Childhood obesity numbers also continue to grow

Children ages 10 to 17 who live in West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, New Mexico and the District of Columbia now share a dubious distinction: They are the fattest in the nation, according to a new report.

Nor are most of their parents doing any better. According to the report, released this week by the nonprofit Trust For America's Health, a "fat belt" stretches through the South and is spreading into the Southwest. This despite $35 billion spent annually on diet-related products and services, a growing public awareness of the dangers of weight-related illnesses and many public health efforts to thwart the epidemic.

The report -- "F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America" -- finds that in the past year, not one state has shown a drop in obesity rates. In fact, residents of 31 states have actually gotten fatter. If this trend continues, the country is unlikely to meet the federal goal to cut adult obesity rates to 15 percent of the population by 2010.

"We are headed in the wrong direction," says Janet Collins, director of the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Mississippi, for example, nearly one in three adults is obese -- the highest state level ever reported. Other states where a quarter or more of adults are obese -- not just overweight -- include West Virginia, Alabama, Louisiana, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Indiana, Michigan and Oklahoma.

"Poor nutrition and physical inactivity are robbing America of our health and productivity," says Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust For America's Health.

Kids are at particular risk for weight-related health problems, the report concludes, noting that if current obesity rates continue, "today's children are likely to be the first generation to live shorter, less healthy lives than their parents."

The health toll is already being felt. Obesity-related hospital costs for children ages 6 to 17 more than tripled from 1979 to 1999, rising from $35 million to $127 million, according to the report, which was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Whether corrective measures are having the desired effect is unclear. For example, nine of the states with the highest numbers of overweight kids have some obesity-related standards in schools to track students' body mass index, improve the nutrition of school lunches, or limit the sale of high-calorie foods in school vending machines or snack bars. But just two of the 11 states with the leanest children -- Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Washington, Alaska, Montana, Vermont, Nebraska and Rhode Island -- have such policies in place.

Does that mean that these steps may not work?

"We're dealing with the chicken-and-egg question," says Jeffrey Koplan, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who reviewed the report. "We don't know what came first."

The report notes that while many promising efforts are being initiated across the country, there still is no national plan to thwart the growing obesity epidemic. "Is what is being done enough to turn the tide?" Collins asks. "That is one of the challenges that face us now. We need a very strong, multipronged approach."

Despite the failure to make an impact on obesity, there are some bright spots. The report highlights several communities where small, simple changes are having an impact.

In Somerville, Mass., a town of 78,000 outside of Boston, a "Shape Up" program added crossing guards and then school officials distributed maps to parents that illustrated the corners where those guards would be stationed. That boosted by 5 percent the number of kids who walked to school.

Nationally, efforts also are being made to increase physical activity. In 2001, the National Recreation and Park Association teamed with the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute to launch "Hearts 'N Parks," a campaign designed to increase activity in 56 communities in 10 states with high rates of cardiovascular disease. The program has since evolved into "Step Up to Health" in more than 700 communities.

"Interventions are important to put in place," says Koplan, who directs the Global Health Institute at Emory University in Atlanta. "But none of this is going to turn around (the obesity epidemic) in a year or two, or three, and maybe not even in five. We have got to be in this for the long haul."

Join Sally Squires online from 10 to 11 a.m. Tuesdays at www.leanplateclub.com, where you also can subscribe to the free Lean Plate Club weekly e-mail newsletter.