The obesity crisis in the U.S. has been laid bare by new analysis of official figures that reveals which states have the most overweight residents.
Obesity rates in the U.S. continue to concern clinicians, although the nation sits outside the global top ten, which is dominated by island nations in the South Pacific.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, obesity costs the U.S. healthcare system nearly $173 billion annually, and the figure is only rising as Americans get heftier.
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2019 predicted that by 2030, 48.9 percent of US adults will be obese, with 24.2 percent classified as severely obese.
Drawing on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among others, World Population Review compiled its rankings of states by rates of obesity, seen here on this map created by Newsweek.
In first place sits West Virginia, where 40.6 percent of residents are classed as obese, defined as having body mass index of over 30.0.
Data published by the CDC showed that the Mountain State has the second lowest life expectancy in the nation at 72.8 years for those born there, second only to Mississippi at 71.9 years.
According to the West Virginia Department of Health, the state also ranked first in the prevalence of heart attacks and coronary heart disease.
West Virginia also has one of the highest poverty rates in the country, with 17.9 percent of its residents living below the poverty line, according to 2022 US Census Bureau data.
This is only two spots below Mississippi, which has a poverty rate of 19.1 percent, and holds the fifth spot in World Population Review’s obesity rankings at 39.1 percent.
Kentucky, the second most overweight at 40.3 percent, is also the sixth poorest, with 16.5 percent living below the poverty line.
The correlation continues, and New Hampshire, the nation’s least poor state, has an obesity rate of 30.6 percent, two points below the national average of 32.6 percent.
The inverse relationship between wealth and health has been widely noted, which News Medical linked to low-income populations’ reliance on cheaper and less nutritionally valuable fast foods.
On the other end of the scale are Washington D.C. and Hawaii.
While not a state, the federal district is the nation’s leanest territory, with an obesity rate of 24.7 percent.
According to home gym reviewing website RunReviews, D.C. has more gyms per 100,000 population than anywhere else, at 20.1.
Hawaii is second on the list, and holds the title of the slimmest state, with an obesity rate of 25.0 percent.
Hawaii has always been a state well-known for its warm climate and natural beauty, encouraging its residents to take part in outdoor activities like hiking, surfing, and swimming.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
