Mississippi most obese, Colorado the least

WASHINGTON, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- Mississippi has the highest obesity rate of 32 percent, with Colorado having having the lowest at 18 percent, researchers say.

The fifth annual report "F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America" from the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation reveals rates rose for a second consecutive year in 24 states and for a third consecutive year in 19 states. No state experienced a decrease.

Fatter states following Mississippi are: West Virginia, Alabama, Louisiana, South Carolina and Tennessee. Skinnier states after Colorado are: Hawaii, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and Rhode Island.

More than 25 percent of adults are obese in 28 states, which is an increase from 19 states last year. More than 20 percent of adults are obese in every state except Colorado, the report said.

In comparison, in 1991 no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. In 1980, the national average of obese adults was 15 percent, while today an estimated two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, and an estimated 23 million children are either overweight or obese.

"The obesity epidemic is lowering our productivity and dramatically increasing our healthcare costs," Jeff Levi, executive director of Trust for America's Health. said in a statement.