Much work has already been done to improve this priority including healthy food access, community gardens, "walkability" and "bikeability", and community plans to improve recreation areas. Regular physical activity among children and adults reduces the risk of many health issues including chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke and obesity. Consistent exercise and the consumption of a healthy diet can lead to a host of benefits including better sleep, decreased depression risk, increased energy, happiness, health, and even a longer life. In order for us to make a dramatic difference in the way Polk County community members' look and feel, we believe it's crucial to have access to exercise and nutritional foods. 

Healthy Eating and Active Living and the related result are aligned with the following Healthy NC 2020 Focus Areas/ Objectives. 

• Physical Activity and Nutrition

How would we experience increased access to healthy foods and exercise in our community?

Polk County's desire is to increase access to healthy foods and encourage more community members to lead active lifestyles. With this desired result, community members would experience better health outcomes allowing them to enjoy life to the fullest. All community members would have access to healthy, local foods provided by farmers markets and/or community gardens.

What information led to the selection of this health issue and related result?

Every three years, our community reflects on the current status of the community's health. This is a moment for key stakeholders to join forces and evaluate what is working and what areas need improvement. In September 2018, the community spent time understanding the data and uncovering what issues were most important to tackle. After presenting a list of key issues to tackle, our partners voted on which issues were their top areas of concern. This process, often called health issue prioritization, is an opportunity for various community stakeholders to agree on which health issues we can all tackle and make the most impact on our community's health. Nearly one-fifth (19.4%) of Polk County residents state they have experienced food insecurity and only 4.3% indication they are consuming five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Only 30% of Polk County residents meet recommended physical activity guidelines (WNC Healthy Impact Community Health Survey, 2018).   

Healthy Eating and Active Living also closely aligns with the Healthy NC 2020 focus area for Physical Activity and Nutrition. With our proposed strategies, we hope to help move the needle on the objective to increase the percentage of adults meeting CDC aerobic recommendations to the 2020 target of 60.6% (Healthy NC 2020, 2019).