Nutrition & Exercise

On the CDC survey with adults, 84% of San Juan County adult residents reported they did not get the daily recommended five or more servings of fruits and vegetables. This is statistically similar to New Mexico.

Among youth, on the 2019 YRRS, three-fourths (76%) of high school students reported they did not get the recommended five or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily, compared to 82% across New Mexico. A similar percentage (72%) reported they did not eat breakfast during the past week.

Weight is a significant health factor which can directly contribute to other health problems, such as diabetes and heart disease.

In San Juan County in 2020, 70.7% adults were overweight or obese, as measured by a CDC survey question that asks height and weight, which are then used to calculate Body Mass Index or BMI, an indicator of excess body fat. This is statistically similar to New Mexico's rate of overweight or obese (68.2%) but similar to the U.S. (67.1%).

Among youth, 33.8% were either overweight or obese, as calculated from reported height and weight (17.7% overweight and 16.0% obese). This is similar to high school students across New Mexico (31.8%). 

By sex, youth rates of overweight/obesity is similar for males and females. Among adults, males have higher rates of being overweight or obese (75.8%) than females (68.5%). 

Physical activity is an important health factor that contributes to both physical and mental health.

In 2020, 14.8% of high school aged youth reported "no days" of physical activity or exercise during the previous week, and 26.5% reported physical activity on every day. Girls are more likely than boys to be physically inactive. 

Among adults, 23.1% reported no activity or exercise outside of their work in the past month. Similar to youth, adult women are more likely to be inactive than men.