Report determines America’s “Fattest” and “Thinnest” Cities



According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than one-third of all adults in the United States. For Latinos, the situation is worse, as 42% of Latino adults are considered obese and more than 77% are considered overweight or obese. As part of National Nutrition Month, the financial site WalletHub analyzed the 100 most populated U.S. metro areas to determine the ones with the most weight-related health problems. The “holistic” approach included overweight and obesity into its findings and examined 14 key metrics, including “percentage of physically inactive adults,” and “percentage of adults eating fewer than one serving of fruits and vegetables per day,” to determine their findings. According to the research findings, the “fattest” metro ...

Read More

Heart Disease More Prevalent in Southern U.S.



A new study has determined that fewer Americans overall are dying from heart disease compared to 40 years ago. However, the trend is not consistent everywhere in the United States. Researchers have found that the nation’s leading “hotbeds” for heart disease have migrated to the southern portion of the country. According to the new federally funded research, the counties in the country were clustered in the northeast in the 1970s. Now, they are concentrated in what is considered the “deep” South, a region where the Latinos population is growing faster than anywhere else in the United States. The study has not determined the causes for the shift, only the trend. “[From] other studies we know the socioeconomic conditions of a county can affect rates of smoking and obesity, ...

Read More

Losing Weight Has Big Health Benefits for Latinos



More than 1 in 3 Americans are overweight or obese. The problem extends greatly to Latinos as well, where the obesity rate is 77%. Obesity is a huge risk factor for many diseases, including Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Most treatment guidelines recommend that people who are overweight or obese try to lose 5% to 10% of their weight to achieve significant health improvements A research team from the Washington University School of Medicine, with support from the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders, studied 40 sedentary individuals dealing with obesity. Half were told to maintain their weight and the other half were told to lose 5% of their weight. People in the weight-loss group consumed a lower ...

Read More

The Top 10 Overweight Cities in the U.S.



According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 31% of the U.S. population is defined as “obese.” This includes almost 35% of all adults. Obesity is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of over 30. A study by RentApplication.com using the data from the CDC determined the top 10 most overweight cities in the United States. The study also noted that overweight or obese people spend 42% more on healthcare each year. This amounts to $147 billion annually with childhood obesity allotting for over $14 billion. RentApplication.com compiled the report by ranking cities with populations of at least 50,000 people. In the Latino population, 42% of Latino adults are classified as obese. Latino children are also plagued by obesity, as 22.4% between the ages 2 ...

Read More

NIH Commits Funds to Prevent Diabetes in Latino Youth



Obesity and Type 2 diabetes are major public health concerns that disproportionately affect many Latino youths in America. Prediabetes has emerged as major health concern for Latinos. Few diabetes prevention programs exist that focus on such a high-risk population. To address these concerns, the National institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a team of researchers, clinicians, and community advocates a $3.1 million grant. The grant, titled “Preventing Diabetes in Latino Youth,” will be awarded over 5 years and will test the efficacy of “a culturally-grounded lifestyle intervention program for reducing diabetes risks in obese Latino adolescents with prediabetes.” “Diabetes is an ...

Read More

Salud America! Gets $1.3M to Fuel Healthy Changes that Reduce Latino Childhood Obesity



Salud America!, a national Latino childhood obesity prevention program, has received a one-year, $1.3 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop new, culturally tailored educational content that empowers people to work toward policy changes for the health of Latino children. Established in 2007, Salud America!, has recruited a national online network of 50,000 parents, school personnel, health professionals, and community leaders who support its mission: “End Latino childhood obesity by communicating good health and driving people to start and assist healthy changes in their schools and communities.” Latino children ages 2-19 are more obese/overweight (38.9%) than White (28.5%) and Black (35.2%) children, studies show. They also face barriers in access to ...

Read More

Study Finds Poverty a Strong Factor in Childhood Obesity



According to a new research report, poverty is a better predictor of childhood obesity than race. Based on information from 110,000 Massachusetts students, a statistical model found that, as children’s families income dropped their obesity rates rose. The report found that obesity rates were higher among Latino children. The researchers suspected that a lack of parks, full-service grocery stores, and recreational programs in poorer neighborhoods may lead to children in poverty to eating unhealthier foods and exercising less. “The findings reveal differences in the inequalities in the physical and social environment in which children are raised,” said Dr. Kim Eagle, the senior study author and director at the University of Michigan Frankel Cardiovascular Center. “It ...

Read More

Five Years of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act



The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) was passed in 2010 with the goal of improving child nutrition. The Act proved to be historic investment in the health of the nation’s children, especially Latinos who have been traditionally underserved by nutritional standards. One of the primary changes to come from the act was the introduction of updated school nutrition standards. Over 97% of the schools in the country report that they are meeting the updated standards. Previously the United States Drug Administration (USDA) determined that 17.4 million American households were at risk for hunger in (in a report from 2009); this included one in four Latino families. Among them, households with children were more likely than average to face very low food security among children. “The ...

Read More

One in Five Kids Has Unhealthy Cholesterol



According to a recent study, 21% of American children over the age of 5 have some form of “abnormal” blood cholesterol reading that leaves them at a greater risk for heart disease and stroke in adulthood. The study was conducted between 2011-2014 federal health data by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Overall, more than 13% of kids had unhealthy low levels of HDL, or “good,” cholesterol. The CDC also says just says over 8% had levels of other forms of cholesterol that are bad for arteries. More than 7% had unhealthily high levels of “total” cholesterol. Obesity is a main cause for these trends, according to the CDC. More than 43% of obese children surveyed reported some form of abnormal cholesterol reading. “When one looks at the data it ...

Read More