Survey: Childhood obesity may be falling in Mississippi
New government data show Mississippi children aren’t getting fatter, and may be getting skinnier.
Obesity rising in nations rich and poor, especially in kids
The global obesity problem now affects 1 in 10 people in the world, it is rising in countries rich and poor, and in many countries it is increasing faster in children than adults, according to a new study.
Miss.’s obesity rate among low-income children stable
Mississippi’s obesity rate among young children from low-income families remains stable at 14.5 percent, but officials note the rate is still too high.
Obesity still rising among US adults, women overtake men
Obesity is still rising among American adults, despite more than a decade of public-awareness campaigns and other efforts to get people to watch their weight, and women have now overtaken men in the obese category, new government research shows.
Obese at 50? Midlife weight may affect when Alzheimer’s hits
One more reason to watch the waistline: New research says people’s weight in middle age may influence not just whether they go on to develop Alzheimer’s disease, but when.
European court rules obesity can be a disability
Obesity can be a disability, the European Court of Justice ruled Thursday.
CDC: Americans’ bellies are expanding fast
The number of American men and women with big-bellied, apple-shaped figures — the most dangerous kind of obesity — has climbed at a startling rate over the past decade, according to a government study.
New cafeteria program highlights importance of CMSD staff
When Paula Baker gets to work at 6:30 a.m., she has a lot of mouths to feed.
Baker, for the past eight years, has been the cafeteria manager at Columbus High School. Everyday, she and her staff prepare 2,324 meals — two for 1,162 students.
Mississippi, W.Va. top nation in adult obesity
West Virginia and Mississippi have the highest rates of adult obesity in the nation, according to a report released Thursday.
Study: Kids’ obesity risk starts before school age
Those efforts to fight obesity in schools? Think younger. A new study finds that much of a child’s “weight fate” is set by age 5, and that nearly half of kids who became obese by the eighth grade were already overweight when they started kindergarten.
Doctors told to get serious about obesity
ATLANTA — Next time you go for a checkup, don’t be surprised if your doctor gets on your case about your weight. The medical profession
CDC: First national sign of childhood obesity drop
For many years, doctors have been wringing their hands as more and more U.S. children grew fat. Now, that may be changing, with the first evidence of a national decline in childhood obesity.
Mom’s obesity surgery may help break cycle in kids
Obese mothers tend to have kids who become obese. Now provocative research suggests weight-loss surgery may help break that unhealthy cycle in an unexpected way — by affecting how their children’s genes behave.
Poll: Obesity’s a crisis but we want our junk food
We know obesity is a health crisis, or every new year wouldn’t start with resolutions to eat better and get off the couch. But don’t try taking away our junk food.
Americans blame too much screen time and cheap fast food for fueling the nation’s fat epidemic, a poll finds, but they’re split on how much the government should do to help.
Brain image study: Fructose may spur overeating
This is your brain on sugar — for real. Scientists have used imaging tests to show for the first time that fructose, a sugar that saturates the American diet, can trigger brain changes that may lead to overeating.
Black women battle obesity with dialogue, action
African-American women have the highest obesity rate of any group of Americans. Four out of five black women have a body mass index above 25 percent, the threshold for being overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Research links childhood obesity to antibiotics
The use of antibiotics in young children might lead to a higher risk of obesity, and two new studies, one on mice and one on humans, conclude that changes of the intestinal bacteria caused by antibiotics could be responsible.
Alabama ranks 4th on new obesity list
A new study ranked Alabama as the nation’s fourth-fattest state, and health officials said Monday they have yet to see evidence that programs encouraging residents to slim down are doing much to combat poor diets and a lack of exercise at the heart of the problem.
Mississippi again ranks worst in obesity
State leaders are counseling patience as they strive to reduce the share of obese Mississippians.
Rankings released Monday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show nearly 35 percent of Mississippi adults were very fat in 2011, the worst in the nation. Mississippi also topped the list in each of the previous six years.
Student obesity rate drops in Miss.
Obesity rates are dropping among Mississippi elementary school students and leveling out overall — important milestones in keeping young people healthy, researchers said.
But obesity rates are steady or rising among black students. And, as finances continue to dwindle, schools’ efforts to reduce the problem are diminishing.