Mississippi South Delta PLACE MATTERS Team Holds Meeting to Discuss Local Obesity Crisis

Rolling Fork, MS— Rolling Fork, MS—In celebration of Food Day—a nationwide celebration and movement for healthy, affordable, and sustainable food—the Mississippi South Delta PLACE MATTERS team held a community meeting to discuss the connection between the rise in obesity and lack of affordable, healthy foods in Sharkey and Issaquena counties. The South Delta PLACE MATTERS team is part of an initiative of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies that builds the capacity of communities to address social, economic, and environmental conditions that shape health and health outcomes.

Mississippi has the highest obesity rate in the nation; more than one in three (36%) Mississippi adults are overweight or obese. The problem is acute in the South Delta; nearly two in five adults in Issaquena (37%) and Sharkey (40%) counties are overweight or obese. Mirroring national trends, low-income families and people of color in the South Delta are particularly at risk for obesity and the chronic health conditions that often accompany it. View the full press release here.