More than half of Utah adults are overweight or obese (57%) and an estimated 22.5% of elementary school students were overweight or at risk of becoming overweight.
The number of those overweight or obese in Utah is greater than the entire population of Montana. You could simultaneously fill Rice Eccles Stadium, the E-Center, and Energy Solutions Arena almost 13 times with the number of overweight or obese Utah adults. See the Data page for more details.
Chances are, you know someone who is at an unhealthy weight. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) defines obesity as a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or above. Overweight is defined as a BMI of greater than 25 and less than 29.9. Calculate BMI. If you are looking for personal weight loss, nutrition, and/or physical activity information, please visit the Check Your Health Web site.
Learn how your environment is contributing to the problem and what risk factors to watch for. See how costly it can be to treat obesity-related health problems.
All Utahns must unite to make the healthy choice the easy choice where we live, learn, work, and play. The Next Steps page outlines what Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. and the Utah Department of Health are doing to combat this epidemic in Utah. Visit the Successes page to see what is working.
Current Local and National Obesity Breaking News
- 4/16/08 -Study quantifies the increased use of health care services associated with obesity during pregnancy. More >>>
- 4/15/08 - A new study shows increased state spending on parks and recreation and required physical education classes are linked to increased physical activity among youth. More >>>
- 4/14/08 - A study of the sleep patterns of 915 children found that daily sleep duration of less than 12 hours during infancy appears to be a risk factor for overweight and adiposity in preschool-aged children. More >>>
- 4/8/08 - The Utah Legislature recognizes healthy weight is everyone's 'business' and declares April 2008 as Utah's Obesity Awareness month. More >>>
- 4/7/08 - See the results of a 2003 Comprehensive School Nutrition Policy for the School District of Philadelphia. More >>>
