Introduction: As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, several studies collected small and relatively homogenous samples to track U.S. adult obesity rates and obesity-related risk factors. In this study, a much larger sample from a nationally representative survey was used to investigate changes in average BMI, obesity prevalence rates, and 4 obesity-related risk factors in the U.S. adult population during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: Using a large nationally representative sample of U.S. adults aged ≥20 years from the 2011-2020 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, linear regression models estimated intra-pandemic changes in average BMI and obesity prevalence rates as well as 4 obesity-related risk factors.
Results: Relative to the 2019 to prepandemic 2020 period, significantly higher average BMI (+0.6%, p<0.05, N=3,555,865) and obesity prevalence rates (+3%, p<0.05, N=3,555,865) were observed among U.S. adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Significantly higher rates of any exercise participation (+4.4%, p<0.01, N=3,607,272), average sleep hours in a 24-hour period (+1.5%, p<0.01, N=1,907,798), average alcoholic drink days in the past month (+2.7%, p<0.05, N=3,577,090), and lower rates of smoking at least some days (-4%, p<0.01, N=3,625,180) were also observed.
Conclusions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. adult obesity rates were higher and worsened the pre-existing epidemic of adult obesity in the U.S. Higher rates of alcohol consumption and lower smoking rates may have contributed to the higher rates of adult obesity in the U.S during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2022.01.012 | DOI Listing |
BMC Public Health
January 2025
Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Background: Despite potential protective and mitigating effects of positive childhood experiences (PCEs) on poor health outcomes, limited research has identified relevant PCEs and examined their individual and cumulative associations with weight status, or their mitigating effects on the associations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and obesity in children. This study aims to develop an exploratory PCEs Index with the potential to protect against or mitigate the association between ACEs and unhealthy weight status.
Methods: Data came from the Growing Up in New Zealand study.
Int J Equity Health
January 2025
Center for Health Equity in Latin America, Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, Louisiana, USA.
Background: Ethnic and racial discrimination in maternal health care has been overlooked in academic literature and yet it is critical for achieving universal health coverage (UHC). There is a lack of empirical evidence on its impact on the effective coverage of maternal health interventions (ECMH) for Indigenous women in Mexico. Documenting progress in reducing maternal health inequities, particularly given the disproportionate impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on ethnic minorities, is essential to improving equity in health systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis
December 2024
Sapienza University, Rome, Italy; National Committee for Biosafety, Biotechnology and Life Sciences (CNBBSV) of the Italian Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Italy.
Front-of-pack nutrition labels (FOPNLs) have been developed since 1989 to curb the increasing prevalence of obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and to promote healthy consumption choices. While several countries have introduced their own labeling schemes on a voluntary basis, the European Commission aims to harmonize a FOPNL system that will be mandatory for all member states. This paper summarizes a contribution to the current debate on FOPNLs from Italian and Spanish researchers working in the fields of human nutrition, nutritional epidemiology and public health education and communication policy before the final decision on FOPNLs to become mandatory in Europe is taken.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis
December 2024
Unit of Nutrition and Cancer, Cancer Epidemiology Research Programme, Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO), Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain.
Backgrounds And Aim: To prospectively evaluate the associations between changes in (poly)phenol intake, body weight(BW), and physical activity(PA) with changes in an inflammatory score after 1-year.
Methods And Results: This is a prospective observational analysis involving 484 participants from the PREDIMED-Plus with available inflammatory measurements. (Poly)phenol intake was estimated using a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire and the Phenol-Explorer database.
Geriatr Gerontol Int
January 2025
Department of Urology, College of Medicine and Shu-Tien Urological Research Center, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Aim: Adequate pelvic floor support for the urethra is crucial for preventing stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Obesity is an established risk factor for SUI. This study aimed to explore the relationship between SUI and body composition, specifically focusing on muscle and fat mass.
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