C229 Community Health Essay

An estimated 97 million adults in the United States are overweight or obese (Klein 2000). “"Affecting one in five Americans – or more than 22 percent of the U.S. population – obesity is one of the most pervasive health problems in our nation right now," said George L. Blackburn, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of surgery and associate director of the Division of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. "We need to implement steps to slow the progression of this national epidemic” (NAASO 1999). But the problem of obesity does not only affect the United States. "We now know that the growing prevalence of obesity is creating major health problems worldwide," said Dr. James O. Hill, president of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity (NAASO) and Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Obesity was once regarded as unique to Americans, but it is now seen as a global health risk affecting developing and underdeveloped countries (AOA 2000). Obesity is increasing at an epidemic rate in the United States - 1.3% a year for women over 20. Rates of obesity among minority populations, including African-Americans and Hispanic Americans are especially high (AOA 2000). There is also a marked increase in obesity among children.

Obesity is defined as a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduce life expectancy and/or increased health problems. “The problem of obesity is increasing in the United States. Understanding the impact of social inequalities on health has become a public health priority in the new millennium. Social, political, and economic factors now are acknowledged to be "fundamental" causes of disease that affect behavior, beliefs, and biology.” (Goodman, 2003)  In the United States today, obesity has become an enormous problem. In the last 3 decades, the number of people overweight has increased dramatically. Obesity has not always been seen as a medical

During the past 20 years, there has been a substantial increase in obesity in the United States and rates remain high. More than one-third of U.S.

Over 60 million people are obese in the world today. The socioeconomic statuses of the Americans play a major part in the obesity rates across the country. People with higher incomes are less likely to be obese than people with lower incomes. One in every seven preschool-aged children living in lower income areas are obese (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). A 2008 study showed that obesity is highest among American Indian and Alaska Native (21.2 percent) and Hispanic Americans (18.5 percent) children, and it is lowest

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported since 1960 adult obesity has tripled and since 1970 childhood obesity rates have also tripled (May, Freedman, Sherry & Blanck, 2013). However, in comparison with national averages, obesity rates amongst minorities remains exceedingly high. Currently, 38 percent of adults in America are obese (Segal, Rayburn & Martin, 2016). Meanwhile, 48.4 percent of Blacks are obese, 42.6 percent of Latinos are Obese and 36.4 percent of Whites are obese. Furthermore, childhood obesity rates for American children is 17 percent. Examination of the data reveals 21.9 percent of Latino children are obese, 19.5 percent of Black children are obese and 14.7 percent of Whites are obese (Segal, Rayburn & Martin, 2016). These gaps are significant and represent a major health disparity. Health disparities are the quantifiable variances in health outcomes amongst groups of people. Obesity

Obesity is becoming an increasingly significant health concern in the United States, nearly to the point of epidemic proportions. To be considered obese, one’s body weight must be at least 20% over their ideal body weight; unfortunately with this definition, over 30% of all Americans are obese. Alarmingly, approximately

The trends of adult overweight and obesity are also going up rapidly in the United States which makes it a major concern for public health agencies. Adults obesity rates in the state of New York have been increased from 9.3% in 1990 to 25% in 2015. NYC department of health reports show that more than 50% of New Yorkers are overweight or obese which makes obesity as an epidemic problem. In Flatlands and Canarsie, obesity rates are higher than the citywide rates which makes it a serious problem in those districts. This paper will focus on exploring the problem of high obesity rates in Flatlands and Canarsie and what reasons and evidence that prove that obesity is a public health issue in these neighborhoods as well as what some factors that might have led to this

Obesity is an increasing epidemic affecting the United States in an alarming and negative way. In the past centuries it was rare for Americans to be obese. Today they’re numerous factors contributing to the epidemic but they can be reversed with awareness of the severity of the issue, it’s affect on health, and a willingness to make changes in their daily life.

Consequently, the result of this negative trend caused obesity to be the second leading cause of preventable deaths with 18% of American adults dying each year (CDC, 2016). According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases “more than one-third (35.7%) of adults are considered obese. More than 1 in 20 (6.3%) have extreme obesity” (NIDDK, 2012).

Obesity has become increasingly more prominent in American society. The Unites States has even been termed an overweight nation. Some twenty to thirty percent of American adults are now considered obese (Hwang 1999 and Hirsch et al 1997). With this in mind, Americans constantly look around themselves determining their weight status as well as that of those around them. While some Americans do fit the healthy category, others enter the underweight, overweight, and even obese categories, all of which can be unhealthy.

Throughout years the obesity rates have increased. Over the past 35 years, obesity rates have more than doubled. More than a one-third of adults (34.9%) were obese as of 2011 to 2012. More than two-thirds of adults (68.6%) are overweight or obese now. If the rates have more than doubled now, then they will continue to raise until people make better decisions to not eat high calorie foods and exercise. Obesity rates are highest among Black adults (47.8%), followed by Latino (42.5%) and White adults (32.6%), and lowest among Asian American adults (10.8%)..

Obesity has been and still remains a big struggle among many Americans, including children and teens, in today’s society. That being said, American obesity can also be subdivided by ethnicity and region. According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “non-Hispanic blacks have the highest age-adjusted rates of obesity (47.8%) followed by Hispanics (42.5%), non-Hispanics whites (32.6%), and non-Hispanic Asians (10.8%)” (“Adult Obesity Facts”, 2014). The CDC also states that “obesity is higher among middle age adults, 40-59 years old (39.5%) than among younger adults, age 20-39 (30.3%) or adults over 60 (35.4%)” (“Adult Obesity Facts”, 2014). The CDC shows this through various self-reported obesity prevalence maps (Figure 1).

In America, obesity is found in relatively every community. Several factors contribute to this problem, three of them are dietary options, genetics, and inactive lifestyles. According to the National Center for Health Statistic, since the 1970’s the rate of obesity has doubled in children and adults. Unfortunately this public health problem, in America, is ongoing.

There is a growing epidemic of obesity in the United States. Obesity is a health condition of an individual significantly above his or her ideal healthy weight. People with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher are considered obese (ANA, 2014). Dietary patterns, physical activity and inactivity are contributing factors to obesity. According to the (CDC) obesity results in type II diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, various cancers and other health problems. Obesity is reported to be one of the leading preventable causes of mortality in our nation, more than one-third (36.5%) adults have obesity, nearly one in three (31.8%) U.S children (23.9 million) ages 2-19 are overweight or obese (CDC, 2017). We are faced with many challenges when it comes to adequately responding to this issue. Although this issue is alarmingly high in all socioeconomic groups, some groups are affected more than others (Ogden, Carroll, Kit, & Flegal, 2012). Economic status is based of income, education and occupation, this usually reflects the communities we live in. Lower income families are usually impacted the most when it comes to obesity due to the lack of

Obesity rates in the United States are alarming, with more than one-third of U.S. adults and 17% of children qualifying as obese with a Body Mass Index greater than 30.0 (Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 2015). Even more frightening is the growth rate of this crippling health epidemic; between 1980 and 2014, obesity has doubled for adults and tripled for children (CDC, 2015). The physical consequences of rising obesity rates in our country include an abundance of physical ailments including type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, arthritis, elevated cholesterol, and even some cancers. Additionally, obesity-related health care costs to our country are estimated at $147 billion annually, plus the costs of productivity lost at