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From our review of the current obesity epidemic in children and with the explicit goal of reversal of the epidemic by 2015 in mind, a targeted investment in select states will be necessary to achieve the goal. This selection can be based on underlying obesity prevalence and concentrated populations of people of color.
Criteria for selecting targeted states are:
- All states that have 35% or more of children aged 10–17 years overweight or obese according to 2007 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) data. These states are Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, West Virginia, as well as the District of Columbia (dark red states in the prevalence map).
- States with population size of greater than 15 million AND the largest populations of people of color (ie, Black or Hispanic people account for approximately ⅓ of the total population, according to (according to the 2000 Census bureau) AND 30% or more of children aged 10–17 years overweight or obese according to 2007 NSCH data (selected light red states in the prevalence map). These states are California, Florida, New York, and Texas.
