U.S. obesity rates continue to rise

Two new reports reveal that obesity rates did not decrease in any state in the past year.

Americans are more obese than ever — two-thirds are either obese or overweight, according to the F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America 2009 report released by Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The report also provided evidence that the obesity epidemic among children contiues to grow — the percentage of obese or overweight children is 30% or higher in 30 states.

“Our health care costs have grown along with our waist lines,” said Jeff Levi, PhD, executive director of Trust for America’s Health. “The obesity epidemic is a big contributor to the skyrocketing health care costs in the United States.”

The statistics are in stark contrast to those in past decades. In 1980, the national average for adult obesity was 15%. In 1991, the obesity rate was below 20% in all states.

Adult obesity rates now exceed 25% in 31 states and 20% in 49 states and Washington, D.C. Eight of the 10 states with the highest percentage of obese adults are in the South, including Alabama (31.2%), West Virginia (31.1%) and Tennessee (30.2%). Colorado continued to have the lowest percentage of obese adults (18.9%).

Mississippi had the highest rate of obese adults (32.5%) and obese and overweight children aged 10 to 14 (44.4%). This is the fifth year that Mississippi topped the list.

According to the report, childhood obesity rates have more than tripled since 1980. Rates of child obesity were also higher in the South and the lowest in Minnesota and Utah (32.1%).

The current economic crisis could exacerbate the obesity epidemic, the report suggested. Food prices for nutritious options are expected to increase, which could make it more difficult for families to eat healthy. In addition, safety-net programs and services are becoming increasingly overextended as the numbers of unemployed and uninsured Americans continue to grow.

CDC obesity report

Today, the CDC released 2008 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System phone-based survey of more than 400,000 U.S. adults indicating similar results to the aforementioned report.

From 2007 to 2008, the proportion of obese adults in the United States increased from 25.6% to 26.1%. Thirty-two states had obesity prevalence of 25% or more and six states — Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia — had a prevalence of 30% or more. Again, the state with the lowest prevalence was Colorado and no state showed a significant decrease in obesity prevalence from 2007 to 2008.

The latest CDC obesity data indicate that none of the 50 states achieved the Healthy People 2010 goal of reducing obesity prevalence to 15% or less.

Good news

The Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation report also reflected positive changes in nutrition and counseling.

Nineteen states now have nutritional standards for school meals and snacks that are stricter than current USDA requirements. Five years ago, only four states had legislation requiring stricter standards.
Twenty-seven states have nutritional standards for foods sold in vending machines and school stores. This number is up from just six states five years ago.
Twenty states have passed requirements for BMI screening for children and adolescents and/or passed legislation requiring other forms of weight-related assessment in schools. Only four states passed screening requirements five years ago.

The report included several recommendations for addressing obesity through health reform and national strategies, such as ensuring that all adults and children have access to preventive medical service coverage, including obesity counseling and screening for obesity-related diseases and increasing the number of programs available in communities, schools and childcare settings that help make nutritious foods more affordable and accessible.