The prevalence of obesity in the U.S. largely leveled off over the last decade, even as some individual groups, such as boys from ages 6 to 19, saw increases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Bloomberg reports. Obesity rates in adults rose slightly to 35.7% from 30.5% between 1999 and 2010, compared with rates that nearly doubled the two previous decades. Overall, a third of the population—78 million adults and 12.5 million children—were obese in 2009- 2010. According to the story:
“The fact that prevalence rates are reaching a plateau is good news, but by no means are we at the end of the epidemic,” said David Ludwig, a pediatric endocrinologist and director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity ...
Editor’s Note: This is a 20-part series featuring new research briefs on Latino childhood obesity, nutrition, physical activity and more by the 20 grantees of Salud America! Part 5 is Dr. Alexy Arauz Boudreau. Find all briefs here. Dr. Alexy Arauz Boudreau
“A Family Approach to Addressing Lifestyle Decisions Regarding Obesity and Diabetes” In her Salud America! pilot research project, Dr. Alexy Arauz Boudreau of Massachusetts General Hospital tested the feasibility and effectiveness of a family-centered approach consisting of interactive group classes followed by six months of health coaching. The five-session group classes, known as Power-Up, are for Latino families with obese children. Health coaching is delivered by a Latina medical assistant who knows the ...
Editor’s Note: This is a 20-part series featuring new research briefs on Latino childhood obesity, nutrition, physical activity and more by the 20 grantees of Salud America! Part 4 is Dr. Harris Huberman. Find all briefs here. Dr. Harris Huberman
“Using Parenting Newsletters to Reduce Young Latino Children’s Weight” In his Salud America! pilot research project, Dr. Harris Huberman of SUNY Downstate Medical Center in New York tested a low-cost parenting intervention to reduce rates of overweight and obesity in Latino children during the first three years of life. The intervention features a series of age-paced parenting newsletters called Primeros Pasos in Spanish or Building Blocks in English (PP/BB), which are mailed monthly to families beginning at the birth of a ...
Editor’s Note: This is a 20-part series featuring new research briefs on Latino childhood obesity, nutrition, physical activity and more by the 20 grantees of Salud America! Part 3 is Dr. Cristina Barroso. Find all briefs here. Dr. Cristina Barroso
“Body Image and Childhood Obesity in Mexican-Americans” In her Salud America! pilot research project, Dr. Cristina Barroso of The University of Texas School of Public Health, Brownsville Regional Campus, examined body image perceptions across three generations of low-income Latinos in South Texas, and studied the association between body image and physical activity in the same population. For the study, families viewed sketches of body shapes and body sizes and to select images they perceive as healthy, as well as the image ...
Editor’s Note: This is a 20-part series featuring new research briefs on Latino childhood obesity, nutrition, physical activity and more by the 20 grantees of Salud America! Part 2 is Dr. Carmen Nevarez. Find all briefs here. Dr. Carmen Nevarez
“Salud Tiene Sabor: Creating Healthy Eating Environments for Latino Families” In her Salud America! pilot research project, Dr. Carmen Nevarez of the Public Health Institute evaluated the Salud Tiene Sabor program. Sabor, the first program of its kind in California, supports healthy food choices in restaurants by providing access to healthy menu items and nutrition information, including calories posted on menu boards. Seven independent restaurants have implemented the Sabor program at Mercado La Paloma, a community marketplace ...
Editor’s Note: This is a 20-part series featuring new research briefs on Latino childhood obesity, nutrition, physical activity and more by the 20 grantees of Salud America! Part 1 is Dr. Meizi He. Find all briefs here. Dr. Meizi He
"Latino Faith-Based Communities’ Perspective on Childhood Obesity" In her Salud America! pilot research project, Dr. Meizi He of the University of Texas at San Antonio conducted interviews and focus groups among church leaders and congregations to gather their insights on childhood obesity. Key preliminary findings include: Latino church leaders and members perceived a link between faith and health;
obesity-prevention efforts should be culturally sensitive; and
there are perceived financial, environmental, cultural and lifestyle ...
SaludToday Guest Blogger: Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez Obesity causes more than 15 percent of this country’s preventable deaths—more than alcohol, toxins, care accidents, gun-related deaths, drug abuse and STDs combined—and it causes a huge financial strain on the health care system. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity affects approximately 34 percent of adults and 17 percent of children in the U.S. The agency recently estimated the costs of obesity at almost $150 billion per year. The obesity statistics for young Latinos are particularly frightening. Mexican-American children ages 2 to 19 are more likely to be obese or overweight (40.8 percent) than white (31.9 percent) and African-American (30 percent) children. Among preschoolers, nearly ...
Parents of overweight Latino children are willing to make tortillas with vegetable oil instead of lard and to make other healthy food and lifestyle choices to get their kids fit, a researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas has found. The focus group findings, which appear online in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, provide important starting points for fighting the epidemic of childhood obesity in Latinos, the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in Texas and nationally. “Almost half of all Latino kids are either overweight or obese,” said Dr. Glenn Flores, senior author of the study, in a news release. “It’s an important issue in terms of our future generations. If we intervene early enough, we won’t have obese ...
Editor’s Note: This post is part of an ongoing series that will highlight the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s work in Latino communities across the country. SaludToday Guest Blog: An Interview with Jennifer Harris Young people are being exposed to a massive amount of marketing for sugary drinks, such as full-calorie sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks and fruit drinks, according to a new study from the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. The study is the most comprehensive analysis of sugary drink nutrition and marketing ever conducted. The data indicate that the companies involved target young people, especially Black and Latino youth. In an interview, Jennifer Harris, director of marketing initiatives for the Rudd Center, details exactly how beverage ...
