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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
PROPOSED RESOLUTION FOR FOOD IS MEDICINE
WHEREAS, food plays a significant role in preventing, developing or resolving chronic diseases; and
WHEREAS, obesity-related conditions, including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers are among the leading causes of preventable, premature death; and
WHEREAS, the rate of adult obesity in the United States is 42.4 percent, an increase of 26 percent since 2008; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, 31.4 percent of suburban Cook County adult residents had obesity, an increase of more than 10 percent in the past ten years; and
WHEREAS, obesity rates are higher among Black and Hispanic suburban Cook County residents than among White and Asian residents; and
WHEREAS, one in two adults in the United States has diabetes or pre-diabetes, and more than 10 percent of suburban Cook County adults have been diagnosed with diabetes; and
WHEREAS, poor nutrition causes an estimated $1.1 trillion in economic losses each year due to excess healthcare spending and lost productivity; and
WHEREAS, food insecurity, defined as the lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life, affects approximately 33.8 million people in the United States and is linked to lower food quality and a higher probability of chronic disease diagnosis; and
WHEREAS, in the Hunger in Our Community Status Report (2021), the Greater Chicago Food Depository projected that over 613,000 Cook County residents live in food insecure households; and
WHEREAS, the Hunger in Our Community Status Report further found that Cook County households with children experience higher rates of food insecurity, especially households of color; and
WHEREAS, data in Cook County Department of Public Health's WePLAN 2025, the region's community health assessment and improvement plan, indicate that the south and west suburbs of Cook County share the greatest burden of low income and low food access, with over 35 percent of the p...
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