HHS HealthBeat (February 08, 2006)

Care for the obese

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Those of us who are obese generally need more health care than people who are normal weight. But a study finds overweight and obese Americans are less likely to get some crucial care that can head off disease.

The study supported by the National Institutes of Health looked at three preventive services – mammograms and pap smears in middle-age women to spot signs of breast and cervical cancer, and flu shots in the elderly.

Researcher Truls Ostbye and colleagues from Duke University Medical Center published their findings in the American Journal of Public Health. They found trouble among middle-aged women and the elderly.

"The more overweight or obese a woman was, or an elderly person was, the less likely were they to receive mammograms, pap smears and influenza vaccination." (nine seconds)

Ostbye says Americans with extra pounds need these services and should get them.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: August, 15 2006