State Obesity Rates

mathjulz

In 1995, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. Now, all but one does.

Kind of scary when you put it that way. How does this happen in such a large scale?

I guess a lot of overweight people got a little fatter. If we put on an average of about 1 lb a year it doesn't take many years for all the overweight ppl who aren't worried about their weight to tip the balance yet further in favour of obesity.

If that's all there is, it shouldn't lead to a significant overall increase; it should have happened to the previous generations as well.

I'm not looking for excuses to undermine personal responsibility, but this is an interesting social phenomenon and has got to have some explanation behind it.

We also had a massive paradigm shift (if I recall correctly) somewhere around the '90's. This was when it seems like the attitudes went from a lot more prejudice against anyone overweight to "accept your body as it is, everyone is beautiful." I don't want to say that we should go back to looking down on anyone not super-model skinny (which is not healthy, either!), but it became much more socially acceptable to be fat, and especially to blame it on issues out of one's control, such as "it's in my genes" or "I just have a slow metabolism/gland issue/etc" or even "this is where my body wants to be." (Again, not discounting those who have legitimate issues, but it became much more popular to look for them).

It's time we teach kids (and adults) to accept responsibility again!

Oishii

Didn't the BMI scale change in late 90's?

In 1998, the U.S. National Institutes of Health brought U.S. definitions into line with World Health Organization guidelines, lowering the normal/overweight cut-off from BMI 27.8 to BMI 25. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_mass_index#International_variations

Did this study change it's definitions too? If so, that would, obviously, make a huge difference!

javablondie

In 1995, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. Now, all but one does.

Kind of scary when you put it that way. How does this happen in such a large scale?

Since the mid 1990s high fructose corn syrup pretty much took over. Trans fats are also horrible and prevalent. Even our beef is less healthful than what can be found in many other countries due to the US's factory farming practices.

Countries such as Argentina have much higher beef consumption and yet heart disease and all that we fear from our beef is much lower there. So from country to country beef does not always equal beef. Ours is typically terrible health-wise.

The reasons go on and on. In France you can get a baguette at a gas station that contains: flour, yeast, salt and it is to die for. Here even at Whole Foods it is virtually impossible to get bread from the bakery that does not contain stabilizers, dough conditioners, etc. Every time I return from Europe I go through a period of disbelief and desperation over our food supply in the US.

And I know this isn't going to make me popular... I'm just saying, I believe these are all facts and contribute to the problem more than we usually realize.

wildon883r

Around 30 years ago the calories from fat percentage on average consumed by the American diet was 45%. Fatty meats, butter and we were a far healthier society then because of not eating processed, low fat, low carb diets. With the arrival of the electronic era more people also don't get exercise and Americans have alot of sit behind desk jobs but i contribule us being amoung the top fattest nations in the world to simple gluttony. It doesn't take long to prepare a meal but lazy folks like the idea of drive up food that is in a sense killing them and their children slowly.

I would be willing to bet that those averages are on the low end and that American has a much higher then 30% obesity rate on average.Above all the differences between states is only a few percentage points. The solution is to avoid fast food eateries, avoid most all processed foods and get some exercise although food is the primary reason of obesity. People just need to learn the values of the food they consume and choose to not be another fat person statistic in this country. When you have a TV program called the Biggest Loser and its popular among the overweight. Something is wrong bigtime.

jfinnivan

Massachusetts: 48th!

Barneystinson

Pennsylvania, #17 - on the cusp of being in the mass of red in the Southern states but still holding true to our Yankee selves.

Uhhh...

We LOVE potato chips and pretzels here. I'm not joking. I can name you 10 chip/pretzel manufacturers just on the Eastern side of the state.

PA's trademark foods: Cheesesteak hoagies (SEPA), Pierogi (everywhere), Pepperoni balls (NWPA), Haluski (SWPA), and Shoofly pie OR Funny cake (SEPA/Central).

Land of bad carbs and Amish delights, basically.

Luckily we have a lot of state parks, forests ("woods"), and recreation here. I'm never at a loss of places to go hiking or kayaking on the weekends.

THE ONE THING that truly separates us from you southerners is the absence of sweet tea. Tea is served unsweetened by default here. That's probably the only reason we haven't hit the red yet

Saruman_w

Oh, I can most certainly believe MS up on there in the list. 'lotta fatties down here. Whelp, I'm not gonna be fat no more. So far I got a good bit of the fat down, but I'm still a little bit chubby. I'm still working on it though, gimmie time.

javablondie

Around 30 years ago the calories from fat percentage on average consumed by the American diet was 45%. Fatty meats, butter and we were a far healthier society then because of not eating processed, low fat, low carb diets. With the arrival of the electronic era more people also don't get exercise and Americans have alot of sit behind desk jobs but i contribule us being amoung the top fattest nations in the world to simple gluttony. It doesn't take long to prepare a meal but lazy folks like the idea of drive up food that is in a sense killing them and their children slowly.

I would be willing to bet that those averages are on the low end and that American has a much higher then 30% obesity rate on average.Above all the differences between states is only a few percentage points. The solution is to avoid fast food eateries, avoid most all processed foods and get some exercise although food is the primary reason of obesity. People just need to learn the values of the food they consume and choose to not be another fat person statistic in this country. When you have a TV program called the Biggest Loser and its popular among the overweight. Something is wrong bigtime.

Exactly!

melsinct

I live in Connecticut, the third thinnest state. I can't attribute it to the weather, as we get 4 distinct seasons, the extremes of which (winter and summer) aren't terribly conducive to outdoor exercise! There are a lot of white collar desk jobs, so it isn't that we are an active bunch during the day. I really can't think of a reason why we'd be "thinner" than so many other states...

I am just glad I can do my part to help keep the obesity rate down!:bigsmile:

javablondie

bump. This is important stuff.

mathjulz

I think our standard portion size has a huge amount to do with it, too.

Think about it - When McDonald's debuted, a regular hamburger, regular fries, and regular soda were considered a full adult's meal (we would now call those sizes small ... except that even small has gotten bigger than that). Now, that's what you find in a kids meal, and they still have the "big kids" meals in case it isn't enough.

When I was in high school (I'm thinking about 20 years ago), McDonald's debuted their "extra value meal" - a Big Mac, Medium Fries and Medium drink (again, those are closer to what we call "small" now). That seemed like a lot of food at first! But then, it wasn't enough and we had to supersize our meals. Then the medium got bigger, too. And now a quarter-pound burger is the regular "reasonable portion" and many places offer double and triple quarter-pound burgers. Yikes!

McDonald's isn't the only place this has happened - it is throughout our country and even in our kitchens. Portion sizes have just gotten so big and out of control!

In many European countries (and elsewhere), a serving is still the small, reasonable size it used to be. 3 oz or so of meat, 2 oz of pasta, 1/2 c rice, etc.

I think that how much we eat (whether it's a traditional meat-and-potoatoes diet, low fat, low carb, or something else) has a very significant role in our rising obesity rates!

kysue1029

I think our standard portion size has a huge amount to do with it, too.

Think about it - When McDonald's debuted, a regular hamburger, regular fries, and regular soda were considered a full adult's meal (we would now call those sizes small ... except that even small has gotten bigger than that). Now, that's what you find in a kids meal, and they still have the "big kids" meals in case it isn't enough.

When I was in high school (I'm thinking about 20 years ago), McDonald's debuted their "extra value meal" - a Big Mac, Medium Fries and Medium drink (again, those are closer to what we call "small" now). That seemed like a lot of food at first! But then, it wasn't enough and we had to supersize our meals. Then the medium got bigger, too. And now a quarter-pound burger is the regular "reasonable portion" and many places offer double and triple quarter-pound burgers. Yikes!

McDonald's isn't the only place this has happened - it is throughout our country and even in our kitchens. Portion sizes have just gotten so big and out of control!

In many European countries (and elsewhere), a serving is still the small, reasonable size it used to be. 3 oz or so of meat, 2 oz of pasta, 1/2 c rice, etc.

I think that how much we eat (whether it's a traditional meat-and-potoatoes diet, low fat, low carb, or something else) has a very significant role in our rising obesity rates!

I agree with this. It's kind of sickening!

Lunachic77

Illinois...4th for fattest kids. This isn't hard to believe with all the corn growing around here. But I see if every weekend...every time we go to the mall, shopping, movies or dinner. A great majority of the kids are chubby and not cute chubby but problematic chubby.

I was at Chili's and the table next to us had 2 kids, a boy and girl...boy was maybe 11 and girl was about 7. The boy ordered the huge burger with fries and a coke the girl ordered the chicken strip meal (for adults) with fries and a coke and they both ate the entire thing and then "each" got a molten lava cake and devoured them...it's that kind of parental irresponsibility that is making our kids fat. No way should kids be eating that much! But then you glance over at the parents and dad is pushing 300 lbs and mom is easily pushing 250. I think we need to set better examples for our kids or we are dooming their future.

geewizzamanda357

I see that I am only the 2nd person from MS to post on here. Either we obviously dont care about weight down here, or the rest of the Mississippians are too embarassed to show their faces lol.
I decided I don't want to belong in that statistic anymore!

Yocum1219

bump...good info.

From KY myself...been overweight since puberty...and I ate at home, with STRICT portion control, was taught that fast food was a treat, but it was too strict. I never learned to eat healthy, just all or nothing, so when I became an adult, I rebelled & blew up.

Now I'm learning on my own...nothing I ever was taught in school. I'm teaching my kids, and it shows. They're all healthy & they know to eat when they're hungry, but that certain things are a waste to eat for getting full, but can be an OK treat. Snacks in our house are yogurt, raisins, grapes, cheese, etc. Candy is once or twice a week. Ice cream yes, but we do measured small cups, not a big bowl with tons of toppings.

Mini or snack size blizzards or frosties, etc. Always the fruit option with kids meals, but then my 3 kids & I split the normal order of fries from my adult meal...which is all that's needed. If they're still hungry, we get more fruit when we get home! Even then, we rarely eat out more than once a week. Veggies are the biggest portion on the plate to fill their tummies, but there's chicken available most nights, & lean cuts of beef or pork on occasion. OK, sorry, ranting. I'm from state #7...I live in a pretty populated area, but out in the county, surrounded by farmland & produce...as does a majority of the state, so WHY should we be obese with so much produce out there? Baffles me. Glad I'm learning.

duckpond11

In 1995, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. Now, all but one does.

Kind of scary when you put it that way. How does this happen in such a large scale?

I guess a lot of overweight people got a little fatter. If we put on an average of about 1 lb a year it doesn't take many years for all the overweight ppl who aren't worried about their weight to tip the balance yet further in favour of obesity.

If that's all there is, it shouldn't lead to a significant overall increase; it should have happened to the previous generations as well.

I'm not looking for excuses to undermine personal responsibility, but this is an interesting social phenomenon and has got to have some explanation behind it.

I blame the internet. My theory is that the amount of time we spend sitting on our *kitten* compared to other decades is significantly higher.

beernutz

In 1995, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. Now, all but one does.

Kind of scary when you put it that way. How does this happen in such a large scale?

I guess a lot of overweight people got a little fatter. If we put on an average of about 1 lb a year it doesn't take many years for all the overweight ppl who aren't worried about their weight to tip the balance yet further in favour of obesity.

If that's all there is, it shouldn't lead to a significant overall increase; it should have happened to the previous generations as well.

I'm not looking for excuses to undermine personal responsibility, but this is an interesting social phenomenon and has got to have some explanation behind it.

I blame the internet. My theory is that the amount of time we spend sitting on our *kitten* compared to other decades is significantly higher.

I agree but I also think the fact that food (fast and otherwise) has become a multi-billion dollar industry with an advertising budget to match is part of the problem.

javablondie

In 1995, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. Now, all but one does.

Kind of scary when you put it that way. How does this happen in such a large scale?

I guess a lot of overweight people got a little fatter. If we put on an average of about 1 lb a year it doesn't take many years for all the overweight ppl who aren't worried about their weight to tip the balance yet further in favour of obesity.

If that's all there is, it shouldn't lead to a significant overall increase; it should have happened to the previous generations as well.

I'm not looking for excuses to undermine personal responsibility, but this is an interesting social phenomenon and has got to have some explanation behind it.

I blame the internet. My theory is that the amount of time we spend sitting on our *kitten* compared to other decades is significantly higher.

I agree but I also think the fact that food (fast and otherwise) has become a multi-billion dollar industry with an advertising budget to match is part of the problem.

Yes. And lobbyist control this country.

Seajolly

I live in Connecticut, which comes in 2nd for least obese right behind Colorado. I hardly EVER see an obese person in my state (except for rest stops and Walmart), which I think is really surprising! I can't quite figure it out. Granted, many of the wealthy people who work in NYC reside here, and I think wealth has a correlation to weight because wealthy people can afford the best nutrition, personal trainers, etc. We also have a lot of parks, a big coastline, I always see people out jogging, walking, and biking, and the mountains of Vermont are not that far away in the winter. I'd still really like to find out WHY Connecticut comes in at #2.