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State of childhood obesity

ND youth obesity rate holds steady

The childhood obesity rate has been holding steady in North Dakota but continues to affect about 8,500 young people ages 10 to 17, according to new data released Thursday.

The obesity rate in North Dakota for this age group, 13.4 percent, ranks as the 33rd highest in the nation. The statistics come from the 2017 and 2018 National Survey of Children’s Health, along with analysis conducted by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Nationwide, 4.8 million young people ages 10 to 17, or 15.3 percent, have obesity.

Information from the national survey is included in “State of Childhood Obesity: Helping All Children Grow up Healthy,” a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Older data in the report show a 14.4% obesity rate in 2014 among 2- to 4-year-olds in the Women, Infants and Children assistance program in North Dakota and 14.9% in 2017 among high school students.

Obesity can put young people at greater risk for several diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancer. In a news release, the foundation cited research showing the importance of obesity prevention efforts early in life. One study found that 5-year-olds who were overweight were four times as likely as healthy weight children to have obesity by age 14.

The foundation credited North Dakota for establishing state policies for early childhood education and schools that serve to prevent obesity, including encouraging breastfeeding, making drinking water available to children, healthy eating guidelines and physical exercise.

Other areas where North Dakota lacks state policies but where some communities might be engaged include such activities as community access to school recreation facilities outside of school hours; recess in schools; foods from area farms served in schools; local funding to support rural groceries; and inclusion of sidewalks and bike trails in transportation planning.

The foundation, which has committed more than $1 billion over the years to children’s health, offered several national policy recommendations, including:

– The U.S. Department of Agriculture should rescind proposed changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps, to avoid having millions of participants lose benefits.

– The USDA should maintain nutrition standards for school meals that were in effect before December 2018.

– The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention should be adequately funded to provide grants for multi-sector campaigns to address obesity.

– Cities and counties should have flexibility to regulate, tax or enact strong legislation related to children’s health and healthy communities.

In a news release, the foundation highlighted significant national policy shifts in the past several years that have helped curb obesity rates among some children. More than 30 million children eat healthier school breakfasts, lunches and snacks as a result of the updated nutrition standards in the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. The obesity rate among children participating in WIC declined from 15.9 percent in 2010 to 13.9 percent in 2016. Researchers from the CDC cited recent healthy updates to the WIC food package, the foods and beverages participating families can purchase, as one possible driver of the decline in rates, according to the foundation.

Separately, the foundation’s report also noted North Dakota has the eighth highest adult obesity rate in the nation at 35.1% in 2018, up from 20.5% in 2000 and 11.6% in 1990. According to the most recent data, adult obesity rates are at least 35% in nine states, top 30% in 31 states and 25% in 48 states.

Among North Dakotans ages 18 to 25, the obesity rate is 21.1%. It rises to 38% for ages 26 to 44; 39.4% for ages 45 to 64 and 34.3% for ages 65 and older. Men are are slightly more likely than women to be obese, 36% to 34.2%.

Obesity increases the rate of chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, which occurs in 9.6% of the North Dakota’s adult population, and hypertension, affecting 29.5% of North Dakotans.

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