A new fitness campaign is underway in Albany County to fight obesity.
According to the New York State Department of Health, more than 30% of adults in Albany County are obese, one percentage point higher than the state average, and the obesity rate is particularly high among black residents at 36.8%.
Pat Fahy, a Democratic state representative from the 109th District, is concerned about the statistics.
“It’s actually a little scary to look at the next generation and see the graphs of where young people are going. “It’s very deep, and it’s also profound in terms of future problems,” Fahey said.
Synergy 1 fitness club owner Tinel McDermott has developed a new campaign to help local people adopt healthier diets and become healthier. “It’s a big initiative. This will be a fallback to a fitness program where the person with the most results over 30 days will win $1,000. It’s either about their fitness or what they want to do. So my goal in this work is not to make money. My goal is to help people understand that action is required and change is needed.”
Albany County Executive Dan McCoy said the new campaign is aimed at getting residents on a diet and is encouraging minority communities to get involved.
“In that area, not only obesity is serious, but diabetes is serious,” McCoy said. “People lose legs and hands. It starts with the feet, then the toes, then the feet, then the feet, and you know what? Slowly you start losing something from your body. Because… How did the way we eat suddenly become like this over the years?”
Obesity is associated with increased cholesterol levels and increased risk of high blood pressure. Tony Gaddy, co-founder, president and CEO of the Upstate New York Black Chamber of Commerce, said healthy businesses foster healthier communities.
“You need people to run that business, but if the people who run that business aren’t healthy, if our customers and customers aren’t healthy, our community can’t be healthy. It’s important for us to participate in opportunities like this, celebrate Black-owned businesses, and address issues around our community like health and wellness, and everyone can share their personal journey with that. “We’re sharing the same department.”
Two years ago, McCoy began a personal journey to combat the health issues she said were caused by being overweight.
“How did it get so big? How did I end up like this? You know, I went to the doctor. I might talk, hey, I’m on 20 different medications. I feel like an 80-year-old man. And he said, “Dan, some people inherit wealth, and some people inherit good genes. You have neither.”
McCoy said eating well and exercising helped her regain her health.
“You gain 5 pounds, you gain 10 pounds, you gain 30 pounds, you gain 50 pounds. You don’t move as much. You don’t move around as much. Time passes. Time is a tricky thing. And data… Analysis and more show why we need a place like this, why we need a challenge like this. We have to challenge ourselves in the county and insist that we need to go on a diet together. No,” McCoy said.
The Trust for America’s Health recently released a new report on obesity rates in America, showing that 4 in 10 American adults are obese and 23 states have an adult obesity rate of 35 percent or higher. It turned out. Ten years ago, no state was at that level. Numbers are also increasing among children and other marginalized groups. Dr. Nadine Gracia, Chair of the Trust, spoke to WAMC.
“To truly address these disparities, we also need to focus on:”
especially for these types of socio-economic and structural barriers.
everyone is sure
It gives us the opportunity to live a healthy life, have access to affordable and healthy food, and be physically active,” Gracia said.
McCoy hinted he would want to talk more about fitness after presenting the Albany County budget, which is expected to be released around Oct. 10.
