Many of our greatest health issues are preventable

An estimated $98 billion is spent in CA each year to treat common chronic diseases.  Four of these — cancer, heart disease and stroke, diabetes, and lung diseases such as asthma — are are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States and are largely caused by three behaviors (poor diet, physical inactivity, and tobacco use) that we can change. That's where our work comes in. 

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What Matters for health

A variety of factors affect how well and how long we live.  We take a life course approach when exploring the health needs of SLO County residents. A life course approach considers one’s experiences throughout the lifespan and takes into account factors such as housing, income, access to healthy food, and other neighborhood characteristics that play a critical role in a person's opportunity to be healthy.