Background: Obesity continues to grow in prevalence in the United States and within the state of Georgia. Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic and preventable diseases. As such, obese individuals have higher demand for health care services than non-obese individuals. In addition, the health care system can play a role in preventing obesity and other conditions caused by obesity. Methods: This research follows the established positive relationship between health care use and access to health care services through insurance coverage. The paper analyzes how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) affected insurance coverage and access to health care services for obese and overweight individuals. A logistic regression was used on data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Results: Results concluded that Georgia residents were less likely to have health insurance after the ACA was passed. Significant association between weight status and health care services through insurance coverage was not found. The results show that increased access to care including preventive services for obese and overweight post ACA is yet to be observed. Conclusions: Findings present a need for lawmakers to develop policy to promote insurance enrollment for Georgian residents. This is critical as the state sees an increase in overweight and obesity that are risk factor to many chronic disease conditions.
Background: Obesity is classified as having a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 and is associated with higher risks of type 2 diabetes, coronary heart diseases, hypertension, and other adverse health outcomes. In 2015, the prevalence of self-reported obesity among adults in Georgia was 30.7. The present study focused on how, in 2015, lifestyle factors, specifically nutrition and physical activity levels, related with weight status in Georgia. Methods:The dataset used for this analysis was from the 2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. The association between weight status (as measured by BMI) and nutrition and physical activity levels was examined by use of linear regressions, controlling for socio-demographic variables. Results:The sample consisted of 3,543 adult respondents in Georgia, of whom 2,285 (64.5%) were overweight or obese. Regarding the variables assessing nutrition, vegetable consumption had a significant association with weight status: one unit increase in consumption of vegetables decreased BMI by 0.009 (p=0.039). Conclusions:Vegetable consumption was negatively associated with BMI. Future research should examine, with more robust measures, the relationship between physical activity levels and weight status and determine how other lifestyle factors relate to weight status. This will become increasingly relevant, as the rates for obesity in Georgia and the United States continue to trend upward.
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