Healthy Eating and Exercise in Orthodox Jewish Families

This past fall, the Jewish Community Health Initiative (JCHi; www.JewHealth.org) conducted an online health survey to examine diet and exercise in Orthodox Jewish Families. The goal was to use the information to help design an intervention. Thanks to all of those who took the time to participate! Here is a summary of some of the key results.

We ended up with 134 respondents from Cleveland (59) and Lakewood (75) that completed their surveys and had at least 1 child under 18 living at home. About ¾ of survey participants were women. A little more than half felt they eat a healthy diet. Commonly cited barriers to eating healthy were higher cost and greater preparation time, and kids not wanting to eat healthy. A large majority of those not eating healthy wanted to learn more about making healthier snacks and meals and how to get healthier foods into the family diet. Only 16% of the Chareidi respondents exercise regularly compared to 38% for other Orthodox respondents. Time and cost were common barriers to more exercise for adults and kids. Chareidi respondents were far less confident they could keep to a healthy diet or exercise regularly.

In response, JCHi has been developing a program to help Orthodox mothers keep a healthier home. Healthy Jewish Families is an adaptation of a successful program called “We Can!”. The revised program has a schedule more amenable to the busy life of Orthodox mothers, and will build in content tailored to our community. JCHi is now seeking feedback from both professional and lay leaders in the community. After using operational funds to cover most of the development, JCHI is now looking for financial support to complete the program (including training materials for group leaders) and run pilot groups prior to dissemination to communities across the country. Donations are tax-deductible.

JCHi is a project headed by Mendel Singer PhD MPH, Associate Professor and Vice Chair for Education in the department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio. He can be contacted at:  mendel@case.edu or 216-368-1951.