Physical Disability and Obesity (original) (raw)

Obesity, Nutrition, and Physical Activity for People with Significant Disabilities

Physical Disabilities: Education and Related Services

This review of literature focuses on health issues for individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ID), Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), and Multiple Impairments (MI). This population has two to three times higher overweight and obesity prevalence than typically developing individuals. Furthermore, they have higher risk for obesity related diseases such as reduced lifespan and quality of life. Contributing factors for higher rates of overweight or obesity, effective interventions, and barriers to health knowledge and practice are discussed. Implications and future research needs are highlighted.

Overweight and obesity among U.S. adults with and without disability, 1999–2012

Preventive Medicine Reports, 2015

Objective. Examine the relationship between disability and overweight/obesity among U.S. adults. Methods. Study sample (N = 30,363) came from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2012 waves. Disability was classified into five domains using standardized indices. Any disability was defined as having any difficulty in performing at least one of the activities in any of the five disability domains. Logistic regressions were conducted to estimate the association between disability and overweight/obesity, adjusted by individual characteristics and multiyear complex sampling design. Results. Over a quarter (25.99%) of U.S. adults 20 years and older reported having any disability. The overweight/obesity rates across all disability domains were substantially higher than their nondisabled counterparts. The rate of overweight and obesity combined (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m 2), obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m 2), grade 2 and 3 obesity combined (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m 2), and grade 3 obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m 2) among people with any disability were 1.14 (73.54% versus 64.50%), 1.38 (41.37% versus 29.99%), 1.71 (19.81% versus 11.60%), and 1.94 (8.60% versus 4.43%) times the corresponding rate among people without disability, respectively. Compared with their nondisabled counterparts, the adjusted odds of overweight and obesity combined, obesity, grade 2 and 3 obesity combined, and grade 3 obesity were 24% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 14%-36%), 32% (95% CI: 22%-44%), 49% (95% CI: 35%-64%), and 55% (95% CI: 27%-89%) higher among people with any disability, respectively. Conclusion. People with disabilities have substantially higher risk of obesity compared to their nondisabled peers.

Disability prevalence among healthy weight, overweight, and obese adults

Obesity, 2013

Objective: Obesity is associated with adverse health outcomes in people with and without disabilities. However, little is known about disability prevalence among people who are obese. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence and type of disability among adults who are obese. Design and Methods: Pooled data from the 2003-2009 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) were analyzed to obtain national prevalence estimates of disability, disability type and obesity. The disability prevalence was stratified by body mass index (BMI): healthy weight (BMI 18.5-<25.0), overweight (BMI 25.0-<30.0), and obese (BMI 30.0). Results: In this pooled sample, among the 25.4% of US adults who were obese, 41.7% reported a disability. In contrast, 26.7% of those with a healthy weight and 28.5% of those who were overweight reported a disability. The most common disabilities among respondents with obesity were movement difficulty (32.5%) and work limitation (16.6%). Conclusions: This research contributes to the literature on obesity by including disability as a demographic in assessing the burden of obesity. Because of the high prevalence of disability among those who are obese, public health programs should consider the needs of those with disabilities when designing obesity prevention and treatment programs.

The prevalence and determinants of obesity in adults with intellectual disabilities

Journal of Applied …, 2008

People with intellectual disabilities experience significant health inequalities compared with the general population, including a shorter life expectancy and high levels of unmet health needs. Another accepted measure of health inequalities, the prevalence of obesity, has been shown to be higher in adults with intellectual disabilities than in the general population. While the factors contributing to the increased prevalence among adults with intellectual disabilities are not well understood, the high rates of obesity among younger adults highlight the need for further research involving children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities. To take forward the priorities for research and the development of effective, accessible services, there is a need for collaboration between professionals working in the fields of intellectual disabilities and obesity.

Obesity in children with developmental and/or physical disabilities

Disability and Health Journal, 2015

Children with developmental or physical disabilities, many of whom face serious healthrelated conditions, also are affected by the current obesity crisis. Although evidence indicates that children with disabilities have a higher prevalence of obesity than do children without disabilities, little is known of the actual magnitude of the problem in this population. To address this concern, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) held a conference on obesity in children with intellectual, developmental, or physical disabilities, bringing together scientists and practitioners in the fields of obesity and disability to foster collaboration, identify barriers to healthy weight status in populations with disabilities, propose avenues to solutions through research and practice, and develop a research agenda to address the problem. This article describes current knowledge about prevalence of obesity in this population, discusses factors influencing obesity risk, and summarizes recommendations for research presented at the conference.