FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For immediate release October 18, 2006 Contact: John T. Althardt, (317) 221-2316

Surveys Confirm Too Many Marion County Children and Adults Are Overweight and At-Risk for Being Overweight

The Marion County Health Department, Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson and local school leaders today announced more than $1.3 million in wellness grants designed to help local school districts reduce obesity and improve the overall health of children living in Marion County. As part of the city’s FitCity initiative, created to educate and motivate local residents to live more healthy lifestyles, the wellness grants were awarded to address findings released today by the Marion County Health Department, which spearheaded one of the nation’s most comprehensive health surveys ever undertaken by a community.

Comprehensive surveys of local school-aged children and Marion County adults confirm obesity remains a real and significant local health threat. The surveys, involving a body mass index (BMI) evaluation of 90,147 Marion County school children and a phone-based inquiry of 4,784 Marion County adults, were conducted by the Marion County Health Department.

The Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust funded the Indianapolis Public Schools’ (IPS) portion of the school BMI assessments. The Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation funded the Adult Obesity Needs Assessment Telephone Survey.

The Marion County Health Department worked with the superintendents of 10 county school systems whose students had their body mass index evaluated. Students were given a number and asked to be weighed and have their height measured. Students were not required to participate in the survey. Learning Well, Inc. and school nurses assisted in the survey.

Among the significant findings:

58 percent of school children measured had a normal weight

22 percent of school children measured were overweight

18 percent of school children measured were at-risk for being overweight

Hispanic male school children were the heaviest group with 31 percent overweight

Black female school children had higher numbers of overweight and at-risk for overweight than black male school children

White male school children had higher numbers of overweight and at-risk for overweight than white female school children

The heaviest age group of school children was in the 9-15 age range

Contributing factors may include:

Not enough physical activity

Too much screen time (television, video games and computer)

The type and amount of food being consumed

“The results of this survey confirm what we have observed and believed. Our children are overweight and in alarming numbers that need a comprehensive community response,” said Virginia A. Caine, director, Marion County Health Department.

“Getting kids engaged and focused on health and fitness is key to the long-term well-being of our city,” said Mayor Peterson. “The survey results clearly show we have more work to do as a community. We must continue the momentum of the FityCity initiative and get our young people to make healthy lifestyle choices that can be passed on to future generations.

Community partners have been critical in attaining the data and those partnerships will become even more critical as the community responds to this information.

“This information solidifies the FitCity initiatives to encourage Marion County residents to make a healthy move,” said Chuck Brandenberg, co-chair of the FitCity steering committee and Director, Community Impact, for the United Way of Central Indiana. “It’s clear that our children need to learn healthy eating habits at a young age and need to understand the importance of incorporating exercise into their daily schedules,” said Brandenberg.

As part of its commitment to reducing the obesity rate among school-aged children, the Marion County Health Department and the City of Indianapolis, as part of the FitCity program, have announced the awarding of $440,000 in annual school wellness grants for the next three years. These grants have been awarded to:

Beech Grove City Schools

Franklin Township Community School Corporation

Indianapolis Public Schools

MSD of Decatur Township

MSD of Lawrence Township

MSD of Perry Township

MSD of Pike Township

MSD of Warren Township

MSD of Washington Township

MSD of Wayne Township

Speedway Community Schools

Each school system will receive $40,000 annually for three years.

“The purpose of the grant is to provide funding to help the school districts implement their school wellness policies. This could include, but is not limited to the school wellness coordinator, activities and programming supporting wellness, including physical fitness or the purchase of wellness curriculums,” said Dr. Caine.

Indianapolis Public Schools, the state’s largest school system, supports the health department and its goal of making Indianapolis the healthiest city in the nation.

“IPS believes strongly that physical health contributes to overall student achievement, which is why we have developed coordinated school health programs (CSHP) at many of our schools,” said Superintendent Eugene G. White. “CSHP programs help our schools set priorities for improvement and lead to the development of action plans to assure both students and staff become and stay physically fit.”

In addition to the school-aged BMI survey, the Marion County Health Department conducted a telephone survey of county residents on a variety of eating, nutrition and physical activity issues. Key findings of the adult needs assessment survey include:

25 percent reported being obese

60 percent reported being either overweight or obese

Obesity was most common in black females

Obesity most common in middle-aged individuals

Obesity most common in those with lower incomes

Obesity most common in those with chronic diseases

Contributing factors included:

Lack of eating the recommended requirements of fruits and vegetables

Lack of attention to portion size

Inconsistent physical activity

Role of poverty in access to fruits, vegetables and to safe, affordable and convenient places to exercise

Many of those who stated they did not eat the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables indicated a desire to improve their eating. Almost half of those who reported being inactive indicated an interest in increasing their level of physical activity.

“This information is critical as we look to support existing wellness and physical activity programs and to help us better understand where new programs and services are needed,” said Dr. Caine.