State public health officials are working with schools and other organizations to lower the overweight rate.

01:00 AM EST on Monday, December 27, 2004

BOSTON -- Massachusetts has the third-lowest obesity rate in the United States, but 17 percent of Bay State residents are obese, a 70 percent increase since 1990, according to statistics released last week by state public health officials.

The 2003 state-administered survey also shows that smoking rates are stable among adults but rising among those between 18 and 24 years old, women with disabilities are less likely to get breast cancer screenings, and binge drinking in Massachusetts remains higher than the national average.

According to the Department of Public Health's 2003 report profiling the health of adults in Massachusetts, black and Hispanic women, at 29 percent and 28 percent respectively, had a substantially higher obesity rate than the state's overall adult population.

While policy-makers nationwide seek answers to what some are calling an obesity epidemic, some initiatives are already under way in Massachusetts to reduce obesity rates, DPH epidemiologist Christine Macaluso said.

The state is coordinating overweight prevention and control efforts with public and private organizations, working with schools on awareness, physical education and healthy eating programs, and promoting more walking or biking to schools and workplaces, Macaluso said.

The survey, using a body mass index formula, defines a 5-foot person as obese if they weigh 153 pounds, a 5-foot-4-inch person as obese at 174 pounds, a 5-foot-8-inch person as obese at 197 pounds, and a 6-foot person as obese if they weigh 221 pounds.

The report, known as the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, is based on an ongoing telephone survey of between 7,000 and 8,000 adults who are asked questions crafted by federal and state officials. The survey since 1986 has been generating results and identifying trends, which are then used to formulate and adjust public health policies and programs.

Here are some of the new results:

Massachusetts' 18 percent binge drinking rate remains higher than the national average of 16 percent. The survey defines binge drinking as consumption of five or more alcoholic beverages at any one time in the last month. Public health officials say they are finding binge drinking across socio-economic and age groups, including the elderly. The survey also found that binge drinking rates exceed 20 percent among households with annual income of more than $50,000.

At 85 percent, the number of women 40 or older who reported having had a mammogram in the last two years has jumped 25 percent since 1992. But the percentage of uninsured women undergoing the breast cancer screening test has declined from 73 percent in 2000 to 57 percent in 2003. Macaluso said the survey shows disabled women are becoming less likely to be screened.

In 2003, 28 percent of adults between 18 and 24 years old reported being current smokers, compared to 19 percent of adults overall. Public health officials say the results don't reflect an uptick in sales of tobacco products to minors, which may boost the smoking rate among young adults in future surveys.

Officials also discussed the possibility of more concerted smoking cessation efforts at state and community colleges. The smoking rate among adults has continued a slow and steady decline, but the survey shows that smoking among young adults is on the rise since 2002 when the state began to dismantle smoking cessation programs to help balance its budget.

A new statewide workplace smoking ban law may help reduce smoking rates, public health officials say.

The percentage of adults between the ages of 18 and 64 who have ever been tested for HIV has increased from 27 percent in 1993 to 47 percent in 2003. The survey takers said adults reporting high-risk behaviors are more likely than adults in the overall population to report that they had been tested for HIV, which may reflect the impact of educational programs about HIV risks.