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Item #14 

Mississippi A Heavyweight With 25% Obesity
Mississippi is on the top rung for obesity.

For the first time in U.S. history, there is a state that has at least 25 percent of its population classified as obese. Mississippi's figure is 25.9 percent, compared to Colorado, which at 14.4 percent is the lowest. West Virginia is on the second rung at 24.6 percent and Kentucky is a close third.

Mississippi has had the dubious distinction of leading the nation in obesity for more than a decade. According to the new data released in today's Journal of the American Medical Association, it's bad news for all Americans. In one year, obesity has climbed from 19.8 percent of all U.S. adults to 20.9 percent.

To put this in people numbers, 44 million Americans are considered obese by body mass index (BMI is a ratio of height and weight), and that is a whopping 74 percent increase since 1991. Although many more are overweight, they are not classed as obese because their BMI is not 30 percent higher than it should be.

"These increases are disturbing and are likely even underestimated," CDC Director Dr. Julie L. Gerberding said when releasing the figures. "If we continue on this same path, the results will be devastating to both the health of the nation and to our health care system."

If this sounds like new news to Mississippians, it shouldn't. In mid-June when President Bush announced his nationwide fitness and health initiative, the news media reported Mississippi was at the top then.

"We're still No. 1 for obesity and No. 2 for diabetes," said Dr. Alan Penman, a Jackson-based Mississippi Department of Health epidemiologist who specializes in obesity. "But it's a global problem. It's happening in Canada, Australia, Europe and other states. They're trending upward and will catch up with us.

Penman and other researchers say there are contributing factors to Mississippi leading the fat pack. The Southern diet is richer in fried and fatty foods, the weather is hot and less conducive to calorie-burning outdoor activities, and there's no public school mandate for physical education to start children young on healthy habits.

Mississippi's placement at the bottom of the economic rung also pushes it to the top of the fat rung because poorer, less educated people pick cheaper, higher-calorie foods. Mississippi's higher black population is another factor. Nationwide, 31.1 percent of this ethnic group is obese.

The CDC and JAMA statistics found significant associations between overweight and diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma and arthritis. JAMA reports that 300,000 Americans each year die of causes related to obesity.

"In Mississippi, 78 percent of the adult population is overweight, and in the United States it is 63 to 68 percent, so the big story is there's not as much difference between this state and the rest," said Dr. Stan Owen, an obesity specialist at the Center for Health Management in Gulfport.

"Why is the weight rising? For one thing, people are eating more and they're eating 50 percent of their meals out. The portion size has doubled in 10 years, and therein lies the statistics. The plate sizes are one-third larger than they were 10 years ago, and double the size they were in 1950.

"Also, food is inexpensive. In the early 1900s food was 25 percent of the budget and people ate less. Today, food is 6 percent of the budget and they're eating more because it's so cheap.

"Losing weight and keeping it off will take lifestyle changes, from daily exercise, portion control, and adding large amounts of fruits and vegetables to having a system of accountability."