Media Advisory

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Monday, December 5, 2011

What:

Contra Costa Health Services on Tuesday will present a report to the Richmond City Council about the disturbing health effects soda and other sugary beverages have on the city’s residents. Richmond has one of the highest rates of childhood obesity in the county. According to the Health Services report, more than one out of 10 deaths in Richmond can be attributed to obesity. Additionally, the report found that more than half of all children and adults in Richmond are overweight or obese. The presentation follows a statewide study released last month that found the number of school-age children who are overweight or obese in Contra Costa rose by 3.5 percentage points to an alarming overall 33.85 percent between 2005 and 2010. Contra Costa Health Services gave a similar presentation to the City of San Pablo in November.

Who:

The presentation will be made by Dr. Wendel Brunner, Director of Public Health for Contra Costa Health Services.

When:

The Richmond City Council meeting will take place at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 440 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond.

Why:

Obesity poses a serious health risk to children and one of the biggest contributors to this epidemic are sugar-sweetened beverages. There are 583 retail outlets that sell sugar-sweetened beverages to residents of Richmond and an average of five such outlets within a quarter mile of schools. According to local health officials, the environment must be changed to help support families in making healthy choices in order to effectively slow the epidemic of obesity.

To find out more about obesity in Contra Costa, visit www.cchealth.org/topics/obesity/ To view the Health Services report, visit www.cchealth.org/topics/publications/

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