This is an extended version of the eight categories of the Basic Human Dignity Needs Holistic Index, with over 600 sub-categories.
Basic Human Dignity Needs include:
ENVIRONMENT - Food - Obesity
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Study Links Kids, Fast Food and Weight
By Lindsay Tanner
AP Medical Writer
January 5, 2004, 8:55 AM EST
CHICAGO -- Every day, nearly one-third of U.S. children aged 4 to 19 eat fast food, which likely packs on about six extra pounds per child per year and
increases the risk of obesity, a study of 6,212 youngsters found.
The numbers, though alarming, are not surprising since billions of dollars are spent each year on fast-food advertising directed at kids, said lead author Dr.
David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children's Hospital Boston.
The findings suggest that fast-food consumption has increased fivefold among children since 1970, Ludwig said.
The nationally representative study included boys and girls from all regions of the country and different socio-economic levels.
The highest levels of fast-food consumption were found in youngsters with higher household income levels, boys, older children, blacks and children living in
the South. The lowest levels were found in youngsters living in the West, rural areas, Hispanics and those aged 4 to 8, but more than 20 percent of youngsters in
each of those groups still reported eating fast food on any given day.
Fast-food lovers consumed more fats, sugars and carbohydrates and fewer fruits and non-starchy vegetables than youngsters who didn't eat fast food. They also
consumed 187 more daily calories, which likely adds up to about six pounds more per year, the study found.
The results are based on children questioned in government surveys from 1994 to 1996 and 1998. The study lacks data on the children's weight.
Children's current levels of fast-food consumption probably are even higher because of an increase in the number of fast-food restaurants and in fast-food
marketing since the late 1990s, Ludwig said.
The study appears in the January issue of Pediatrics, published Monday.
The nation's obesity epidemic has focused attention on fast-restaurants, and while recent class-action lawsuits attempting to blame McDonald's Corp. for
making people fat have failed, many chains have begun offering healthier fare.
Recent data suggest that nearly 15 percent of U.S. youngsters and almost one-third of adults are obese.
The new study results bolster evidence that fast food contributes to increased calorie intake and obesity risk in children, Yale University obesity researcher
Kelly Brownell said in an accompanying editorial.
Brownell said the study refutes a July report from the U.S. National Chamber of Commerce, which includes fast-food companies, that suggested fast-food
restaurants "are not a chief culprit in the fattening of America."
Brownell said there are encouraging signs that policy-makers are taking action to protect children from the fast-food trend, including efforts to limit soft drink
and snack food sales in schools, and to curb food advertising aimed at children.
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On the Net:
Pediatrics:
http://www.pediatrics.org
Copyright © 2003, The Associated Press
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From: Reuters Health News
Poll Says Hospitals Burdened by Obese Patients
URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_15206.html
Thursday, December 18, 2003
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. hospitals are buying expensive new equipment such as reinforced toilets and oversized beds to treat the growing number of severely obese patients, according to a survey released on Thursday.
Novation, a group-purchasing organization for hospitals and other health-care institutions, found that hospitals are seeing more severely obese patients, people who are overweight by at least 100 pounds.
The group quoted 80 percent of hospitals as saying they had treated more severely obese patients in the last year than ever before, with 17 percent saying they had remodeled to accommodate the largest patients.
"We are finding that hospitals across the country are buying more large-size beds, larger blood pressure cuffs, wider, reinforced wheelchairs and larger versions of other basic supplies to adjust to patient needs," Jody Hatcher, senior vice president of Novation, said in a statement.
More than 30 percent of U.S. adults are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This translates to 59 million people.
Obesity is defined as having a body mass index of 30 or more. BMI is a measure of weight versus height, and the risk of serious health problems, such as heart disease, is increased in obese individuals.
Web sites such as http://fatcities.com offer furniture to accommodate people weighing 500 pounds and more, while http://funeraldepot.com has a line of oversized caskets.
Wausau Hospital in Wausau, Wisconsin, told Novation it spent $200,000 this year to remodel rooms, order special equipment and train staff to deal with extremely obese patients.
"We've had to buy special, longer surgical gloves and even needles and syringes," said Kent Demien, director of materials management at Wausau. "Standard equipment becomes obsolete on many of our larger patients."
Demien said many patients or hospital visitors are too heavy for a wall-mounted toilet, which can handle up to 300 pounds. The hospital plans to replace them with pedestal commodes that can support 2,000 pounds.
The Novation survey polled administrators from 69 U.S. hospitals representing small, rural hospitals and large urban centers.
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