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CAPE FEAR MEMORIAL BRIDGE CLOSURE: UPDATES, RESOURCES, AND CONTEXT

CoastLine: NHC Health Director on What's Killing North Carolinians

New Hanover County Health Department
Phillip Tarte

People in New Hanover County are getting fatter.  And this is not a body image problem; it’s an issue that’s leading to chronic disease and early death.  60% of New Hanover County residents are either overweight or obese.  That’s according to a New Hanover County health report published last year that uses only self-reported data. When the data is broken down according to race – a sad but predictable picture emerges:  58% of white people fall into the overweight / obese category.  But people of color in New Hanover County report much higher numbers:   76% of African American residents, 80% of Asian respondents, and 88% of Native Americans have a weight problem.

We’ll unpack those numbers on this edition of CoastLine and find out what they really tell us -- including why there’s a marked gap between the general health of people of color and those who identify as white. 

We’ll also find out why a recently-published report from the Department of Public Health at East Carolina University – which examined social determinants of health – concludes that more than 55-hundred deaths in North Carolina could be avoided if everyone had a fair chance to be healthy. 

With us today for a tour of these issues and the local public health landscape is the Health Director for New Hanover County.  Phillip Tarte took the helm of the Health Department after long-time Director David Rice retired last year.  He’s been in the job for less than a year – about 9 months -- but already has pretty clear ideas about how he plans to shake up the county’s collective health outlook. 

GUEST:

  • Phillip Tarte, Health Director, New Hanover County Health Department

RESOURCES: 

Rachel hosts and produces CoastLine, an award-winning hourlong conversation featuring artists, humanitarians, scholars, and innovators in North Carolina. The show airs Wednesdays at noon and Sundays at 4 pm on 91.3 FM WHQR Public Media. It's also available as a podcast; just search CoastLine WHQR. You can reach her at rachellh@whqr.org.