South Tops List Of Most Obese States Again
Posted on: Friday, 18 July 2008, 09:00 CDT
Southern states continue to be home to the largest population of overweight people, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday.
The CDC report named Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee as the most obese states in the U.S.
More than 30 percent of adults living in each of the three states tipped the scales enough to ensure the South remains the nation's fattest region.
On the other side of the spectrum, Colorado was ranked the least obese state in the nation, with only 19 percent of its population being classified as obese.
The results of the survey, which was carried out by CDC researchers during a random telephone survey of 350,000 U.S. adults last year, echoed the results from the previous year.
Mississippi has had the highest obesity rate every year since 2004. But Alabama, Tennessee, West Virginia and Louisiana have also clustered near the top of the list, often so close that the difference between their rates and Mississippi's may not be statistically significant.
Dr. William Dietz, head of the CDC's nutrition, physical activity and obesity division, pointed to the high fat, deep fried traditional Southern diet as being a key factor which led to the excess weight.
The South also has a large concentration of rural residents and black women - two groups that tend to have higher obesity rates, he said.
Colorado, meanwhile, is a state with a reputation for exercise. It has plentiful biking and hiking trails, and an elevation that causes the body to labor a bit more, Dietz said.
Obesity is based on the body mass index, a calculation using height and weight. A 5-foot, 9-inch adult who weighs 203 pounds would have a BMI of 30, which is considered the threshold for obesity.
"The heavier you are, the more you underestimate your weight, probably because you don't weigh yourself as often," Dietz said.
Overall, about 26 percent of the respondents were obese, according to the study, published this week in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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