-
An
estimated nine out of 10 parents think their child is
fit when only one of three actually is. (Source:
Project Diabetes)
-
90% of
adults surveyed stated that most Americans are indeed
overweight, yet only 40% identified themselves as being
overweight. This is far less than the 65% that are
now classified as overweight or obese. (Source:
Pew Research Center)
-
Tennessee
has been recognized as a state with epidemic proportions
of childhood obesity, one of the highest rates in
pediatric obesity and childhood type II diabetes, and
one of the highest rates of heart disease in the nation.
(Source: “Weighing the Costs of Obesity in
Tennessee,” State of Tennessee Comptroller of the
Treasury)
-
The
toll for that extra weight includes an increase in risk
for heart disease because of high blood pressure and
high cholesterol; obstructive sleep apnea, which can
affect learning and quality of life; a high risk for
type 2 diabetes; and a shortened lifespan. Psychological
problems include poor self-esteem, depression, eating
disorders and social discrimination. (Source:
healthy-kids.org)
-
Tennessee is ranked 48th in the country in overall
health status and Tennessee’s children are
increasingly at risk due to poor physical fitness and
diets. (Source: GetFitTN web site)
-
Schools
that offer intense physical activity programs have shown
positive effects on student academic achievement.
(Source: Symons, CW, 1997)
-
Better
social, emotional and decision making skills are
associated with higher test scores and higher
grades. (Source: Fleming CB, et. Al, 2005)
-
Schools
that offer free, high-quality breakfast programs show
student increases in academic achievement, class
participation, and daily attendance. (Source:
Powell, CA, 1998)
-
Being
overweight/obese are associated with poorer academic
achievement. (Source: Taras H, Potts-Datema W,
2005)
-
43 % of
all Tennessee students are at risk for overweight
or overweight (obese) (Source: CSH pilot site data)
-
Nearly
two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese,
compared to less than half 20 years ago. Americans spend
more than $40 billion each year on diet books and
products in an effort to become trimmer and healthier.
(Source: FoodFit.com)
-
Estimated that 27 percent of the real per capita growth
in healthcare spending from 1987 to 2001 is attributable
to increasing rates of obesity and increasing relative
spending by those who are obese. (Source: Health
Affairs Report, October, 2006)
-
62.3
percent of Tennesseans are overweight or obese.
In 2004, Tennessee ranked fifth in the U.S. for the
highest rate of obese adults with direct medical costs
related to obesity topping $1.8 billion in 2003.
(Source: “Weighing the Costs of Obesity in Tennessee,”
State of Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury)
-
Adult
obesity rates have doubled from roughly 15 percent of
Americans in the late 1970s to approximately 30 percent
today. The increase among children and youth over the
past 25 years is even more pronounced, doubling for
children and tripling for adolescents. (Source:
United States Department of Health & Human Services)
-
32% of
adults and 17% of adolescents are considered obese.
(Source: Journal of American Medial Association)
This depicts a risk for all children; even those at a
healthy weight during adolescence who can still develop
health issues related to weight as they become adults.
-
Overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of
becoming overweight or obese adults. Even with extremely
overweight children, weight loss should be gradual.
Weight control must be considered a lifelong effort and
any weight management program for children should be
supervised by a physician. (Source: United States
Department of Health & Human Services)
-
Scientists estimate that 12,000,000 Americans have food
allergies (Source: Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network)
which includes 2 million school-aged children. One
in 20 under 3 years of age has a food allergy.
(Source: Newswise – Washington University of St. Louis)
These allergies can be lethal.
-
Asthma
affects 17 million adults and is the #1 chronic disorder
among children affecting 5.1 million school-aged
children or one out of every 10 (Source: Center for
Disease Control and factsaboutasthma.com)
-
In the
United States, 18.2 million people have diabetes with
type 2 diabetes becoming more common in adolescents and
youth. (Source: Center for Disease Control)
-
The
average child gets less than 15 minutes of vigorous
activity a day and 43 percent of adolescents watch two
or more hours of television per day. (Source: United
States Department of Health & Human Services)
-
Only
62% of Tennessee’s high school students
participated in vigorous physical activity 3 or more
days per week for 20 minutes or more per occasion.
(Source: 2005 YRBS survey)
-
41.4%
of Tennessee high school students reported
watching TV for at least three hours or more a day on an
average school day compared to 37% nationally
(Source: 2005 TN YRBS survey)
-
Every
year 14,600 Tennessee youth under age 18 become
daily smokers. (Source: National Center for
Tobacco-Free Kids)
-
25% of
all Tennessee high school students reported
having experienced binge drinking (Source: 2005 TN
YRBS survey)
-
25% of
all Tennessee high school students reported they
had ridden with a driver who had been drinking alcohol
in the last 30 days. (Source: 2005 TN YRBS
survey)
-
Every
42 per 100,000 Tennessee youth ages 15-24 die in
motor vehicle accidents each year. (Source: TN
Department of Health, Office of Health Statistics)
-
8% of
all Tennessee high school students reported
carrying a weapon onto school property in the past 30
days. (Source: 2005 TN YRBS survey)
