Posted on 09/14/2012 7:39:18 PM PDT by La Lydia
City slickers are slimmer than their country counterparts, according to a new study that suggests rural obesity is a bigger problem than we realized. A national study in the Journal of Rural Health of over 8,800 Americans showed that country folks were nearly one-fifth more likely to be obese compared to those living in cities. In other words, the findings suggest, where you live is important in obesity.
"The rates of obesity were much higher than previously reported based on self-report, with 39 percent of rural Americans being obese compared to 33 percent of urban Americans," said study lead author Christie Befort, an assistant professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan.
Past studies have asked people about their weight, but researchers in this study were more precise. They carefully collected their data on obesity through a national database based on adults who stepped on a scale and had their height measured. "We know people tend to overestimate how tall they are and underestimate how much they weigh," said Befort. The authors were astounded to discover that the rates of obesity in rural populations were nearly double compared to prior studies based on self-reported estimates.
So who is obese in rural America? Apparently, the problem is greatest among young people.
"The differences between rural and urban were most pronounced for younger adults between the ages of 20 and 39," said Befort. The researchers suspect that the increasing mechanization of rural jobs may be the cause. "The diet hasn't necessarily changed at the same time the manual labor requirements have gone down."...
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
You misunderstood the last commenter in your post. He/she was making a distinction between types of rural folk. There are rural townsfolk, and farm folk who don’t live “in town”. Maybe you have to be a ruralite (yes, I just made that one up as an analogue to urbanite) to know that in the first place.
Obesity is certainly on the rise everywhere.
Christie Befort, PhD
Assistant Professor
Focusing on research that examines strategies for improving behavioral obesity and exercise adherence, Christie collaborates with a multidisciplinary team from various departments across KU. Her background in behavioral medicine and health psychology allows great insight into the study of obesity. Recently completing the SWING Into Weight Loss study, Christie examined the benefit of motivational interviewing for improving adherence to a group-based behavioral weight loss program for African American women. Her research supported by the National Institutes of Health Loan Repayment Program, the American Cancer Society and the KUMC Research Institute has included an evaluation of the impact of affective responses to exercise, treating obesity in diverse populations, and the study of school environments and their relationship to childhood obesity. Christie enjoys chairing capstone projects for MPH students and providing lectures on theories related to motivating behavioral change.
BS Kinesiolgy University of Texas at Austin
MS Counseling Psychology Arizona State University
PhD Counseling Psychology Colorado State University
Residency Clinical Psychology VA Palo Alto Healthcare System
Coming from rural America (WV), the problem as I see is several fold:
a) Diets there still reflect a outdoor physical labor intense lifestyle. Which is not necessarily true today.
b) Modern advertising particularly TV bombards people with ads regarding stuff to eat, most of it bad. Also again the rural lifestyle has been disrupted by severe unemployment and much of the nature of employment that exists has changed. It is less physical demanding. Alot of rural folk watch a surpising lot of TV, which means a sendatary lifestyle.
Aside: I think there is an unrecognized unemployment tragedy is in rural America. I think this is a huge problem, This has been widely ignored by the MSM, opinion makers, those in politics and other "beautiful people".
C) Food stamps and now EBT can be used to purchase a completely unhealthy diet. This needs to be changed. If rules currently exist to stop this. They are clearly not enforced.
d) Huge huge epidemic of unwed mothers in rural America now Everytime I visit my little home town and talk to people, particularly those who are in education and/or work with young people. Basically the same incentives that crated 70% urbam black single mothers are at work here. WIC and other legislation is now making war on the idea of the rural traditional family. And what I find amazing all who point this out to me don't blame the Rats. Their solution is to shovel more money through those programs. (And all of these people identify themselves as "evangelical Christians"!) The lifestyles and diets of these "single moms" are almost never healthy.
Thank you Doctor; I’ll believe my own eyes rather than studies. I’m sandwiched between two of NJ’s biggest cities, and have been to the farmland in the south of the “Garden State” as well as Pennsylvania.
Maybe you didn’t take the time to read my post and see that I supported the findings of the study.
There used to be a time around here when thread hijacking was considered a no-no.......
Thanks for telling all about the study and may cause us rural readers to evaluate. As to my comment concerning shooting straight, I meant a gun. However, did go to the link and learned about Peyronie’s disease. Don’t know as I needed to know about it but now I do. Think I will take a walk.
I’d take a fat rural citizen over a skinny university professor any day.
That the ticket bot. Don’t bother with the facts just cling to your emotion based hysteria. Just keep squealing little Obama piggy. He likes it when you squeal for him like that.
If anyone’s earned the title of a mindless bot its you. From your slavish adulation of whoever occupies the RNC’s top spot to your inability to condemn any disgraceful GOP big government policy, you and your fellow enablers are the reason this country finds Obama at the helm.
Uh oh, mindless shower of MNJ spittle in 3, 2, 1 ...
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