient, said.
But will these healthy eateries last in the El Paso market, or are they just a trend? Eating healthy does cost a pretty penny, and for people on a tight budget, being calorie conscious is the least of their problems.
“I think it’s always going to be about price because if you go to the Cielo Vista Natural Market everything’s really expensive, and a lot of people don’t have that disposable income,” said Jacqueline Espino, a UTEP student.
Cordova recognizes they cannot compete in terms of pricing with large corporations.
“They have all the power. We pay for a combo that is $5.00, you eat a lot, you feel satisfied, it was quick and cheap, but the nutritional value is you ate a lot of fat and empty carbs,” Cordova said.
“Eat Well! El Paso” also promotes and supports local farmers and farmer’s markets. They are joining together with local groups.
Anabel Ramirez and her business partner, Carla Riojas, started selling vegan coffee and pastries in Ciudad Juárez this past summer, after Ramirez’s mother was diagnosed with cancer. Her and her mother changed their diet and are now “happy herbivores.”
They moved to El Paso, and set up a stand named, Do Not Try This At Home at the Downtown Arts and Farmer’s Market in Union Plaza.
Ramirez has been noticing that El Paso has been more interested and supporting new ideas than Juárez. But, she is also seeing a growth in demand for organic and vegan products there.
“I feel that El Paso is growing towards healthier options. We are still lacking a lot of things, especially vegan. There is a lot of vegetarian but not so much vegan, and I think that this is the next step,” Ramirez said.
The “Eat Well! El Paso” campaign is based on volunteer local restaurants that want to get involved with the community.
“I believe very strongly that our program is a beneficial one. There is tons of work that remains to be done and our program is going forward full steam ahead to get things done. Our goal a year from now is to have close to 100 restaurants participating in this program,” Leos said.