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Plan For Solving Obesity For Future
Generation In Salem, Oregon
Presented by:
Tai­Cheng Liu,
Ahmad

Aledrisi, Aaron Andersson, Sarah Cho, Michelle Thomas
To:
Oregon Community Foundation (OCF)
February 24, 2015

In Salem, OR the obesity rates are among the highest in the state. Our organization, Oregon
Pediatric Society(OPS), intends to stop obesity in its tracks by influencing the high school students of the Salem high schools. Along with the Health and Wellbeing of Vulnerable
Populations of Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) we are looking forward to establishing a better community in Oregon. Below, we are proposing one solution with three parts in order to reduce the rate of obesity in Salem: H.O.P.E.: Healthy Options, Physical activity, and Education. 1. SITUATION ANALYSIS th
In 2009, 60% (3 in 5 adults) of Oregon adults were overweight or obese. 23% of 11 graders in
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th
Oregon, our future adults, were overweight or obese in 2010, nearly one in four 11 graders. In a closer look of the obestiy rates in Oregon, we see that Marion county has a significantly higher adult obesity rate than the rest of the state. Zooming in even closer, the areas surrounding Salem
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have obesity rates ranging from 27.2% to 30.9%. (See Figure 1) Within the city limits, Salem,
OR, has an adult obesity rate of 27.2% which ranks among the top 50 most obese cities in
America according to livescience.com. Therefore, we conclude that obesity is a major problem in
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this particular area of Oregon.

We are targeting High School students in 11th grade specifically because they are approaching the stage in life where they begin to make their own decisions, while still being open minded.
This is also the stage where they are experiencing extreme physical and emotional change.
Because our constituency are close to being adults themselves, we want to help instill healthy habits that they can apply in their adult life and pass onto their children. In the Salem­Keizer school district, 11,654 students are enrolled in the district’s high schools. Of those, 2770 students are in 11th grade and 60.7% are on the free or reduced lunch program, approximately 1682
[4]
students
. We are going to focus on 11th graders as our expermental model, however some of

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our solutions are going to affect other students when the programs succeed. Eliminating the obesity rate in time by preventing child obesity is not just a dream. Factors that contribute towards an unheathy future for our high school student’s are a lack of physical activity, zero or minimal nutruitional education, and meals that do not follow the
ChooseMyPlate.gov model that are provided by schools. As we refer below to Figure 4, we can see an example of the breakfast and lunch options that our students have each week. Many of the options these students have are unhealthy due to the amount of starch and carbs offered. A small portion, such as fruits and vegtables, are offered as side options to supliment every day lunches but are not required or included in the main meal. Only 12% of our constituency said that they
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participated in physical activity and only 18% ate five or more servings fruit and vegetables. [6]
Obese teens are 16 times more likely to be severely obese as adults
. This is partly due to genetics, but largely influenced by lack of physical activity and a lack of meals that follow
ChooseMyPlate.gov model. If this issue of obestiy continues through adulthood, severe health issues may arise along with costly medical bills. Obesity related medical treatment costs in America are between are $147 to $210 billion a
[8]
year. Childhood obesity medical expenses alone are almost 10% of the total cost, 14.1 billion
[7]
in total, Oregon contributes $1.6 billion in direct costs. The facts point to one truth, the nation cannot sustain itself if obesity continues to grow at the current rate. Not