Promote healthy living behaviors for beating obesity

Ever cringe when you step on the scale?

Now, think of the entire country stepping on that scale. Imagine the Weight of the Nation.

CDC’s Obesity efforts focus on policy and environmental strategies to make healthy eating and active living accessible and affordable for everyone.

Obesity is a common, serious, and costly health problem, and CDC is working to control and prevent it.

Obesity is common. Healthy People 2020, which outlined the nation’s health goals for 2020, had set a target obesity prevalence of 30.6% for adults and 14.6% for children. However, according to the most recent NHANES data in 2009-2010, about 36% of U.S. adults ages 20 and over were obese, and about 17% of children ages 2-19 years old were obese.

Additionally, some adult populations are more affected by obesity than others. Non-Hispanic blacks are most likely to be obese (44.1%), followed by Hispanics (37.9%) and non-Hispanic whites (32.6%).

The US obesity prevalence was 42.4% in 2017 – 2018. From 1999 –2000 through 2017 –2018, US obesity prevalence increased from 30.5% to 42.4%. During the same time, the prevalence of severe obesity increased from 4.7% to 9.2%.

Obesity is serious. Research has shown that obese people are at higher risk for developing heart disease, Type II diabetes, some cancers, high blood pressure, stroke, and sleeping and breathing problems among other conditions. Some of these are the leading causes of death in the U.S.

In addition to being at risk for developing some of these same health problems, children tend to also experience social and psychological effects like discrimination and low self-esteem. Moreover, obese children are more likely to become obese adults.

Obesity is costly. Obesity and its associated health problems have a significant economic impact on the U.S. health care system. In 2008 dollars, medical care costs for obesity were about $147 billion. On average, medical spending for obese people was $1429 (42%) greater than spending for people of normal weight in 2006.

CDC is working to make the healthy choice the easy choice. Initiatives are helping to change states and communities into places that strongly support healthy eating and active living.

CDC has funded states and communities to help saves lives and protect people from the problems of obesity and other chronic diseases through efforts that support changes in the places where Americans live, learn, work and play.

From 2011 to 2014, the Community Transformation Grant (CTG) Program helped to improve the health and wellness of all Americans.

The program helped communities design and carry out local programs that prevent chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

There is no single or simple solution to the obesity epidemic. It is a complex problem and there has to be a multifaceted approach. 

 

Policymakers, state and local organizations, business and community leaders, schools, childcare, and healthcare professionals, and individuals must work together to create an environment that supports a healthy lifestyle.

When it comes to weight loss, there is no lack of fad diets promising fast results. But such diets limit your nutritional intake, can be unhealthy, and tend to fail in the long run. The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is not about short-term dietary changes. It is about a lifestyle that includes healthy eating, regular physical activity, and balancing the number of calories you consume with the number of calories your body uses.

Obesity is a common, serious, and costly chronic disease. Having obesity puts people at risk for many other serious chronic diseases and increases the risk of severe illness from COVID-19. Everyone has a role to play in turning the tide against obesity and its disproportionate impact on racial and ethnic minority groups.

Obesity Worsens Outcomes from COVID-19

Adults with excess weight are at even greater risk during the COVID-19 pandemic:

• Having obesity increases the risk of severe illness from COVID-19. People who are overweight may also be at increased risk.
• Having obesity may triple the risk of hospitalization due to a COVID-19 infection.
• Obesity is linked to impaired immune function.
• Obesity decreases lung capacity and reserve and can make ventilation more difficult.
• A study of COVID-19 cases suggests that risks of hospitalization, intensive care unit admission, invasive mechanical ventilation, and death are higher with increasing BMI.
  • The increased risk for hospitalization or death was particularly pronounced in those under age 65. 
• More than 900,000 adult COVID-19 hospitalizations occurred in the United States between the beginning of the pandemic and November 18, 2020. Models estimate that 271,800 (30.2%) of these hospitalizations were attributed to obesity.

CDC Recommended Obesity Prevention and Control Strategies

Promote the availability of affordable healthy food and beverages 
Support healthy food and beverage choices 
Encourage breastfeeding 
Encourage physical activity or limit inactivity among children and youth 
Create safe communities that support physical activity 
Encourage communities to organize for change

For a more detailed list of CDC recommended strategies visit: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/rr/rr5807.pdf

Resources are available to help address obesity in your state, community, or tribe.

To learn more, please visit:
http://www.cdc.gov/obesity
@CDCObesity
#WON12 to join the conversation
http://www.weightofthenation.org

References

1. The 2019 CDC Adult Obesity Prevalence Maps show the prevalence of self-reported adult obesity using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Data is available for 49 states (New Jersey data unavailable), the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.
2. Tanaka, S. I., Isoda, F., Ishihara, Y., Kimura, M., & Yamakawa, T. (2001). T lymphopaenia in relation to body mass index and TNF‐α in human obesity: adequate weight reduction can be corrective. Clinical endocrinology, 54(3), 347-354.
3. Alwarawrah, Y., Kiernan, K., & MacIver, N. J. (2018). Changes in nutritional status impact immune cell metabolism and function. Frontiers in immunology, 9, 1055.
4. Simonnet, A., Chetboun, M., Poissy, J., Raverdy, V., Noulette, J., Duhamel, A., … & LICORN and the Lille COVID‐19 and Obesity study group. (2020). High prevalence of obesity in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus‐2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) requiring invasive mechanical ventilation. Obesity.
5. Kompaniyets L, Goodman AB, Belay B, et al. Body Mass Index and Risk for COVID-19–Related Hospitalization, Intensive Care Unit Admission, Invasive Mechanical Ventilation, and Death — United States, March–December 2020. (2021). MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2021;70:355–361. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7010e4.