Looking at the Increasing High Rate of Obesity

High rates of obesity in the United States have been a public health concern for nearly 2 decades. During the pandemic, the problem grew worse, and at a faster rate.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released last month shows many states now have obesity rates of 35% or higher. Other studies found that weight gain in American children nearly doubled during the early months of the pandemic, and was greater for certain demographic subgroups, including Hispanic, African American, publicly insured, and low-income children.
On The Point's Healthy Lifestyles program, we talk about why we saw such an increase in unhealthy weight gain during the pandemic, and some of the psychological, social and structural components that underpin the high rates of obesity in our country. With us is Dr. Jason Block, internist and associate professor at Harvard Medical School. His research focuses on evaluating nutrition policies and exploring novel risk factors for weight gain and obesity.
Our regular healthy lifestyles guest Dena Irwin joins us to talk about what she’s seeing locally, in her work as a nutritionist.