Obesity
The Trust for America’s Health and the Healthy Schools Campaign have released Health In Mind, which details immediate solutions that can help close the achievement gap and create a healthy future for all children. A copy of the news release is also available. The project was supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
New Study funded by the American Heart Association finds we all have to work together to help obese children lose weight and get in shape. The study, "Evaluating Parents and Adult Caregivers as 'Agents of Change' for Treating Obese Children: Evidence for Parent Behavior Change Strategies and Research Gaps," surveyed pediatricians didn't believe the knew how to address family behavior changes to manage childhood obesity. Read more.
CDC Official Website
Centers for Disease Control maintains a well-developed web site that focuses on obesity across America. This site has lots of data and resources for addressing obesity. Read More.
Obesity Trends Among U.S. Adults between 1985 and 2009
Source of the data:
The data shown in these maps were collected through CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Each year, state health departments use standard procedures to collect data through a series of monthly telephone interviews with U.S. adults.
Prevalence estimates generated for the maps may vary slightly from those generated for the states by BRFSS as slightly different analytic methods are used.
In 1990, among states participating in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 10 states had a prevalence of obesity less than 10% and no states had prevalence equal to or greater than 15%.
By 1998, no state had prevalence less than 10%, seven states had a prevalence of obesity between 20-24%, and no state had prevalence equal to or greater than 25%.
In 2009, 33 states had a prevalence of obesity equal to or greater than 25 percent; nine of these states had a prevalence equal to or greater than 30 percent. California’s rate was 24.8 percent. Only Colorado and the District of Columbia had a prevalence less than 20 percent.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity web site has an overview of the childhood obesity crisis with information on the scope of the problem, the consequences, and more. Read more.
F as in Fat 2011, How Obesity Threatens America’s Future
The eighth annual edition of the F as in Fat report is now available. This 2011 report tracks trends in obesity rates and policies aimed at addressing the epidemic. The report also features commentaries from top experts who offer their perspectives on key strategies for addressing obesity. Read More.
Child Obesity Study by University of California, San Francisco.
A study by UCSF of adolescent BMI’s show emerging racial gaps in child obesity, suggesting that public health programs created to fight obesity need to become more widespread. Read More.
Diabetes & Obesity Study by University of California, Los Angeles.
A new study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research concludes that the prevalence of both diabetes and obesity has grown significantly between 2001 and 2007 in California. Read More.
CA Department of Public Health releases updated California Obesity Prevention Plan (2010).
Afterschool is included in Objective 8, under Schools. Plan places greater emphasis on environmental and policy changes. Read More.
Centers for Disease Control
Center for Disease Control (CDC) releases broad summary of implications of the obesity crisis, challenges in addressing it and strategies that work. Read more.
The Cost of Obesity to U.S. Cities
Afterschool programs seeking partnerships with cities should know the costs to cities of obesity. Learn how to calculate the cost in your city. Read more.
The Institute of Medicine has a new report titled, “Hunger and Obesity: Understanding a Food Insecurity Paradigm”.
Researchers have long observed food insecurity— difficulty providing food for all one’s family members, known as hunger in its most severe form —and obesity occurring together in the same communities, families, and individuals. But the relationship of these two problems is not well-understood. The IOM held a workshop November 16-18, 2010, to explore the relationship between food insecurity and obesity, the current state of the research, and the data and analyses needed to better understand their relationship. Read More.
Four new Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-supported studies provide important insights about policies and practices that may influence dietary choices for children and families—at home, at school and in the community. The latest findings zero in on food marketing practices and industry self-regulation; New York City’s menu-labeling requirement for chain restaurants; and a ban on sugar-sweetened beverages in Boston schools. Read the studies:
- U.S. Businesses Show Mixed Progress on Marketing a Healthy Diet to Children and Adolescents
- Self-Regulation by Food and Beverage Industry Does Little to Reduce Kids’ Exposure to Unhealthy TV Ads
- Customers Who Use Menu-Labeling Information Order Fewer Calories
- Boston High School Students Drinking Fewer Sugary Beverages
New Tool Summarizing Obesity Research
The RAND Corporation has released a new research brief that summarizes a series of studies that examine the causes of obesity and its economic and health consequences, as well as the potential benefits of prevention and the relative effectiveness of various prevention strategies. Highlights from the brief include: community and school-based prevention programs are among the most cost-effective for increasing physical activity; residential neighborhood environments with enhanced access to healthy foods and greater opportunities for physical activity are associated with lower obesity rates; nutritional quality improvement of school meals may help curb childhood obesity, but not if food outlets surrounding schools make unhealthy food easy to get; and discretionary calories might be cut by substantially raising the price of junk food and soda.
A new study indicates that California’s childhood overweight and obesity rate actually dropped between 2005 and 2010. While this is good news, there’s no time to let up on efforts to get kids eating healthier and being more active. Access to healthy foods is also important. Environmental changes which support healthy eating and physical activity are critical. Read more.
