Childhood Obesity and Food Insecurity: A Public Health Paradox

Document Type

Presentation

Abstract

We are in the midst of an obesity epidemic in our country, and recent news and publications indicate the issue is not improving. One third of American children are obese or overweight, putting them at risk for a myriad of short-term and long-term health problems. News outlets continually report on the epidemic, sharing information about unhealthy foods, the dangers of screen time, and how advertising causes youth to overeat. While these factors contribute to the rise in obesity, food insecurity and its role in the obesity crisis is not well publicized. Youth who live in food insecure households, meaning that their families lack consistent access to healthy foods, are more likely to be obese. Public Health refers to this as the food insecurity-obesity paradox. Low-income, minority youth are at increased risk for both food insecurity and obesity. Nutrition education programs are a promising strategy for improving nutrition intake of youth, but few programs consider the unique barriers of food insecure youth. The pilot project Healthy Access Plus Information (HAPI) is a comprehensive nutrition education program, tailored to address the barriers associated with healthy eating among youth in St. Louis, Missouri, who are at risk for food insecurity and obesity.

Publication Date

11-27-2018

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