State releases results of Childhood obesity study

The new statewide data show that, while childhood obesity is still a major threat, Arkansas has halted the progression of the epidemic among its public school students. Researchers at the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI) analyzed the results of three consecutive years of body mass index (BMI) screenings for Arkansas public school students. The data shows that the percentage of students classified as overweight decreased from 20.9 percent during the first year to 20.4 percent this year. It also shows that the percentage of students at risk of being overweightGÇöthe category between "healthy weight" and "overweight"GÇödeclined slightly over the same period from 17.2 percent to 17.1 percent. While childhood obesity threatens children in all racial, ethnic and socioeconomic groups, African-American and Hispanic children living in low-income communities are especially at risk. Nearly 38 percent of children and adolescents in Arkansas are overweight or at risk of being overweight. Obesity rates among children and adults in Arkansas have grown steadily over the last decade, and the state regularly exceeds the national average for obesity rates. (Copyright 2006 Newsroom Solutions, LLC)