Obesity is on the rise in every state, according to researchers. Over 40% of adults in the U.S. are categorized as obese, as well as nearly 20% of children under the age of 19.
Trust for America's Health released its annual report tracking obesity rates. Rhea Farberman, the director of strategic communications and policy research for the group, told KMOX that the study is critical to understanding health.
"We also are spending about $170 billion a year on health care that's related to obesity. We're spending a tiny fraction of that on preventing obesity," she said. "If we flip that equation and begin to invest in obesity prevention programs, not only can Americans be healthier, but we can spend less money on health care."
She said the issue spans the entire country, and that the issue often comes from systemic barriers to healthy eating.
"It's more than individual behavior. It's more than the behaviors and habits in a single community," she said. "We see this phenomenon across the country. So there are systemic barriers to healthy eating, and one serious barrier is poverty and food insecurity."
She explained that food-insecure people have to make choices in grocery stores that are less expensive, which often have lower nutritional value.
Farberman said that obesity is based on Body Mass Index, or BMI, though she said it's an imperfect measure and not very accurate on an individual level.
"Certainly healthcare decisions shouldn't be made on BMI, but it's a general as a rule of thumb, it's a way for us to track the obesity crisis in the country," she said. Many researchers have discredited the BMI, some pointing out that the creator was a mathematician, not a doctor or physician, and that it doesn't account for things like bone and muscle proportions.
Hear the full interview with Rhea Farberman on obesity rates in the U.S.:
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