Health Promotion

The Health Promotion Unit is dedicated to work in partnership with suburban Cook County communities in promoting healthier lifestyles associated with chronic disease and sexual health by:

  • increasing awareness and education
  • developing, implementing and evaluating comprehensive public health programs
  • providing technical assistance to expand community resources

For more information about the Health Promotion Unit, call (708) 492-2079.

Community Programs

"Preparing Food for the Soul:" A nutritional soul food cooking demonstration

For generations, the African American community has prepared and indulged in “Soul Food,” or comfort food. This food however, is traditionally prepared with fatty, cholesterol rich ingredients that are linked to health risks, such as lowered life expectancy and chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

CCDPH has developed “Preparing Food for the Soul:” A nutritional soul food cooking demonstration to present healthy alternatives to traditional cooking methods and ingredients. Each participant will receive a list of recipe substitutions and heart-healthy recipe books.

Participants will be able to take part in cooking demonstrations, nutritional presentations, physical activity, interactive, educational games and food tasting. Follow-up meetings with each group will include sessions on reading food labels, how to shop for healthy foods and how to create healthy pot luck meals, where participants will use the heart-healthy cookbook to prepare a recipe for the group. After the first session, each participant is given a personal journal to record daily diet and physical activity along with blood sugar levels, cholesterol and blood pressure.

Teen Pregnancy Prevention

With so many news headlines centered on teen sexuality in today’s society, many parents simply do not know how to approach their children about the consequences of sex. Similarly, many teens are afraid to ask for guidance about relationships and how to deal with peer pressure. To find out more, click here.

Health Fairs and Presentations

To have a representative attend an upcoming community event or to schedule a presentation, please complete the appropriate request form.

Please also be advised, CCDPH observes federal holidays; staff will not be able to participate in presentations on the following Black Out Days.

Maywood Health Initiative (MIH)

The Cook County Department of Public Health’s Health Promotion Unit and the University of Illinois Extension, Cook County/North Suburban Unit have initiated the formation of the Maywood Advantage Partnership to promote healthy lifestyles and develop sustainable chronic disease prevention programming for residents of Maywood.

This initiative is seeking organizations serving and residents living in Maywood who are committed to identifying gaps in services, determining community assets and investigating the type of health programming community agencies and residents want to see implemented and expanded in Maywood.

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Health Fairs

CCDPH’s Philosophy on Community Health Fairs:

The Health Promotion Unit is committed to reducing gaps in health disparities by providing and participating in programming that matches health issues with appropriate target audiences.

The health department participates in Community Health Fairs because the agency is dedicated to supporting organizations that coordinate events to:

  • Ensure that residents of suburban Cook County receive accurate information on CCDPH programs and services and on current and emerging public health concerns.
  • Provide updated community-level data to residents.
  • Gather information from attendees to improve CCDPH programs and services.
  • Promote prevention and encourage people to seek self-care (medical home).

Coordination of CCDPH’s Participation in Community Health Fairs:

Staff of the Health Promotion Unit will be coordinating CCDPH’s participation in community health fairs throughout suburban Cook County. The CCDPH coordinator of the agency's participation in community health fairs can be contacted at (708) 492-2063.

Community Health Fair Participation Request Form:

To request that the Cook County Department of Public Health participate in your next community health fair or event, please complete the event request form and fax the completed form to the Health Promotion Unit at (708) 492-2913. Please note the following:

  • CCDPH’s participation is dependent on resources, scheduling and availability of staff. Completing the form does not guarantee the agency’s participation. Please view the following Black Out Days, in which staff will be unavailable due to federal holidays, which are observed by CCDPH.
  • CCDPH strongly encourages you to submit a completed Request Form at least 8 weeks prior to your event. Note that CCDPH receives the highest number of requests between the months of May and September.
  • Do not advertise CCDPH participation until you have received confirmation of the agency’s representation at your event from CCDPH.
  • Please thoroughly complete the Request Form, as the information assists CCDPH in determining its level of participation.
  • Refer to Eligibility Criteria on page one of the Request Form when choosing CCDPH Services on the Request Form.

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Health Promotion Unit - Presentation Descriptions

The Health Promotion Unit is pleased to provide the following one-hour presentation topics to community organizations. A six week notice is required. If you would like to request a presentation, please complete a presentation request form and fax it to the Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) Health Promotion Unit at 708.492.2913. If you are requesting more than one presentation, please complete a separate form for each request. Please remember to indicate the age range of your audience members on the presentation request form. You only have to complete one presentation request form for the Healthy Lifestyle Series (a series of 3 presentations). Any questions or concerns regarding presentations/presentation requests can be forwarded to (708) 492-2063.

Note that our participation is dependent on resources, scheduling and availability of staff. Completing a request form does not guarantee CCDPH’s participation.

  • Basic Nutrition - Addresses the control and prevention of chronic diseases by encouraging participants of all ages to adopt healthy eating habits. Participants review the new pyramid and learn how to use the “plate method” to assess appropriate food portions and proportions (e.g., amounts of vegetables vs. amount of meat).
  • Physical Activity, Get Started Today! - Provides realistic and practical strategies participants can adopt to become more physically active. Participants will learn how to safely start modifying their habits to become more successful in their efforts to achieve a more active lifestyle.
  • Healthy Lifestyle Series - Is a series of three presentations that includes the Basic Nutrition and Physical Activity, Get Started Today! (See descriptions above), along with the following presentations:
    • Nutritional Content: Provides participants a more detailed understanding of the nutrients described on food labels to allow them to make healthier food selections. This session prepares participants for the Food Labels presentation by reviewing the following: calories, fats, sodium, cholesterol, fiber, protein, and calcium.
    • Food Labels: Provides participants skills they can use to quickly assess a food product and determine its health value by glancing at the food label. The goal is for participants to routinely use food labels to make healthy food selections.
  • Sexual Health - Provides basic information about sexually transmitted diseases including HIV and contraceptives. An interactive method similar to the “Jeopardy” television program is used to engage participants of all ages in the discussion of these reproductive health issues.
  • Healthy Adolescence Series - Is a series of four presentations that includes the Changing Bodies presentation on puberty stages of males and females, the Sexual Health, theHealthy Relationships presentation on teen dating violence prevention, and the Basic Nutrition presentations described above.

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