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Live HealthSmart Alabama is expanding its footprint throughout the Birmingham area and will expand its model beyond Birmingham to other communities in Alabama.
Live HealthSmart Alabama is expanding its footprint throughout the Birmingham area and will expand its model beyond Birmingham to other communities in Alabama.
(Photograph: Steve Wood)The Alabama Live Health Mobile Market provides healthy, fresh and affordable food to neighborhoods with limited access to traditional grocery stores. This grocery store on wheels has extended its service area to four new communities. Joining the original market stops in Kingston, Bush Hills, East Lake and Titusville are new locations in Norwood, Fountain Heights, Tarrant and Bessemer.
“The mobile market provides fresh food to people who currently don’t have access to a grocery store,” said Mona Fouad, MD, executive director of Live HealthSmart Alabama and director of the UAB Minority Health & Health Disparities Research Center. “And while it was successful in Kingston, Bush Hills, East Lake and Titusville, we didn’t want to limit our reach. Expansion to other food deserts gives more people greater access to nutritious food, which will ultimately have a greater impact on their health. ”
Live HealthSmart Alabama is expanding its footprint throughout the Birmingham area and will expand its model beyond Birmingham to other communities in Alabama.
“To achieve our goals of reducing the incidence of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, a statewide effort is needed,” Fouad said.
Fouad also adds that the latest additions to the calendar were in targeted areas where community members had expressed the need for collaborative action to change or improve the built environment and the systems that support their daily lives.
(Photograph: Steve Wood)The mobile market will visit each of the new locations, as well as the original four locations, every two weeks. Once a month, each location will have a night market, which will give shoppers extended shopping hours.
“Having a defined market schedule can be tricky for customers who might not be able to get to the market at some point,” said Teresa Shufflebarger, MBA, MHA, executive director of Live HealthSmart Alabama. “Evening markets create more opportunities for buyers to show up. We want to provide as many opportunities as possible for people to shop. “
Evening markets also include a cooking demonstration from a local chef, where shoppers will see market produce transformed into a healthy and delicious meal right before their eyes.
“Providing access to fresh food was a step; but to take it even further, we wanted to offer tips and advice on how to actually use the products, ”said Shufflebarger. “If someone doesn’t know how to cook with vegetables, they probably won’t eat them. ”
To check out the new August and September schedule, visit the LHSA website or follow @UABMHRC on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for weekly schedule updates.
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