How The Obesity Rates Compare Among The States

ACROSS AMERICA — Obesity continued to increase slightly across America amid the coronavirus pandemic, recently released data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests.

The number of states reporting more than 35 percent obesity increased from 12 to 16 over the past year, the CDC’s data shows. Only nine states had a rate that high two years ago.

The 16 are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.

Obesity increased in 2020 in most regions. The Midwest’s rate was 34.1 percent, up from 33.9 percent last year. In the South, obesity rates were 34.1 percent, up from 33.3 percent the year prior. And in the West, obesity increased to 29.3 percent, up from 24.7 percent in 2019.

The obesity rate in the Northeast actually went down from the CDC’s 2019 report issued a year ago and the recently issued 2020 report, decreasing from 29 percent to 28 percent.

One Northeastern state, Massachusetts, is among only three — along with the District of Columbia — to have an obesity rate under 25 percent. Colorado and Hawaii are the others.
No state’s obesity rate is below 20 percent, the data shows.

Mississippi continues to have the highest obesity rate among states at 39.7 percent.

The CDC uses body mass index, or BMI, to calculate obesity. If the BMI — a person’s body fat relative to height and weight — is 30.0 or higher, that person is considered obese.

The report, based on self-reporting and data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System that conducts telephone interviews, also showed obesity disproportionately affects some racial and ethnic groups.

Combined data from 2018-2020 shows that 35 states, and the District of Columbia, are among the 48 states with sufficient data that have an obesity rate of 35 percent or higher among non-Hispanic Black adults.

Hispanic adults have a 35 percent or higher rate in 22 of 49 states with that data. White adults reached the threshold in seven states. Asian adults did not have a rate of 35 percent or higher in any states.

“Racial and ethnic minority groups have historically not had fair opportunities for economic, physical, and emotional health, and these inequities have increased the risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19 for some groups,” the agency said in its report last year. “Many of these same factors are contributing to the higher level of obesity in some racial and ethnic minority groups.”

The CDC said last year’s findings, similar to this year’s in many areas, underscore the need to sort out systemic issues that create barriers to good health, at both the system and policy levels. Such fundamental change will take time; but in the meantime, the agency recommended that all people — not just those who are obese or at risk for a serious coronavirus illness — should:

• Eat a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables, lean protein and whole grains, paying close attention to caloric intake.
• Remain active, which not only helps you feel and sleep better and reduces anxiety, but can also assist in weight loss.
• Manage stress, which the CDC has said worsened during the pandemic.