Study: Rural kids more likely to be obese

I grew up and presently live in a rural area. Something that struck me when speaking at a local high school recently is that the majority of the children there would have been considered overweight when I was in school not that long ago. I think that in our area, at least, the population of uneducated adults is larger, and that leads to poorer eating habits. Also, unemployment runs high, and have you ever noticed how it is cheaper to purchase processed foods? In addition, there isn't much for a kid to do, so they eat more. There aren't really as many farms in our area as there used to be either, leading to more processed food consumption. I think it is a problem that is present all over our country, especially among young people.

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Sandy,

I know of two kids that are suffering from the same issue. Schools should implement weight loss programs.

Fisherman

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Amanda,

One potential way to work on the problem is to increase home-grown food in the US.

Fisherman
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Check out this interesting article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7175066/.

Fisherman

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Wow. Just wow. I would seriously like to see the actual study to find out just what parameters were used to determine "obesity". First off, Arnold Schwarzenneger proved that BMI is not exactly a great indicator of fitness, since the equation declared him "obese". I think that would apply in a lot of the rural/farm kids that you see. I live in Iowa and it's about as rural as you can get out here, and yeah, you see a lot of 'meaty' kids. But I defy you to find one who is not strong as an ox. You HAVE to be big to do farm work. And if you come from a family of farmers, it's likely that you're going to be big. The lifestyle demands that you work hard and eat hard. Now, could they cut back a little on the gravies that Grandma makes so perfectly? Probably. But put a country "fat kid" against a city "fat kid" and you're going to see a huge difference in strength and ability.

Further, if you read the "What they Found" pull-out box in the referenced link, this is what it said:

"The study showed that overweight rural children are more likely than their urban counterparts to be white; live in households at 200 percent below the poverty level; have no health insurance; have not seen a doctor for preventive care in a year; be female; use a computer for nonschool work more than three hours a day; and watch TV for more than three hours a day."

200% BELOW poverty level? Who are they studying? Googling around, I found that "Poverty Level" is generally considered around $17,000/year for a family of four. That would mean that a family of four lives on NEGATIVE $34,000 per year. That means that these people are borrowing every cent they spend.

Are female???

TV and Computer use over 3 hours a day. This seems to be the norm across the country.

I have to wonder who, really, this study was based on. Because the contact I've had with farmers out here - there's no TIME for 3+ or 6+ hours of sitting on your butt watching TV and net surfing.

I'm not even going to comment on the pure absurdity of THIS comment: "Sometimes there is less opportunity for physical activity like sports, a sidewalk to walk on or even having to park far away from an event and walk" (hang on, gotta get up off the floor after a laughing fit.)

As you've probably guessed, I think this study is so much bunk. I'd have to see the entire thing - including who was studied and what the parameters were (for determining obesity, income, etc) before I put an ounce of stock in it.

And yes, if you live in the country, chances are, you grow your own food, or have ready access to the freshest available. I haven't bought eggs or produce from a store since Spring started.

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I used to live in a rural area too. I agree with prior posters that the suggestions about not having access to fresh produce and exercise are beyond bunk.

I do think that for those kids who don't have physical jobs to do and don't play in sports, they may be more sedentary than some city kids. They often live so far away from everything (and usually don't have cars), they end up spending a lot of time sitting at home. And isn't munching the only thing you want to do when you're 14 and sitting at home? In addition, often the only place to get together socially (outside of school) is a food establishment.

The solution is for parents to make sure their kids have some chore or job to do, or walk or bike to school instead of taking the bus, or get involved in a sport or other activity that encourages more movement. I'd also recommend putting limits on TV and video-game time. These suggestions would improve the kids' mental and social wellbeing as well as their physical health.

By the way, I suspect they meant "less than 200% of the poverty line" (a typical benchmark for higher distress areas), not 200% below poverty level.

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One thing I forgot to add: in my experience, rural kids tend to be less worried about how they look than city kids. There seems to be less peer pressure to fit a particular body image or to wear clothes made only for skinny people. So when a youngster has put on a few pounds, there is less motivation to work / starve it off.

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