{"id":256228,"date":"2021-03-07T18:51:42","date_gmt":"2021-03-07T18:51:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/breaking-news\/weight-isnt-always-within-your-control-why-some-states-are-prioritizing-obesity-patients-for-the-covid-19-vaccine.html"},"modified":"2021-03-07T18:51:42","modified_gmt":"2021-03-07T18:51:42","slug":"weight-isnt-always-within-your-control-why-some-states-are-prioritizing-obesity-patients-for-the-covid-19-vaccine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/breaking-news\/weight-isnt-always-within-your-control-why-some-states-are-prioritizing-obesity-patients-for-the-covid-19-vaccine.html","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Weight isn&#8217;t always within your control&#8217;: Why some states are prioritizing obesity patients for the COVID-19 vaccine"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el\" aria-label=\"Video - Johnson  Johnson vaccine rollout begins following FDA authorization\"><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Patty Nece hasn\u2019t been inside a retail store for<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>an entire year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Even though most Virginia businesses reopened by July and grocery stores remained opened throughout the pandemic, the 62-year-old hasn&#8217;t dared to step inside one since last March, as her obesity puts her at risk for severe COVID-19.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Because of her disease, she\u2019s eligible to get the vaccine and has an appointment for her first dose on Wednesday. While she\u2019s looking forward to getting vaccinated, she\u2019s also disappointed some Americans have criticized people with obesity who are prioritized for the vaccine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cIt displays a misunderstanding \u2026 weight isn\u2019t always within your control,\u201d said Nece, chairwoman of the Obesity Action Coalition. \u201cLike many diseases, there\u2019s personal responsibility involved, but that\u2019s not the end. The mantra of &#8216;eat less and move more&#8217; \u2013 which I\u2019ve heard my entire life \u2013 isn\u2019t the answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">In one instance, a news anchor for WTTG-TV in Washington, D.C.,\u00a0sent<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>a tweet criticizing<strong><\/strong>health officials for prioritizing obesity patients\u00a0for the vaccine.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_cp\" aria-label=\"The latest on coronavirus\" data-c-cta=\"DIG DEEPER\"><img class=\"gnt_em_cp_cw_i\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-src=\"https:\/\/www.wordpressdynamos.com\/timesofnewscdn\/USA\/b41cd_a0e9fd1e-9caf-4b34-a551-4dfce100bf33-AP21063711739775.jpg\" data-gl-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/03\/04\/USAT\/a0e9fd1e-9caf-4b34-a551-4dfce100bf33-AP21063711739775.jpg?crop=4937,3703,x278,y0width=516height=386format=pjpgauto=webp 2x\" alt=\"\" \/><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cI\u2019m annoyed obese people of all ages get priority vaccine access before all essential workers,\u201d <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">Blake McCoy said in the since-deleted tweet.<\/a> \u201cVaccinate all essential workers. Then obese.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">The local station <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">told the New York Daily News<\/a>\u00a0that McCoy was \u201csuspended pending further review\u201d after deleting the offensive tweet\u00a0<a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">and posting an apology on Twitter,<\/a> but health experts say it\u2019s another example of how weight bias permeates the health system and American society.<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"><\/aside>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">Obesity and COVID-19<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Roughly 40% of adult Americans have obesity, <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from 2018.\u00a0<\/a>Studies have\u00a0shown people with obesity are more likely to have worse outcomes from COVID-19 than others with a lower body mass index (BMI).<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Researchers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill found people with a BMI above<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>30 had a 113% higher risk for hospitalization, a 74% higher risk for ICU admission and a 48% higher risk of death, <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">according to a study published in August 2020 in Obesity Reviews.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>More could be on the way. Here&#8217;s what it could mean for all of us.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">COVID vaccines for everyone:<\/strong>Three vaccines. Increased manufacturing. How US will have enough COVID-19 vaccine for every US adult in May \u2013 or even sooner.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cPeople\u2019s bodies are mounting such a severe inflammatory response (to COVID-19), and that response is already existing at a baseline in obesity,\u201d Kumar said. \u201cSo, when you add another stimulus, they\u2019re getting even sicker.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Some patients also may have obesity hypoventilation syndrome, a breathing disorder that causes someone to have too much carbon dioxide and too little oxygen in the blood, <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cIt\u2019s not from carrying the weight,\u201d said Dr. Ethan Lazarus, president-elect of the Obesity Medicine Association. \u201cTheir lungs are restricted so they\u2019re not able to expand to get the oxygen they need.\u201d That\u00a0puts them at further risk for COVID-19 complications.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Patients with obesity also have an impaired immune system, health experts say, which not only makes them more prone to infectious diseases but also makes it harder to fight them off.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Obesity can change the metabolic state of immune cells and how they function, said Dr. Nancie MacIver, associate professor at Duke University School of Medicine. The excess inflammation may be an indication the immune system is\u00a0dysfunctional.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">Obesity and the COVID-19 vaccine<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Obesity patients&#8217; altered immune system has led experts to worry about their response to the COVID-19 vaccine, especially as past studies have suggested they may not\u00a0respond as well to influenza vaccines.<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Researchers at UNC Chapel Hill found that among vaccinated people, nearly 10% of patients with obesity were infected with the flu compared with about 5% of participants with a lower BMI, according to a 2017 study <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">published in the International Journal of Obesity.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">But health experts say obesity patients shouldn\u2019t be discouraged\u00a0and urge them to get the COVID-19 vaccine when it\u00a0is available to them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cPeople should understand the difference between not effective and reduced efficacy,\u201d Kumar said. \u201cEven if a vaccine works less, it\u2019s still better than somebody becoming critically ill in an ICU.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Nece worries, as a patient with obesity, others like her may delay care amid the pandemic because of\u00a0decades of weight bias in the health care system.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el\" aria-label=\"Video - Biden: US will have enough vaccines for all adults by end of May\"><button class=\"gnt_em_vp_a gnt_em_vp__tp_a\" data-g-r=\"vp_tg\" data-c-vpattrs=\"{muted:false,xprp:1,bContent:false,an:usatoday,pn:USA TODAY,vidNum:2}\" data-c-vpdata=\"{adsEnabled:true,awsPath:news\/politics,byline:,canonicalURL:,contentSourceCode:USAT,createDate:2021-03-02T23:05:23Z,credit:USA TODAY,duration:45000,headline:Biden says US will have enough vaccines for all adults by end of May,hlsURL:https:\/\/hlsmedia.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/video-renditions\/7562e60d-7043-4771-9020-858502c0a189\/bd51feea-5c4b-4d46-8e38-2e179f8a7fea\/1080p_30fps,720p_30fps,480p_30fps,master.m3u8?subtitles=6894063002,id:6894063002,image:{url:https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/03\/02\/USAT\/85571cc6-4eb1-44c9-90d0-3e8a408c1a35-VPC_BIDEN_MAY_VACCINE_DESK.00_00_09_00.Still004.jpg,opto:true},initialPublishDate:2021-03-02T23:05:23Z,keywords:Coronavirus COVID-19,Overall Neutral,Vaccines,Joe Biden,Video Syndication - USAT,International,Video Syndication \u2013 International,Video Syndication - Voice Platforms,mp4URL:https:\/\/downloadmedia.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/video-renditions\/7562e60d-7043-4771-9020-858502c0a189\/bd51feea-5c4b-4d46-8e38-2e179f8a7fea\/1080p_30fps.mp4,origin:USA TODAY,pageURL:{long:https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/videos\/news\/politics\/2021\/03\/02\/biden-us-have-enough-vaccines-all-adults-end-may\/6894063002\/},promoBrief:President Biden said the U.S. will have enough COVID-19 vaccines for every adult by the end of May, two months earlier than expected.,propertyName:USATODAY,publishDate:2021-03-02T23:30:49Z,series:,ssts:{section:news,subsection:politics,topic:,subtopic:},tags:[{id:3cf746dc-de06-4d2f-be6c-aa7f4e34936e,name:Coronavirus COVID-19},{id:b1f98bf0-fec4-4355-b249-83c774dfa894,name:Overall Neutral},{id:4d6aa98a-7db1-4c55-9e22-87e147aca992,name:Vaccines},{id:bce3c45f-197d-4845-8248-87d4f3a737c8,name:Joe Biden},{id:6f55135f-3b5e-490d-8a52-a3b8e1f11ee7,name:Video Syndication - USAT},{id:f5a026dc-3c18-4e23-8d5e-365a861c7eb6,name:International},{id:abb1b69c-143a-47e0-9004-50120aa6b80d,name:Video Syndication \u2013 International},{id:107d90c4-fbfe-413e-a46b-e4ef423d77e1,name:Video Syndication - Voice Platforms}],title:Biden: US will have enough vaccines for all adults by end of May,url:\/videos\/news\/politics\/2021\/03\/02\/biden-us-have-enough-vaccines-all-adults-end-may\/6894063002\/}\" aria-label=\"Play video\"><img alt=\"\" class=\"gnt_em_vp_img\" data-g-r=\"lazy vp_po\" data-gl-src=\"https:\/\/www.wordpressdynamos.com\/timesofnewscdn\/USA\/986d5_85571cc6-4eb1-44c9-90d0-3e8a408c1a35-VPC_BIDEN_MAY_VACCINE_DESK.00_00_09_00.Still004.jpg\" data-gl-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/03\/02\/USAT\/85571cc6-4eb1-44c9-90d0-3e8a408c1a35-VPC_BIDEN_MAY_VACCINE_DESK.00_00_09_00.Still004.jpg?width=1320height=742fit=cropformat=pjpgauto=webp 2x\" \/><\/button><\/aside>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">Obesity Awareness Week and weight bias<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Weight bias in the medical setting manifests itself in a myriad of ways, from having ill-fitted\u00a0gowns and weighing patients in public\u00a0to misdiagnosing a life-threatening illness because of\u00a0a doctor\u2019s inability to look past a person&#8217;s<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>excess weight.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">After years of weight lecturing and bad experiences at doctors&#8217; offices, many patients internalize that bias and avoid treatment or preventative care altogether, said James Zervios, vice president of marketing and communications at the Obesity Action Coalition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Nece delayed her mammogram by\u00a015 years to avoid the stress and embarrassment of a doctor\u2019s visit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cYou get tired of dealing with it,&#8221;\u00a0she said.\u00a0&#8220;You get tired of the shame and blame that gets heaped on you, and it doesn\u2019t help.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">But during <a href=\"javascript:void(0);\">Obesity Care Week<\/a>, which ends Saturday, advocates such as Zervios and Nece want to spread awareness that obesity is not just a behavioral disease and can be influenced by genetics, hormones and even medications.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">They also urge those who have obesity to seek help from health care providers despite weight bias, especially during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cWe encourage people to remember that they are worth the care that they deserve, and don\u2019t take that kind of bias and deal with it,\u201d Zervios\u00a0said. \u201cEverybody deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><em>Follow Adrianna Rodriguez on Twitter: @AdriannaUSAT.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><em>Health and patient safety coverage at USA TODAY is made possible in part by a grant from the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare. The Masimo Foundation does not provide editorial input.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><img class=\"gnt_em_gl_i\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-src=\"https:\/\/www.wordpressdynamos.com\/timesofnewscdn\/USA\/ad8c1_e0e6f9bc-cb8c-44ff-9583-8ab9fe54c2a4-AP_APTOPIX_Virus_Outbreak_Vaccine.jpg\" data-gl-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/03\/01\/USAT\/e0e6f9bc-cb8c-44ff-9583-8ab9fe54c2a4-AP_APTOPIX_Virus_Outbreak_Vaccine.jpg?crop=5468,3076,x1,y344width=1320height=744format=pjpgauto=webp 2x\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"372\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Article source: http:\/\/rssfeeds.usatoday.com\/~\/645814444\/0\/usatoday-newstopstories~Weight-isnt-always-within-your-control-Why-some-states-are-prioritizing-obesity-patients-for-the-COVID-vaccine\/<\/a>\r\n<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Patty Nece hasn\u2019t been inside a retail store for\u00a0an entire year. Even though most Virginia businesses reopened by July and grocery stores remained opened throughout the pandemic, the 62-year-old hasn&#8217;t dared to step inside one since last March, as her obesity puts her at risk for severe COVID-19. Because of her disease, she\u2019s eligible to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":256229,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[13],"class_list":["post-256228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=256228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/256229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=256228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=256228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=256228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}