Arkansas

Overweight and obesity have tremendous consequences on our nation's health and economy. Both are linked to a number of chronic diseases, including coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and some cancers. Most American communities are characterized by unhealthy options when it comes to diet and physical activity. We need public health approaches that make healthy options easy, affordable, and available for all Americans.

CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO) currently funds 25 states to address the problems of obesity and other chronic diseases through statewide efforts with multiple partners.  The program's primary focus is to create policy and environmental changes to increase: physical activity, consumption of fruits and vegetables, and breastfeeding; and to decrease: television viewing, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, and consumption of high-energy dense foods (high calorie/low nutrient foods). Arkansas has received funding for this program since 2004.

The Burden of Obesity in Arkansas

Arkansas' estimated 2007 total population is almost three million, with roughly two million adults. Of those adults, approximately 36% are considered overweight and another 29% are considered obese, according to 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data. Problems are also seen in factors related to obesity and other chronic diseases.

• Just over one quarter of Arkansas adults report no leisure time physical activity in the past month.
• Only one-in-five adults report eating fruits and vegetables five or more times a day.

Also, the National Immunization Survey shows that Arkansas is not meeting any of the five Healthy People 2010 goals for breastfeeding based on children born in 2005.

The problem is not limited to adults alone. Sixteen percent of Arkansas youth (9th–12th grades) are overweight, and another 14% are obese, according to 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data.

• Approximately 40% of the youth in these grade levels are meeting current physical activity recommendation levels.
• Only 13% eat fruits and vegetables five or more times each day.
• Approximately 40% drink at least one non-diet soda each day.
• Approximately one-in-three youth watch three or more hours of television each day.

Obesity also negatively impacts the state's economy. In Arkansas, the medical costs associated with adult obesity were $633 million in 2003 dollars. 

What is Arkansas Doing about Obesity?

The Arkansas program has made efforts in a wide variety of areas. The following are a few examples:

• The Arkansas Healthy Employee Lifestyle Program (AHELP) was created by a joint committee of the Arkansas Department of Health and the Arkansas Department of Human Services. It is an incentive-based worksite wellness initiative that encourages participants to engage in and track their healthy behaviors. The program is expanding to include private businesses, community organizations, and all state agencies. In 2007, the state legislature passed an act allowing state employees to earn time off for participating in and tracking healthy activities.
• Other policy changes include recent legislation that allows breastfeeding women to express breast milk while at work and legislation that permits systematic tracking of childhood overweight and obesity through body mass index (BMI) measures completed at schools.
• The Arkansas Fitness Challenge is a collaboration between Arkansas Department of Health and Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield. Employees of both organizations compete by participating in and tracking certain health-related activities during a three-month period. The program was so successful that Blue Cross Blue Shield decided to expand it nationwide, calling it Blue & You Fitness Challenge.
• The Arkansas Coalition for Obesity Prevention (ARCOP) is comprised of traditional and non-traditional partners for the purpose of fighting obesity in Arkansas. Strategic planning among the partners has led to collaborative activities focused on alleviating the burden of obesity in the state.

Through these activities, Arkansas and CDC are addressing obesity by creating places where Arkansas residents can make healthy choices about nutrition and physical activity.

For more information:
Becky Adams
Branch Unit Leader, Arkansas Lifestage Health
Arkansas Department of Health
Telephone: 501-661-2334
Fax: 501-661-2055
E-mail: Becky.Adams2@arkansas.gov 
Web site: http://www.state.ar.us/ha/home.html

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