Would you drop your children 800m from school to make them walk?

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center geriatrician Dr. John Batsis has obtained a $796,500 grant to develop a home-based system of helping obese seniors lose weight, build muscle, and improve their strength using technology, video conferencing and personal coaching.

Societal and environmental changes over the years have impacted the likelihood of women being diagnosed with breast cancer, but preventative measures may help mitigate that. From risk-reducing medications for those who are at higher-risk due to family history to a focus on prioritizing exercise, there are a number of measures that are showing promise at reducing the diagnosis.

California's version of Medicaid, called Medi-Cal, has launched a pilot that provides strict nutrition guidelines for individuals with a chronic illness, as a way to help keep them from having to visit the hospital. For many patients, a change in diet can help with inflammation and reduce painful or uncomfortable symptoms of their diseases. A study of the pilot program showed drastic decreases in medical costs for these patients, as well as in inpatient and emergency room visits.

After gaining attention in 2008 for having an obesity crisis, the city of Huntington, West Virginia started making slow and steady changes that have culminated into positive changes in the community's overall health. From a food market that gives back to the farmers and artisans that contribute to it to school cafeteria reform, the city has seen their obesity rate decrease and has shifted to a collective healthier mindset overall.

California marks the first state in the United States to join the ranks of other countries such as Mexico that saw a significant decline in soda sales and increase in water sales after enacting a sugar tax. Critics of the tax have voiced concerns about the policy's impact on small business owners and infringement on consumer choice, but lawmakers are still moving forward with expanding the tax statewide.

Two innovative solutions in Great Britain in education are proving to be highly successful in improving students' performances in math and reading. A school in Edinburgh uses the Daily Mile (spending 15 minutes a day running 6 laps around the school at each student's own pace) as a tool to get students physically fit and intellectually engaged. In Bradford, England, a failing school centered musical education (with a minimum of 3 hours a week in music class) as part of an overhaul of their curriculum, which has been successful in fulfilling students spiritually and strengthening key skills to use elsewhere.

The First 1000 Days program in Amsterdam aims to cut childhood obesity down to 0% by 2033. Facets of this program include extensive visits to mothers by nurses, organization of healthy community activities, and specifically targeting at-risk mothers and babies and offering them extensive support. This extensive support can include personalized nutritional programs and physiotherapy for the mother and education about good nutrition and sleep patterns for their baby.

Slightly more than eighteen percent of the Dutch population is sixty-five or older and with this aging demographic comes new challenges. To combat the very serious risks that living alone and aging poses to seniors, the Netherlands has seen the rise of a new class: one that teaches elderly people how to fall.

Japan is a rapidly aging country. To help combat present and future ramifications it has implemented "Smart Wellness City Comprehensive Special Zones to Achieve Health and Longevity" to encourage and reward healthy living. So far it has resulted in citizens leading more active lives, BMI decreases for those who had a BMI of over 25, and lower medical costs.

Since the 1970s, obesity rates in Brazil have been increasing proportionally with the amount of "ultra-processed" foods being consumed. Foregoing healthy, locally produced food has not only resulted in a health epidemic, but has also contributed to a deteriorating economy, strains on the environment, and decaying of culture. Brazil's new food guide and school lunch programme are both founded on the premise of taking a holistic approach to eating, going beyond calorie count to address the environmental, cultural and social elements to food consumption.