The statistics on obesity in Indiana are staggering. The numbers in Howard County are even worse.
Almost exactly two-thirds of Hoosiers, 67 percent, are classified as either overweight or obese, making Indiana the ninth-most overweight state in the nation.
Over a third of Howard County adults, 36 percent, are obese. Only three counties in the state have a higher obesity rate. And, the rate is much higher than the state average of 31 percent.
Why does this matter?
“We know obesity is a risk factor for many preventable diseases – and our top killers in Indiana – including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer,” said Eden Bezy, director of the Indiana State Department of Health’s Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity. “And, it’s no accident that the steady increase that we’re seeing in diabetes and heart disease coincides with our steady increase of overweight and obese folks in Indiana.”
Bezy was one of the keynote speakers at Tuesday’s Kokomo Health Partners Conference at Reformation Faith Ministries, where she laid out strategies being used at the state level to help Hoosier everywhere combat this health issue.
Part of the problem locally is that 29 percent of adults in Howard County ages 20 and over report they have no leisure time for physical activity, Bezy said.
“This is cause for alarm to see Howard County at such a high rate of physical activity,” she added.
Research has shown that 27 percent of the local population does not have adequate access to locations to be physically active.
In the urban sense, “Access” means residing within a census block, or a half mile, of a park, or one mile of a recreation facility. Recreation facilities include organizations like the YMCA, a gym, pool or dance studio.
Food environment also plays a key factor. Howard County received a 6.7 on a 10-point scale as far as food access. The Indiana average is 7.2.
“Food environment is weighted by limited access to healthy foods,” Bezy explained. “So 10 percent of the population has limited access to fruits, vegetables and [other] healthy, nutritious foods. And 16 percent of Howard County folks are food insecure, meaning they don’t have access to a lot of their needs for those foods.”
Bezy laid of the State Department of Health’s objectives to counteract these trends.
The state must increase access to and consumption of healthy foods, increased access to and engagement in physical activity, as well as increase the capacity for communities to promote better health.
The State Departent of Health is working on those areas on many fronts. They are collaborating with early care and education centers, schools, communities and clinical settings to help educate the masses on the risks and how to prevent them.
Funds are being provided to early care and education centers to help offer staff development in ways which can increase physical activity in kids across the state, from infancy up to five-year-olds. The department of health has also asked those centers to limit the use of entrapment devices like bouncy seats and walkers, as well as screen time with technology devices such as televisions and cellphones. In addition, tips on how to incorporate physical activity into daily learning lessons are encouraged.
“There is great room for improvement in this area in Indiana,” Bezy said. “We are seeing a pendulum shift. Child care centers who are receiving funding and childcare development funds are starting to see an increase in what they are required to do in order to receive those funds. … What we’re doing is really helping train those staffs so they can take that information and use it in everyday settings.”
The Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity is working with 17 school districts across the state intensively, and have partnered with the Indiana Department of Education to help change the policies and practices that can make eating well and being physically active more difficult.
First, they provide free professional development for teachers, staff and administrators across the state to help make sure schools are providing the best possible curriculum for their students. They also host training sessions on trends in behavior change.
Bezy said that recent changes in the nutrition requirements in school lunches have led to a major increase in plate waste, or food left on the trays the children do not eat.
The department of health is trying to combat that by training food service directors on how to secure healthy, fresh food, how to prepare it, and more importantly, how to present it in a way that is appealing to children.
“If you give a kid a Red Delicious apple wrapped up in saran wrap, are you going to eat that? I’m not going to eat that,” Bezy said. “That doesn’t look tasty. Simply chop it up. Those little things can be such a key in our practice.”
For adults, it boils down to gaining access to increasing consumption of health foods and beverages, as well as increased access and engagement in physical activity.
The department of health is attempting to increase the numbers of folks who use their SNAP and EBT benefits at shops like Farmers Markets. Training is being provided to market managers around the state on ways they can help provide that capability. There are grants available for those types of markets to gain the ability to accept those types of payments.
The department of health also provides training funds and local municipalities around the state for help implementing bike and pedestrian plans.
“Essentially, it’s a policy which allows city planners to plan their build and development the local environment in ways that are more conducive to pedestrians and bike riders,” Bezy said.
The department hosts five active living workshops per year around the state. The department will be in Kokomo for such a workshop on Sept. 3.