April 8, 2008 NEW YORK (AP) -- New York City's obesity and diabetes rates are rising faster than in the rest of the country, a city health department study said.
New York's obesity and diabetes rates each jumped by 17 percent between 2002 and 2004, according to the city Department of Health and Hygiene study. The national obesity rate rose by 6 percent during the same time period, while the diabetes rate held steady nationally at 7 percent, according to the study, published in this month's issue of the journal Preventing Chronic Disease.
Some 173,500 adult New Yorkers became obese and more than 73,000 were newly diagnosed with diabetes over the two-year period, the city said. In 2002, 19.5 percent of the city's adults were obese; in 2004, 22.8 percent were, the study said.
Under current U.S. government standards, a body mass index, or weight-to-height measurement, of 25 or higher is overweight; 30 and above is obese.
In 2002, diagnosed diabetes cases rose from 8.1 percent of New Yorkers to 9.5 percent, the study said.
The study drew on data from the Community Health Survey, a telephone survey of approximately 10,000 New York City adults, and from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a similar nationwide survey.
Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden, who has championed a new city law requiring fast-food chains to post calorie counts, said the findings point to the urgent need for such measures.
The law had been set to go into effect at the end of March, but a restaurant trade group sued to challenge the requirement, saying it is violating eateries' free-speech rights. A court ruling is expected by mid-April.
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