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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Obesity and weight control

Catalyzing Medicaid-Public Health Collaboration to Reduce Childhood Obesity
Explains cross-sector interventions tested by 5 states - Arizona, Maryland, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Texas - participating in the Center for Health Care Strategies' Innovations in Childhood Obesity Initiative. Each state profile highlights how Medicaid and public health agencies are using innovative approaches to address childhood obesity in their high-risk communities. The Texas initiative focuses on childhood obesity in the rural, low-income population along the U.S./Mexico border.
Author(s): Alexandra Maul, Stephen A. Somers
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Care Strategies
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Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities Among Rural Adults — United States, 2012-2015
Reports on racial/ethnic health disparities among rural residents. Includes data by race/ethnicity for health-related quality of life, healthcare access and use, chronic health conditions, and health-related behaviors. Based on data from the 2012–2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
Author(s): Cara V. James, Ramal Moonesinghe, Shondelle M. Wilson-Frederick, et al.
Citation: MMWR Surveillance Summaries, 66(23), 1-9
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Direct Effects of the Home, School, and Consumer Food Environments on the Association Between Food Purchasing Patterns and Dietary Intake among Rural Adolescents in Kentucky and North Carolina, 2017
Analyzes the effects of food shopping habits and food environments in the home, school, and consumer settings on dietary intake among rural adolescents living in Kentucky and North Carolina. Discusses habit and environment as potential influences on rural-urban adolescent obesity disparities.
Author(s): Alison Gustafson, Stephanie Jilcott Pitts, Jordan McDonald, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(10), 1255
Date: 10/2017
Type: Document
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Variations in Obesity Rates between US Counties: Impacts of Activity Access, Food Environments, and Settlement Patterns
Describes differences in obesity rates among U.S. counties based on rurality, region, poverty level, and ethnicity. Analyzes access to physical activity facilities, food environments, and settlement patterns, defined as residential density and car dependence, to determine potential explanations for geographic variations.
Author(s): Peter Congdon
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(9), 1023
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
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Longitudinal Analysis of Nut-Inclusive Diets and Body Mass Index Among Overweight and Obese African American Women Living in Rural Alabama and Mississippi, 2011-2013
Results of a weight loss intervention among 383 overweight women in 8 rural Alabama and Mississippi counties, evaluating the association between intake of nuts and other select food groups with participants' body mass index (BMI) over a 24-month period. Features data on participants' income, education, rates of consumption of various foods, and more.
Author(s): Samara R. Sterling, Brenda Bertrand, Suzanne Judd, et al.
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 14, 160595
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
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The Differences in Characteristics Among Households With and Without Obese Children: Findings From USDA's FoodAPS
Examines characteristics of households with at least one obese child and without any obese children. Table 2 compares rural and urban household financial well-being, as it relates to obesity. Table 3 examines the food environment for rural households with and without obese children.
Author(s): Young Jo
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Childhood Bullying in Rural Missouri
Defines types of bullying in rural areas and risk factors, including obesity, gender, lack of access to healthy food, and resulting mental health issues. Features a county-level map of Missouri showing urban and rural counties as of 2017, and statistics on victim rates, with breakdowns by 7 levels of population density.
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Missouri Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
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A Community-Based Marketing Campaign at Farmers Markets to Encourage Fruit and Vegetable Purchases in Rural Counties With High Rates of Obesity, Kentucky, 2015-2016
Examines effectiveness of the Plate it Up Kentucky Proud program, targeting farmers market shoppers in 6 rural Kentucky counties in the Delta and Appalachian regions, from September 2014-September 2016. Features statistics including age, sex, income, and rate of consumption of fruit, salad, and other vegetables.
Author(s): Emily DeWitt, Margaret McGladrey, Emily Liu, et al.
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 14
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
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Health Conditions and Behaviors of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Persons in the United States, 2014
Offers detailed statistics on health conditions and behaviors for the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) population and for multiple and single-race NHPI populations, with comparisons to other racial groups and to the U.S. population as a whole. Topics covered include general health status, specific health conditions, disabilities, body mass index, physical activity, and substance use.
Author(s): Adena M. Galinsky, Carla E. Zelaya, Catherine Simile, Patricia M. Barnes
Citation: Vital and Health Statistics, 3(40)
Date: 07/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Mass Media Campaign to Reduce Consumption of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in a Rural Area of the United States
Results of a study in which messages about health risks associated with sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) were disseminated in 2015-2016 through television, digital channels, and local organizations, in 17 rural counties in Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky. Features statistics including comparisons of SSB sales in this area before and after the campaign.
Author(s): Thomas A. Farley, Hayli S. Halper, Anne M. Carlin, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 107(6), 989-995
Date: 06/2017
Type: Document
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