In response to Trust for America's Health "F as in Fat" report released today, Health Secretary Alfredo Vigil, MD, said New Mexico needs to continue to strengthen its obesity-prevention efforts to address a serious problem with obesity. The report details obesity rates by states and discusses effective state policies and programs.
"We must take the problem of obesity seriously and continue to help individuals develop healthy eating and activity habits so we can prevent our obesity rate from rising further," Dr. Vigil said.
New Mexico's adult obesity rate is 24.6 percent from 2006-2008, a 1.1 percent increase since 2005-2007, according to the national report. The report examined rates for diabetes, adult and childhood obesity, hypertension, physical activity levels and poverty. In all categories except for poverty, New Mexico ranked in the middle of states and was not among the top 10 best or worst states. New Mexico has one of the highest rates of poverty in the country.
