Prevalence of Obesity in Philadelphia's Latino community

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[Date of submission]

HGT Community Health Practicum

Western Governors University

Introduction

In Pennsylvania's Common wealth, Philadelphia is considered as the biggest city. In US, Philadelphia is considered as the 5th city in terms of population and this city is 2nd largest on US's East Coast. In Pennsylvania, Philadelphia is only associated city-country, situated along Schuylkill River and Delaware River in the north eastern side of US. Philadelphia had an approximate 1,526,006 population according to 2010 Census but this eventually increased to 1,547,607 in the year 2012. Philadelphia's 12.6 percentage of its population was Latino and Hispanic and this was its racial structure. There is no particular limit or boundary for the Latino as this community lived throughout the city. In spite of this there exists a region in the Philadelphia, the Eastern North side where Latinos lived in huge concentration. In North Philadelphia to the East of the Broad Street- is the home of huge majority of Latinos. This area exists around the zip-code 19133.regardless of variety of problems they encountered, this brilliant community is loaded with culture and arts, civically involved and it even contained devoted business. Linguistic and cultural obstacles faced by Latino community lead to the harmful, unfavorable and damaging consequences. Additionally, poverty increases health problems leading to the inequalities in treatment and health care process.

Discussion

Community Profile

Obesity was gradually increasing in the communities and as a result of this, the occurrence of weight problems raised the diseases related to obesity like diabetes. It is a major disease caused by fatness. Latinos living in Philadelphia are greatly affected with obesity and its related problems. Moreover, these Latinos are among those groups which are rapidly populating in Philadelphia. In Philadelphia around 1.4 million people living, are making their efforts in dealing with the use of tobacco and obesity all over the community. In this city around 41 percentages of aged youth 6-17 and approximately 67.8 percentages of adults are obese or over weight. In North Philadelphia approximately 70 percentages of people are obese or over weight and this figure is nearly double to the rate of youth in US being overweight and obese. In this region majority of the people are Hispanic. Vegetables and fresh fruits utilization is a complicated factor for the citizens, around 30 percentages of adults and 25 percentages of youth are receiving less than one serving each day. Moreover, up to 25 percentages of the youngsters do not even get a continuous physical exercise once per week. Besides this the entire population indulged in obesity prevention attempts.

Latinos are highly affected by obesity. The Department of Public Health showed a report that Adult Latinos were 71 percentages obese in 2010 in Philadelphia as compared to the 61.6 percentages of the non Hispanic who were not black but white. In 2011, 50.0 percentages of children of Latinos of ages 6-17 were obese as compared to 30.6 percentages of non Hispanic or whites. Philadelphia has adopted a number of changes in ...