CDC's Health Equity Resource Toolkit: disseminating guidance for state practitioners to address obesity disparities

Abstract

Obesity has been on the rise in the United States over the past three decades, and is high. In addition to population-wide trends, it is clear that obesity affects some groups more than others and can be associated with age, income, education, gender, race and ethnicity, and geographic region. To reverse the obesity epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) promotes evidence-based and practice-informed strategies to address nutrition and physical activity environments and behaviors. These public health strategies require translation into actionable approaches that can be implemented by state and local entities to address disparities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention used findings from an expert panel meeting to guide the development and dissemination of the Health Equity Resource Toolkit for State Practitioners Addressing Obesity Disparities (available at http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/health_equity/toolkit.html). The Toolkit helps public health practitioners take a systematic approach to program planning using a health equity lens. The Toolkit provides a six-step process for planning, implementing, and evaluating strategies to address obesity disparities. Each section contains (a) a basic description of the steps of the process and suggested evidence-informed actions to help address obesity disparities, (b) practical tools for carrying out activities to help reduce obesity disparities, and (c) a "real-world" case study of a successful state-level effort to address obesity with a focus on health equity that is particularly relevant to the content in that section. Hyperlinks to additional resources are included throughout.

Keywords: chronic disease; health disparities; health promotion; nutrition; obesity; physical activity/exercise.

FIGURE 1. The Social Ecological Model

NOTE: This Toolkit focuses on systems and environmental level interventions that are more likely to have a greater population impact on obesity and obesity disparities than individual-level interventions (adapted from the health impact pyramid).

FIGURE 2. Health Equity in Obesity Planning Process

NOTE: The Health Equity in Obesity Planning Process is a general planning process developed from multiple planning processes and models for the Health Equity Resource Toolkit for State Practitioners Addressing Obesity Disparities (developed by SciMetrika, LLC.)