California Ranks Among Less Obese States With 25% Adult Obesity Rate
Nearly 25% of California adults are obese and an additional 37% are overweight, according to an annual report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Trust for America's Health, the Bay Citizen reports.
The report ranked California as the 12th least obese state in the U.S. (Chong, Bay Citizen, 7/8).
For the report, researchers used data from the University of Michigan School of Public Health's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, an annual survey that gauges how the behavior of U.S. residents affects their health.
National Snapshot
Researchers found that obesity is on the rise across the U.S., with 17 states seeing their adult obesity rates double or nearly double over the last 15 years. Two decades ago, no states had adult obesity rates that exceeded 15%. However, now every state has surpassed that mark, according to the report.
The report also found that no state has seen a significant decline in adult obesity rates over the last four years (Healy, Los Angeles Times, 7/7).
Obesity in California
Researchers noted that California's adult obesity rate has increased slightly from 24.4% in the 2010 report to 24.8% in the new report (Hall, "Healthy Living," Orange County Register, 7/7). Over the last 15 years, California's adult obesity rate has increased by 78% and the state's diabetes rate has nearly doubled, the report found (Bay Citizen, 7/8).
However, researchers also noted that California and Texas are the only states to see an increase in physical activity levels. About 21.9% of California adults in the new survey said they had not engaged in exercise or physical activity within the last 30 days, down from 22.8% in the 2010 report (Los Angeles Times, 7/7).
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