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Title: Enabling Healthy Living: Spatiotemporal Patterns of Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity among Youths in the United States
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Adu-Prah, Samuel
Oyana, Tonny
Enabling Healthy Living: Spatiotemporal Patterns of Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity among Youths in the United States
International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research 6,2 (April 2015): 98-116.
Also: http://www.igi-global.com/article/enabling-healthy-living/122364
Cohort(s): NLSY97
Publisher: IGI Global
Keyword(s): Geocoded Data; Geographical Variation; Obesity; Weight

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

The increasing burden of overweight and obesity in the United States (U.S.) demands a better understanding of its local and regional spatial patterns and trends. The study examines the hypothesis that there are spatial differences in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in U.S. youths at regional and local levels. It used spatial, statistical, and spatiotemporal analyses and a synthesis of regionally and locally relevant data from a cohort of large, nationally representative, longitudinal data sets, the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97) to analyze overweight and obesity prevalence. Specifically, the methods used included the spatial Generalized Linear Mixed Model (GLMM), spatial interpolation techniques (Inverse Distance Weighting -- IDW), and Kulldorf's scan space-time analysis. The paper analyzed 12 waves (1997-2008) of data from the NLSY data sets. Its findings revealed there is an upward trend both in males and in females in obesity prevalence in US youths during the twelve-year period. Youth obesity prevalence was also higher among females than among males. The cohort shows evidence of increase in overweight and obesity prevalence. There are mixed trends in youth obesity prevalence patterns in rural and urban areas. Counties identified as consistently experiencing higher prevalence of obesity and with the potential of becoming an obesogenic environment are Copiah, Holmes, and Hinds in Mississippi; Harris and Chamber, Texas; Oklahoma and McCain, Oklahoma; Jefferson, Louisiana; and Chicot and Jefferson, Arkansas. The twelve-year study indicated spatial variation in obesity and overweight prevalence among U.S. youths, with pockets of clustered prevalence. This information can guide programs, policies, and initiatives for obesity prevention at regional and local levels.
Bibliography Citation
Adu-Prah, Samuel and Tonny Oyana. "Enabling Healthy Living: Spatiotemporal Patterns of Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity among Youths in the United States." International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research 6,2 (April 2015): 98-116.