Obesity — it’s difficult to manage, it’s sometimes deadly and it’s leaving the United States in dire straits. Now, just ahead of the Masters, it’s landed Augusta on a list of the country’s most overweight cities. And, according to an Augusta obesity expert, it’s only getting worse.
Personal finance company WalletHub recently published its list on the most overweight and obese cities in the U.S., ranking the Garden City within the top 10. The report featured the 100 most populated cities in the country, including Atlanta (ranked 63rd). Augusta, however, nearly topped the list because it featured the third most obese adults among the nation’s biggest cities.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution spoke with Dr. Lisa Renee Hilton, the director of the Center of Obesity and Metabolism at Augusta University Medical Center, to break down the city’s weight problem.
Obesity rates in the U.S. are high
Hilton, a board certified general surgeon and professor, has dedicated her career to battling what is arguably America’s biggest health threat: morbid obesity.
“We see patients every single day with obesity,” she said. “We have a very high rate. It’s not just Augusta, Georgia. If you actually look nationally, I think it’s the most recent CDC data that says that 73% of adults in America are either overweight or obese. And if you look at obesity rates, those are quite high as well. So this is, in my opinion, probably the most pressing epidemic that our country is facing.”
According to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just in 2019, the obesity epidemic cost the country roughly $173 billion in medical expenditures. By the World Obesity Federation’s 2023 estimates, the worldwide economic impact of obesity could reach $4.32 trillion by 2035 — when more than half the global population could be overweight or obese.
The stigma behind weight and obesity
According to Hilton, metabolic surgery is the gold standard for obesity management. Yet, the country isn’t putting the practice into action. From family members to the workplace, people suffering from obesity often face judgment from their peers, she said. It’s a stigma that can be deadly, if the chronic disease goes untreated.
“It’s been defined as a medical disease for years by numerous medical societies, yet there’s so much stigma around weight and obesity — and even seeking care for it — that unfortunately a lot of patients who have this disease continue to not seek care,” Hilton said. “They’re not utilizing treatment options that they have. Or they want to, but they don’t have coverage. They don’t have insurance that provides treatment.”
According to Augusta University’s annual public health report, statewide obesity prevalence can change drastically, depending on a Georgia resident’s circumstances. Female adults have nearly 7% more obesity prevalence than males. Those with college educations have only 29.3% prevalence, compared to those without high school diplomas at 38.1%. Black Georgia residents have a prevalence of 43.2%, compared to 32.7% for white residents. The report also revealed that, over the years, Georgia’s overall obesity prevalence has only gone up.
“It does not surprise me at all that these numbers are increasing when every single day I am fighting with insurance companies to try to get them to allow these patients to take care of themselves,” Hilton said. “Augusta’s always had a shockingly high obesity rate and it will continue to get worse, until we acknowledge that this is a problem and offer patients treatment.”
Why is Augusta one of the most obese cities?
According to the CDC’s latest data, Georgia scored worse than just over half states in 2023 with an obesity rate of 35%. But Augusta may have more obese adults than almost any other major city, according to WalletHub’s findings. What’s going on in the Garden City?
“I look at patients that I see in clinic each and every day and, when I talk to them, I do think we have some disparities in our city, such as we have food deserts and food swamps,” Hilton explained. “Lots of cities have those issues; that’s not a unique issue to Augusta. But if you even look through at the ZIP codes around the hospital system (in Augusta) and you look and say ‘where can my patients go find a green space to walk or find a healthy place to get fresh food?’ … It’s gonna be a struggle.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
“There’s not an overwhelming amount of opportunity for patients to necessarily seek out a healthy lifestyle in some of these areas,” she continued.
“We talk about improving access to green space and access to healthy food all the time, but I think that Augusta still really struggles in some of those areas. And I think there’s room for improvement.”
According to the public health report, rural Georgia residents faced a 2.7% higher obesity prevalence than urban residents in 2023. At 37.5%, rural Georgia residents faced a higher prevalence than all of Nebraska — the CDC’s 10th most obese state of 2023.
From finding child care to transportation, Hilton said rural Georgia residents are facing an uphill battle, only compounded by the fact that they have “incredibly limited” access to obesity specialists.
“We know that patients that live in rural areas have unique challenges, especially when it comes to obesity,” Hilton said.
“At least if you live in a city like Atlanta, maybe you have access to MARTA, to buses, to subways. If you live in southwest Georgia and you are trying to get to a major health care center that maybe specializes in obesity management, you’re literally looking at hours in a car.”
Obesity experts can help
Anyone struggling with obesity should seek help treating the chronic disease. According to Hilton, there’s no need to shoulder the burden alone.
“Just like if I was diagnosed with any other disease, I would get online and I would find a center or a specialist in my area that focuses on obesity,” she explained. “At Augusta University, if you call my office and say, ‘I want to go talk to Dr. Hilton about treating my obesity’ you’re gonna get an intake visit that we call a comprehensive obesity management visit, and I’m gonna sit you down. I’m gonna say here are your stats. Here’s what you weigh today. Here’s your height. Here are all of your medical problems. Now, let’s talk about all the options you have to treat your obesity.”
She also stressed that the appointment would be about more than the number patients hope to see on the scale — it’s about reducing major health risks, like heart disease and cancer.
“You have a disease, you deserve treatment and you deserve all of the treatment available to you.”
For more weight management information, visit cdc.gov/healthy-weight-growth/losing-weight.
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