Poverty and Obesity in the U.S., Diabetes, November 2011

Halting U.S. diabetes/obesity epidemic and curtailing its health cost may necessitate addressing poverty.

• Data from 3,139 counties in the U.S. Quintiles are cohorts of counties ranked by the percentage of people living with poverty.
• Quintile 1, the wealthiest quintile, includes 630 U.S. counties with a mean county poverty rate of 8.2% (median household income, $56,259).
• Quintile 5, the poorest quintile, includes 629 counties with a mean poverty rate of 25% (median household income, $32,679).
• A: County age-adjusted obesity rates by poverty quintile.
• B: County obesity rates vs. county leisure-time sedentary rates (sedentary adults are those who report no physical activity or exercise other than at their regular job).
• C: County sedentary rates.
• D: Age-adjusted diabetes rate by poverty quintile.