Health | Study finds nearly half of North Carolinians are obese

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — February is American Heart Month, and recent data reveals high obesity rates in North Carolina.

A study by NORC at the University of Chicago found that nearly half of North Carolina residents live with obesity, based on body mass index (BMI).

The study found that 44% of the state’s residents have a body mass index (BMI) above 30, the threshold for obesity, and obesity disproportionately affects poor and minority residents. While about 41% of the state’s white residents have a BMI of 30 or higher, that number jumps to 54% for black North Carolinians.

Additionally, those with a GED degree or less were 10 points more likely to be obese than those with a college degree.

“Obesity is a huge problem in the United States in general, in the South in particular, and especially in North Carolina,” said Dr. John Buse, an obesity and diabetes expert at UNC-Chapel Hill.

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Busse said the inequities are clear when it comes to obesity across the state.

“Increased risk of homelessness, food insecurity, and poor access to health care are all thought to be key contributors to the increased risk of overweight and obesity,” he said.

Long-term obesity can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and arthritis. Doctors are hopeful that recent changes to North Carolina’s health care landscape will make a difference.

“For a while, we didn’t expand Medicaid like a lot of other states in the country did,” Busse said. “But we’re doing it now. Hopefully, people will consider whether they can get coverage.”