From Your Health Journal…..”The Your Health Journal tries to cover all areas of health, from giving health tips, causes for obesity, and health headlines. The health headline reviewed in this story is from the New York Daily News, which has an amazing online presence, with great articles. I encourage you to visit their site using the link below. This story discusses how for the first time in years, Americans are slimming down, but fortunately, not in the Hispanic community. Sadly in the US, 17% of children (about 12.5 million people) are still obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And more than a third of American adults are obese, with Hispanics trailing only African-Americans in this category. The Hispanic community is more prone to develop obesity or diabetes than a non Hispanic white individual. Even with these alarming statistics, companies are still branding fattening products that appeal to the Hispanic community, all which will continue to contribute to obesity. Changes is needed, as some community leaders what the schools to promote more physical activity, cut back on eating unhealthy, and providing more farmer markets in many areas. America’s obesity crisis adds $190 billion to the national medical bill and kills some 400,000 people every year. To end this costly suffering, public-health officials must take steps to whittle down our waistlines.”
From the article…..
Hispanics are succumbing to obesity and diabetes at alarming rates
Are Americans finally slimming down? They just might be — but if you’re Hispanic, there’s little reason to cheer, as obesity remains a stubborn problem in our community. It is a problem exacerbated by the foods we eat and the sodas we drink.
The news last week was that several cities around the country reported that obesity rates among children were declining — albeit slightly — for the first time in some 30 years. But 17% of children (about 12.5 million people) are still obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And more than a third of American adults are obese, with Hispanics trailing only African-Americans in this category.
Indeed, the numbers for Hispanics are troubling. Fully 78% of Mexican-American women are overweight or obese — compared to 60% of non-Hispanic white women.
In general, Hispanic Americans are 1.2 times more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic whites. And in 2009 to 2010, Mexican American children were nearly twice as likely to be overweight as non-Hispanic white youth.
As Dr. Roberto Madrid of United Healthcare said of a recent report card of America’s health, “We saw betterment in some measures among the Hispanic community . . . But diabetes and obesity rates take away from those betterments.”
Indeed, more than 10% of Hispanics over the age of 20 have type 2 diabetes. Compared to non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics are 50% more likely to die from the disease. Hispanics also have higher rates of kidney disease, which can be caused by diabetes.
Sugar-sweetened drinks are among the chief culprits for America’s burgeoning obesity epidemic — but that hardly matters when there’s a profit to be made.
PepsiCo recently hired a cultural branding specialist. The Colombian actress Sofia Vergara was featured in Diet Pepsi’s most recent Super Bowl commercial. And the company now sponsors extensive programming on Univision, a top Spanish-language TV station.
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