Brookdale Hospital to Host “The Healing Power of Food”

Brooklyn, NY, May 14, 2016 --(PR.com)-- Brookdale Hospital and Live Light Live Right (LLLR) will host ‘The Healing Power of Food’, a one-day conference on nutrition, health and wellbeing for members of the Brownsville and East New York communities on on June 2, 2016 at Brookdale Hospital. . “The Healing Power of Food” aims to engage, connect, and share resources that will empower the community and help provide a lasting impact on health and obesity.

Bringing together Brookdale Hospital’s community partners in public administration, higher education, and local farms and recreation centers, this one-day conferenwill feature panel discussions, workshops, and cooking demonstrations with the goal of improving access to and knowledge about food, nutrition and healthy living for our community members. The day’s events will cover wide-ranging topics such as public health policy and health inequities in New York, family nutrition, and access to fresh and healthy food in East New York. The lunch session will feature vendor tables, a juice and smoothie stand, and an opportunity for participants and attendees to mingle and share their ideas on healthy living in our neighborhood.

Obesity rates in East New York mirror worrying trends nationwide, and cause a variety of health problems later in life, particularly in cases of childhood obesity. Dr. Sarita Dhuper, Founder and Executive Director of Live Light Live Right, will present Brookdale and LLLR’s community an outreach plan aimed at improving the health of our community members: “The quality of food we eat is as important as the quality of the air we breathe,” says Dr. Sarita Dhuper, Founder and Executive Director of Live Light Live Right.

Partner organizations including the Brooklyn Public Health Office, Cornell Cooperative Extension, the SUNY School of Public Health, and City will address not just the symptoms of obesity and ill-health but the causes, sharing ideas on ending food injustice and improving access to fresh and healthy produce in our neighborhoods.

You can register at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Z6RbSUfTOFYyeJ4fZ9_ROb-bqGcIujgtnIo_r710R9s/viewform?c=0&w=1 to attend “The Healing Power of Food” on June 2, 2016.

About Live Light Live Right
Live Light, Live Right (www.livelight.org) is based at Brookdale Hospital and is a community-based program serving overweight and obese children ages 2-19. By providing free or highly subsidized services, Live Light has already helped over 2,500 children improve their diet, exercise habits, and their health. The novel, multi-disciplinary approach has resulted in positive health outcomes, including the reduction of Body Mass Index scores, cholesterol, blood pressure, and insulin levels for nearly 60% of all participants.

About Brookdale Hospital
The Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (“Brookdale”) is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) medical services provider that is a critical part of the healthcare delivery system in the borough of Brooklyn, New York City (NYC). Our mission is as follows: Brookdale Hospital is committed to being the focus of a healthy community, stressing the organization’s values of caring and respect for everyone. We are located in the heart of Brownsville and are anchored by a 530-bed full-service teaching hospital, with multiple ambulatory care sites that offer healthcare services ranging from pre-natal care to elder care. Our patient volume is among the highest in Brooklyn – we receive approximately 100,000 emergency room visits and more than 275,000 outpatient visits annually. Beyond healthcare, we are a stabilizing force in the local economy and an important economic driver.