Report: Obesity More Common in Harlem Than UES

Harlem is a neighborhood where residents are three times as likely to be obese, and four times as likely to have diabetes, as their neighbors on the Upper East Side, according to a new Health Department report.

The report links the disparity to access to healthy foods, and says that 31% of East Harlem and 27% of Central Harlem adults are obese, compared to 9% of Upper East Side adults.

Researchers said low-fat products were carried in three out of 10 Harlem bodegas compared to six in ten Upper East Side bodegas. Leafy green vegetables were available in 3% of Harlem bodegas, compared to 20% of Upper East Side bodegas.

The report is based on block-to-block assessments conducted by Health Department researchers in 2005.