NU 629 Week 5 Discussion 1 Obesity – An American Epidemic

Sample Answer

Obesity is a rising epidemic in the United States, leading to significant health complications like hypertension, diabetes, stroke, and cancers. Overweight and obesity are often have detrimental effects on physical and psychological health (Gray et al., 2018).

The picture used for this post illustrates that obesity is a global threat, just like global warming and bird flu, but it far outweighs the two. This picture, in many aspects, demonstrates the epidemic proportion of obesity.

In Massachusetts, where I reside, more than 50 % of adults and 1 in 4 middle and high school students are obese or overweight; less than half of adults and children are not eating the recommended five or more servings of vegetables and fruits (Commonwealth of Massachusetts, n.d.). 83,000 residents between the ages of 4 and 17 were recorded as obese, giving Massachusetts a ranking of 25 out of 51 for this age group among all states.

However, from the year 2000 to 2014, the obesity rate between 2- to 4-year-old reduced from 17.1% to 16.6%, ranking 6/51. The same decline has been reported in teenagers (Commonwealth of Massachusetts, n.d.).
Health disparities contribute to health inequity, and as soon as some of the disparities are reduced, health equity can be achieved.

Various health disparities impact the obesity rates in the country and the state of Massachusetts in particular. One of these health disparities is racial disparity. African American children gain a more rapid weight when they are younger compared to white children.

According to Byrd et al. (2018), one of the groups at significant risk is African Americans, especially women who have a higher prevalence than men. Another health disparity that has led to community-related obesity is income and/or wealth status. Individuals from low-income households have a higher risk of obesity than those from medium to high-income households.

Obesity is a global health threat that remains a priority even during the global pandemic that is the novel COVID-19 virus. In fact, obesity is listed as one of the primary health risks related to severe complications of Covid-19. Obesity disproportionally affects low-income racial-ethnic minorities at a higher rate than any other group.

As Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, we should strive to optimize behavioral and lifestyle interventions, pharmacologic therapy, nutrition, and access to care to include bariatric surgery if needed to benefit the affected population and decrease the prevalence of obesity.

References

• Byrd, A. S., Toth, A., & Stanford, F. (2018). Racial Disparities in Obesity Treatment. Current Obesity Reports, 7(2), 130-138.
  Gray, L. A., Hernandez Alava, M., Kelly, M. P., & Campbell, M. J. (2018). Family lifestyle dynamics and childhood obesity evidence from the millennium cohort study. BMC Public Health, 18(1). https //doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-5398-5
  
• Massachusetts Obesity Statistics. (n.d.). Mass.gov. https //www.mass.gov/service-details/massachusetts-obesity-statistics