For nearly 20 years, communities across the U.S. have been celebrating National Public Health Week (NPHW) each April. This year, NPHW 2014 takes place April 7–13 and focuses on the theme “Public Health: Start Here.” NPHW is an opportunity to highlight the important role Cobb & Douglas Public Health (CDPH) plays in the community to help keep residents safe and healthy.

Monday, April 7: Be Healthy From the Start

Public health starts at home. Cobb & Douglas Public Health encourages the community to get started at home with these simple tips:

  • Plan healthier meals. Planning healthy meals can improve your health and also save you time and money. Get the whole family involved. You may be surprised at how easy making healthy changes can be.
  • Turn off the TV at mealtime. The TV not only can distract both adults and children from eating, it also interferes with talking as a family.
  • Healthy eating and exercise go hand in hand. Be active and plan to make it a part of your daily routine.

Tuesday, April 8: Don’t Panic

Cobb & Douglas Public Health wants to be sure the community is ready for the unexpected. CDPH responds to emergency situations and collaborates with local, state and federal partners to mitigate the crisis and relay current and accurate health information to the community. Follow this checklist to prepare your home, family, and workplace in case of a natural disaster or other emergency.

  • Have an emergency kit accessible
  • Keep extra cash, medication, water, clothing, and food on hand
  • Prepare a list of family emergency numbers and school contacts
  • Have an emergency meeting place
  • Stay informed on what’s happening

Wednesday, April 9: Get Out Ahead

Cobb & Douglas Public Health offers many high-quality, affordable health services for adults and children. In addition to traditional, preventive medical services, such as immunizations, CDPH offers dental and international travel health services to all residents. CDPH also provides a strong referral network which helps guide clients to additional medical or social services that may be needed.

Thursday, April 10: Eat Well

Cobb & Douglas Public Health wants the community to make good choices when it comes to eating habits. Use the following tips to help increase your food budget while still making healthy choices.

  • Cut the junk. Evaluate how much money you are spending on items such as soda, cookies, crackers, prepackaged meals and processed foods. Limit or completely cut out these unhealthy foods.
  • Eat out less. By reducing the meals you eat out by 1 or 2 times per week, you can save around $15 – $25 per week. This is an easy way to save money and have some extra to spend on higher quality foods.
  • Stick to your grocery list. The more prepared you are when you get to the grocery store, the less impulse purchases you will make. Write out a list and stick to it!
  • Shop the perimeter of the store before the aisles. This way you will fill your cart with healthy foods like fresh fruits, vegetables and meats. This leaves less room for “junk food.”

Friday, April 11: Be the Healthiest Nation in One Generation

To help keep our community healthy, Cobb & Douglas Public Health is focusing on preventing the spread of diseases, and helping communities, businesses and residents adopt healthy lifestyles. CDPH also links residents to needed community services and helps support an extensive network of partners, including Cobb 2020, Live Healthy Douglas and Safe Kids.

Cobb & Douglas Public Health encourages Cobb and Douglas County residents to support its mission to create healthier lives and a healthier community. Together, we can help make this mission a reality.