Obesity and Poverty Paradox Quiz

Obesity and Poverty Paradox

• Obesity prevalence highest in non-Hispanic Black Americans, followed by Hispanics, with a national average of 30.5%.
• Women have higher obesity rates than men.
• Healthcare costs contribute to a 14.1% poverty rate in 2018 US.
• The supplemental poverty measure for children increased from 5.2% (2021) to 12.9% (2023).
• In late 2020, one-fifth of American children lived in poverty.
• Two-thirds of Black children and slightly fewer Hispanic children lived in households facing difficulties covering usual expenses (Census survey, 2020).
• Official US poverty rate in 2023 was 11.1%.
• Obesity ties to income and education levels; higher income/education = lower poverty.
• In 2020, over 45 million Americans (including 15 million children) faced hunger due to the coronavirus.

Food Insecurity Statistics

• US household hunger increased from 7.8 million (1999) to 9.6 million (2003), a 24% rise.
• In 2011, 14.9% of American households were food insecure, with 5.7% reducing food intake due to lack.
• Currently (2023), approximately 47.4 million people, including 7.2 million children, are food insecure.

Levels of Food Insecurity

• Food insecurity ranges from a household running out of food and compromising diet to hungry children as reported by parents.

Challenges in Assessing Food Insecurity

• Relating food insecurity to health, quality of life, and associated cognitive/emotional/behavioral changes is a challenge.

Values in Poverty

• Poverty values differ from middle and upper class values regarding food.
• Poverty focuses on quantity, middle class on quality, and wealth on presentation.
• Economic class is a spectrum, not a binary.

Obesity Rates in Wisconsin Native Americans

• Native American adults in Wisconsin have an extremely high rate of overweight/obesity, exceeding 80% for adults.
• This is more than double the national average for obesity (69% in WI vs 22% nationally).
• The highest rate of obesity compared to any other minority group.
• Childhood overweight is rising faster among Native American children than other groups

Healthy Eating Index

• A measure of diet quality, evaluating food types and quantities to recommended diets.
• Components include recommended servings, fat, cholesterol, and sodium consumption.
• Scores range from 0-100, with >80 considered "good," 51-80 "needs improvement."

Test your knowledge on the correlation between obesity and poverty in America. This quiz covers statistics related to obesity prevalence among different demographics, food insecurity, and the economic factors contributing to hunger. Explore the impact of income and education levels on obesity rates and food access.