New data from the Texas Health Institute and Methodist Healthcare Ministries indicates that more than 15 million Texans will be obese by the year 2040 if obesity prevention efforts are not immediately adopted.
Obesity rate increases in young adults have risen more than 10 percent in seven years, and as the population ages, there is a greater risk of additional weight gain and complications that accompany obesity (heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and respiratory ailments).
Overall, Texas is the 14th most obese state in the country.
Click to hear WTAW’s Chris Clift talk with Marcia Ory, Ph.D., M.P.H., professor of social and behavioral health at the Texas A&M Health Science Center:
Texas was one of three states awarded $2 million by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to evaluate the effectiveness of childhood obesity prevention policies.
The HSC-School of Rural Public Health (including Dr. Ory) and the Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living at The University of Texas School of Public Health Austin Regional Campus are collaborating with the Texas Health Institute and other partners in Live Smart Texas.