Investigation of Correlation Between Income and Obesity, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Obesity is an issue faced by about 160 million people in America today. An individual is said to be considered legally obese when a person has achieved a body fat of 20% or more compared to other members of the population of the same gender, with a similar height and weight. A particular concern in the community is the rising rate of childhood obesity. Since adolescents typically do not have control over their food choices, there is a need to determine how health care professionals can take action to help both parents and their children understand aspects regarding nutrition.

Childhood obesity is on the rise, with approximately 17% of children between 2 and 19 years of age being classified as obese in the United States (Ogden et al., 2014). Childhood obesity is problematic because it contributes to a range of health problems that these children will develop throughout their lifetimes. Becoming obese at a young age leads to a greater risk of obesity related illness such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, bone degeneration, and mental health conditions. Childhood obesity is cause primarily by the lifestyle decisions that many American families make with regards to diet and exercise. As a consequence, childhood obesity is a problem that could easily be avoided by providing families with the knowledge and means to ensure that their children remain healthy throughout their development.

One important way to reverse childhood obesity in the United States is to provide educational programs to the populations in which this health state is the most prevalent. Studies have shown that the obesity rate among minority children is more than double compared to white children (Brown et al., 2015). As a consequence, minority populations in large cities should be the main focus, as these individuals are statistically most likely to develop health problems related to obesity. Since children spend a majority of their time in school, it would be effective to provide them with a means of understanding nutrition as a part of their school program and to implement policy change to ensure that the breakfast and lunch being served at these schools are able to promote health. Furthermore, it is important to focus these education programs towards families living in these areas as well because children are likely to follow the habits of their parents.

Because obesity is prevalent in primarily low income communities, there is an apparent link between adolescent obesity and income. Therefore, it would be valuable to assess the relationship between obesity and income in a manner that would allow for the development of a plan for schools and other health professionals to provide parents and guardians of low income children relevant guidance to help them select nutritious and cost-effective food options. Thus, this scientific evaluation being evaluated is “How can an understanding of the link between obesity and income be used to provide valuable nutrition recommendations to parents and guardians of low income adolescents?”

Statement

The purpose of this exploration is to find out whether income affects obesity rates and how this information can be used to provide nutrition recommendations to parents and guardians of the individuals impacted by their income status. In this investigation, I will examine the correlation between median household income and adult obesity rate of each of the 50 states in the United States of America. I will then use this information to assess the typical diets followed by these individuals and provide recommendations that will help these individuals receive a more well-balanced diet. It is expected that obese adults are more likely to raise obese children. Therefore, the adult obesity rate will first be assessed, followed by an assessment that will develop an understanding of the relationship between adult obesity and childhood obesity. To ensure that elements of bias would not be incorporated into the study, data was randomly collected from sources in a manner that accurately reflects the income data of each state. Furthermore, the selection of nutrition data was gathered using a process of randomization.

Hypotheses:

• As median household income of a state decreases, the rate of obesity seen in their state will increase.

Ho null hypothesis: Obesity rate and income are independent.

H1 alternative hypothesis: Obesity rate and income are not independent.

• It is expected that surveyed participants will report diets that include an excess of fats and oils.
• It is expected that obese surveyed adolescents will live with adults that are also obese.

Plan of Investigation

1. First, the data for median household income and obesity rate of all 50 states was collected using Internet data as a resource. A table created from the secondary data assumptions were made using this data to gain a greater understanding of study participants (table 1).
2. A Spearman’s Rank Correlation coefficient was then calculated to determine the level of correlation.

• Self-identified obese low income adolescents (ages 15-19) were contacted online and asked to summarize the food that they consume daily for each meal during a week. They were provided with a form that would allow them to record the time and identity of their meals. They were also asked to report whether their parents and guardians are obese and if so, how many adults they live with fall into this category.

1. A total of 8 individuals from geographically diverse states (New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska, and South Dakota) responded to the request for their meal plans and survey questions in full.
2. A qualitative assessment was performed to determine the defining characteristics of the meals that these individuals frequently consumed, in addition to quantitatively determining the number of meals and snacks that each individual consumed in a day. An assessment was also conducted to determine how many participants lived with adults that were also obese. Some participants provided a reflection to give an understanding of how the adults in their life in addition to their income makes it challenging for them to stay at a healthy weight.

Results and Data

The intention of the first portion of the analysis is to determine the relationship between obesity and income using various mathematic modalities. Figure 1 depicts a graphical representation of the data in table form. Based on this information, it is apparent that the obesity rates for all states are high. Furthermore, there is a rather consistent pattern near the low income-high obesity rate. Overall, the statistics show a negative trend; as one variable decreases, the other increases. This information is valuable because it could be used to determine more information about the states of the individuals interviewed during the survey portion of this study.

A Spearman’s rank was also utilized to assess correlation. Figure 1 displays the rank values for each variable and used Spearman’s Rank to discover if there is a relationship between them. Ranks were awarded according to values for each variable in order from biggest to smallest. Overall, it was confirmed using this statistical test that there is correlation between the two variables, but this correlation value isn’t extremely high.

Out of the 8 survey results gathered, it was found that seven out of eight participants (87.5%) consumed diets that were higher than the daily expected values of fat for their body weight, eight out of eight participants lived with obese adults (100%), eight out of eight participants reported eating three or more meals a day (100%), and 6 out of eight individuals (75%) reported eating takeout at least three times a week. One participant who lived in an urban environment reported that “It is challenging for me and my family to get healthy food. Even though we live in a city with a lot of food, we can only afford the cheap stuff. Usually, the cheap stuff isn’t healthy, but it’s what we’re stuck with”. Another participant reported “I kind of eat whatever my mom gives me. I like the food we eat, but I know it isn’t healthy”.  A third participant explained, “I know that my diet is really high in fat. In my family, we fry EVERYTHING. I don’t know, it just makes things taste better. The food I eat isn’t the best, but I don’t think that I’m completely unhealthy even though I am a little bit overweight”.

Data Implications

Discussion:

According to these results, there is a relationship between median income of the state and adult obesity, which confirms the first hypothesis. This is important because it shows that as a whole country, obesity is a problem for the poor. It is therefore necessary for us to find ways to help these individuals. As the participants reported, many of them eat diets that are high in fat, which confirms the second hypothesis. Next, all adolescents surveyed stated that they also live with at least one adult that is obese. This is an important realization because it shows that adolescents are likely to be highly influenced by the people in their lives. Some low income individuals reported that accessing healthy food in their communities was challenging, while others report that they are only able to eat the food that their parents prepare for them. Thus, even though many of these individuals know that they are not eating healthy, they don’t really have a choice regarding the food they eat. Most believe that eating this food is better than eating no food, which is true in many regards.

Overeating appeared to be a major problem regarding many of the participants. Based on their bodyweight and height, their daily caloric and fat requirements were exceeded. When daily required values are consumed in excess, obesity results. It is necessary for people to eat and exercise in a manner that meets daily nutrition requirements to maintain weight or to eat less than this amount in order to lose weight. Many individuals in low income communities have only food that is high in fat and calories available because these are the least expensive. Therefore, it is reasonable to argue that these individuals may lose weight if programs were in place to help them gain access to healthier food choices.

The best way to help adolescents gain access to healthy food is by providing them with healthy food programs in school. Since these meals are free of charge for low income individuals, this provides an excellent opportunity to make sure that these individuals are receiving the correct nutrition and in the correct portions. While the proposed program is likely to be the most effective way to reach the target population, it would also be possible to address this issue on many additional levels. In the community workforce and workplace, obese adults can be provided with the same type of education programs that were offered to the kids to ensure that children are receiving positive health influences at home. At the government level, local governments would be able to pass laws that regulate the type of food served in schools. This would be a valuable resource to prevent the sale of vending machine junk food in schools and to ensure that the food being served in the cafeteria is nutritious. Furthermore, association and interest groups could tackle this problem outside of schools by spreading awareness of the obesity problem in the United States and by providing parents and children with information that could be used to reverse the process. Because obesity contributes to a variety of obesity related illnesses, it is important to provide support to individuals living in low income communities because they often do not have the funds necessary to support a high quality of life while living with these conditions. Therefore, gaining more information about this topic will help biologists and medical professionals gain a better understanding of the implications of obesity for low income communities.

Evaluation:

While many people are aware of the obesity problem, very few know how to fix it. It is therefore necessary to create more attention towards health education programs and to legally require health standards in schools. If the government does not intervene and help promote these education programs and dietary limitations with regards to school lunch, it is unlikely that this program will improve. Furthermore, nurses would have to work closely with the government to ensure that schools understand what constitutes a healthy meal in addition to the type of health education that the students should receive on this topic. In order to protect the health of American children, it is necessary to make the public aware that such education programs should be supported in schools. If we all work together, we will be able to make great strides towards ending childhood obesity. Future experiments can be deducted to determine a more thorough understanding of the food consumed by low income individuals in different states. Furthermore, the foods that these individuals eat in school in addition to analysis regarding the reasons for these food decisions can be determined in order to create health programs that will allow researchers to be better able to provide recommendations to obese adults and adolescents to help them reverse their unhealthy lifestyle patterns.

Conclusion:

Despite the data limitations that existed for this study, it was found that there is a slightly negative correlation between income and adult obesity. Using this understanding, it was found that there is a strong relationship between adult obesity and the obesity of adolescents in the care of these individuals. It was found that obese individuals living in low income communities are likely to consume high levels of fat and calories and have very little control over the foods that they eat on a regular basis. However, the relationship between obesity and income appears to be impacted by the location of these individuals. Those living in cities tend to have different food access problems that those living in rural environments. Generally, the lower the household income, the higher rates of obesity there are. This understanding could be used to target schools in low income communities to do a better job at serving food in healthy proportions in addition to food that has a high nutrition content. It is important for the community to put forth an effort to help these individuals because doing so will ensure that we can work towards building a healthier country overall.

This project was interesting for me because I am from Europe and obesity is a less frequently encountered problem. However, this experiment showed me that people living in low income areas are more likely to get certain illnesses, so it is important to pay attention to these problems to provide them with the help that they need to survive and remain happy. Science can be used to provide benefit to others, which makes projects such as this truly justifiable. 

References

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Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Flegal KM. (2014). Prevalence of Childhood and Adult Obesity in the United States, 2011-2012. JAMA, 311(8):806-814.

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