Report says Iowa, rest of the nation getting more obese

Iowans are getting chunkier, but the state held on to its nationwide obesity ranking because residents of other states are getting larger, too.

Mississippi was deemed No. 1 in adult obesity rates for the sixth year in a row, according to the report issued today by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Nearly 34 percent of adults there are considered obese, compared to 27.6 percent of Iowans.

Iowa ranked 22nd in the report, the same spot the state held last year when 26.7 percent of adult Iowans were deemed obese.

Colorado had the lowest rate, at 19.1 percent.

The report, “F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America's Future 2010” noted that adult obesity rates increased in 28 states in the past year and declined only in the District of Columbia.

More than two-thirds of states - 38 - have adult obesity rates above 25 percent.

In Iowa, more men than women are obese, at 29.6 percent for men compared to 25.6 percent for women.

This year's report focused on racial, ethnic, regional and income disparities.

Adult obesity rates for blacks and Latinos were higher than for whites in at least 40 states.

With the exception of Michigan, the top 11 states with the highest obesity rates were in the South, and 35.3 percent of adults earning less than $15,000 per year were obese, compared with 24.5 percent of adults earning $50,000 or more per year.

In Iowa, the adult obesity rate was 34.1 percent among blacks and 29.4 percent among Latinos, compared with 27.5 percent among whites.

A survey included in the report found that 84 percent of parents believe their children are at a healthy weight, but research shows nearly one-third of children are obese or overweight.

More than 12 million American children are considered obese.

All of the rankings were based on combining three years of data (2007 to 2009) from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

Obesity is tied to increasing rates of diabetes, heart disease and other health conditions.

The report noted that Iowa has passed legislation requiring weight-related assessments in schools, but has not passed Complete Streets legislation, which aims to ensure that all users, including pedestrians and bicyclists, have safe access to streets. Thirteen states have passed Complete Streets legislation.

See the full report at: www.healthyamericans.org or: www.rwjf.org