​Joelle Wolstein is a research scientist at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. Her recent study found the rate of obese adults in California has jumped from 19 percent in 2001 to 25 percent in 2011-2012. In this brief interview, she discusses overweight and obesity among teens, as well as hidden contributors to obesity, such as neighborhood safety.

Q: People often think obesity results primarily from poor habits. But it's more complicated, isn't it?

​Yes. Some see the increasing rates of obesity and think it's solely based on genetics or bad choices ― eating junk food instead of healthier foods and playing video games instead of getting exercise. But being overweight or obese often results from a lack of opportunities to make better choices. The poor tend to live in neighborhoods where they feel unsafe or don't have access to safe parks, which limits their ability to exercise outdoors; they live in areas where fresh fruits and vegetables are less available or affordable, so they can’t eat the recommended amount; and they have transportation constraints and can't get to better-stocked grocery stores where there are healthier options, so they eat the less healthy foods available in their neighborhoods. These and many other social and environmental problems also factor into why Californians are becoming more obese.

Q: The adult obesity rate must have gotten better in some areas of the state between 2001 and 2012?

​The rate went down in four counties, San Francisco, San Mateo, San Luis Obispo and Yolo, but these decreases were not statistically significant, meaning the differences we found may not be reliable estimates of what occurred in those counties. Unfortunately, we also found that rates went up significantly in 16 counties and in 6 of those counties the rates increased by at least 10 percentage points. Tehama/Glenn/Colusa counties had the largest increase of 14 percentage points.

Q: You focused more on adult obesity than adolescent obesity ― are we doing better in that area?

​Not really. Seventeen percent of teens were obese and 16 percent were overweight, statewide. It’s encouraging that these figures have not changed drastically in California since 2001 but teen overweight and obesity is still high. Additionally, there is a great deal of variation by county: from 13.7 percent of teens in Marin County to 48.7 percent in Solano County. Studies have found that overweight or obese teens often grow up to be obese as adults, so it is important to instill healthy habits from a young age. We need to address the sources of these disparities and invest in the health of our youth so they have the opportunity to become healthier adults.

​Joelle Wolstein is a research scientist at the Center and co-author of a new fact sheet on the upswing in kids’ consumption of sugary beverages. In this brief interview, Wolstein discusses the recent trend and factors that may contribute to it.

Q: Consumption of sugary beverages among children dropped in half between 2003 and 2009, from 49 percent to 26 percent. What prompted the uptick after this steady decline?

There are a number of factors that could be contributing to this reversal. Consumers have become more aware of the sugar in soda and drink less of it as a result. However, people may be replacing soda with drinks they consider to be “healthier” — like flavored waters, iced teas, or sports drinks — that actually contain quite a bit of sugar although less than soda.

Marketing could be influencing the trend as well. Beverage industry giants seem to be responding to the downward shift in soda consumption by acquiring “healthier” drink companies and targeting consumers from both ends — campaigning for higher sales of both sodas (through marketing ploys like Share A Coke®) and “healthier” — but still sugary — drinks at the same time.

Q: Are some communities more vulnerable than others?

​Without a doubt! Our data show that low-income children and children of color consume higher quantities of sugary drinks than their higher-income and white counterparts, respectively. Communities of color are exposed to more advertising for sugary drinks than other communities. Additionally, compared to higher-income neighborhoods, low-income neighborhoods have a higher density of fast food restaurants and convenience stores, where sugary drinks are readily available. People who see more ads for sugary drinks and go to places that sell them are likely to consume them more often.

Q: You have a young daughter. As she grows up, how will you keep soda and sugary beverages out of her diet given the influence of marketing and peer pressure?

​My daughter is only 2 years old so it’s been relatively easy to limit her exposure to sugar and other unhealthy foods up to this point. I know that when she goes to school in the near future, and as she becomes exposed to different foods and begins to make her own choices, that will quickly change.

Regardless, there are a number of things I can do as a parent. First, I can limit the drink options at home to healthy ones, like water and milk. I can also educate her about why her regular beverage of choice should be water and why sugary drinks should be consumed in moderation, if at all. Finally, I believe it’s my responsibility as a parent to model healthy behaviors for her, whether they’re related to food, physical activity, body image, etc. Hopefully the efforts made by individual households, paired with those of health advocacy groups and government agencies, will drive a shift in social norms when it comes to exposing children to unhealthy foods and beverages.