Sept. 01--If it's true that we look like the community we live in, Mercedians are fat.
A study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research found 34.3 percent of Merced County residents are obese. The county has the second-highest rate of obesity in the state, topped only by Imperial County.
The study, by lead author Dr. Allison Diamant, also found a high rate of diabetes in the county. Diabetes is a chronic disease marked by high blood sugar, and often goes hand-in-hand with obesity, according to the author. Diabetes can cause kidney failure, blindness and can lead to the loss of limbs.
In the state, the rates of obesity and diabetes jumped 26 percent between 2001 and 2007.
"Obesity and diabetes go hand-in-hand with poorer counties," said Diamant, an internal medicine doctor. Imperial County has the highest unemployment rate in the state, at 30.3 percent in July. In Merced County, the unemployment rate was 18.9 percent in July. Between 7.5 and 8.9 percent of Merced County residents have diabetes.
"We looked at the composition of counties, at race, poverty level and immigration status," Diamant said. She added that when immigrants from other countries come to the state, they have lower incidences of obesity and diabetes, but that soon changes.
"Their risk increases, and they start to look like everyone else," Diamant said.
Dr. Maria Fernandez Renedo, an endocrinologist in Merced, sees and treats diabetic patients every day. She said she agrees that people tend to look like the people they live around.
"If your friends are overweight, you tend to be overweight," Renedo said. "You feel like you are normal."
Renedo said diabetes and obesity are prevalent among certain ethnicities in the county.
"They're very common in Hispanics," Renedo said. "Plus they are high among African-Americans, Southeast Asians and American Indians."
Part of the problem is diet and exercise, and part is genetics, Renedo said. And although the study is deeply disturbing, both Renedo and Diamant believe people can change.
"I find that Merced has ample sidewalks to walk on, and good parks," Renedo said. "Individuals have to take responsibility to change."
Diamant said the availability of cheap, high-fat and high-sugar foods leads to obesity, and watching what goes in our mouths can make a big difference in our health.
"You see kids walking to school past fast-food restaurants, gas stations, convenience stores and candy stores -- and they're going in and buying junk," Diamant said.
Change has to start at the neighborhood level, Diamant said, and she believes Merced County can make a change.
"We have to have neighborhoods where people feel safe to walk outside," she said. "When people are afraid to go outside because they fear for their safety, it affects their level of exercise."
Unfortunately, Renedo said, Merced residents look around and see that the norm for the county is becoming overweight.
"Many studies have shown you resemble your community," she said. "If you see your neighbors walking, you will start walking. It's important for all of us to work on this."
Reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at (209) 385-2486 or creiter@mercedsun-star.com.
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