New Healthy Sioux Falls Initiative

SIOUX FALLS, SD - The latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control find 35 percent of adults and 17 percent of children are obese.

Sioux Falls is no exception when it comes to increasing rates of obesity, along with other health indicators that are trending in the wrong direction. That's why the city's Health Department is launching a Community Transformation Initiative.

Health officials will reach out to other sectors of society, look into what citizens' health needs are and what resources are available to meet those needs.

"This is a problem that is not going to go away anytime soon, clearly. Even though the overall prevalence has plateaued over the last several years, if you look at the rates of obesity in children and adolescents, this is clearly a public health problem that is going to continue for the next several decades," Bariatric Surgeon Dr. Stacy Brethauer said.

Brethauer says nationally it's going to take a team effort before the numbers begin to decrease.

The Sioux Falls Health Department initiative goes beyond the city; it's a partnership with the South Dakota Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control.