With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
Study finds sex-specific ethnic groups in U.S. are getting fatter
Seventeen year-old Marissa Hamilton logs her meals in her self monitoring journal at Wellspring Academy October 19, 2009 in Reedley, California. Struggling with her weight, seventeen year-old Marissa Hamilton enrolled at the Wellspring Academy, a special school that helps teens and college level students lose weight along with academic courses. When Marissa first started her semester at Wellspring she weighed in at 340 pounds and has since dropped over 40 pounds of weight in the first two months of the program. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16 percent of children in the US ages 6-19 years are overweight or obese, three times the amount since 1980.
(
Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
)
Listen
1:07
Study finds sex-specific ethnic groups in U.S. are getting fatter
Study finds sex-specific ethnic groups in U.S. are getting fatter
A new study reveals that American children and teenagers have become fatter over the last decade and are more likely to develop diabetes or heart disease. Social and ethnic status is a factor.
Black girls, particularly, tend to develop more fatty tissue, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and National Institute on Aging.
Scientists moved beyond body mass index measurements in this study to include waist size and underarm skinfold thickness.
The study indicates some groups gained more belly fat over time. Midsection fat poses greater health risks down the road for obesity-related illness, like type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Sponsored message
The study considered sex, age and race over 10 years. It’s one of the few projects to examine social/ethnic disparities and measure weight gain/muscle depletion in kids and teens over time.
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestives and Kidney Diseases supported the research. The peer-review medical journal, The International Journal of Pediatric Obesity is scheduled to publish the study online Thursday.
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
