States w/the most fast food per capita = highest obesity
America has been informally dubbed a “Fast Food Nation.” It is the land of shoe string fries and ancient, everlasting burgers. It’s a utopia where the ketchup flows like wine.
If you’re driving cross-country, you’ll be able to find a fast food establishment of some kind in every single state, but you might have an easier time in the locations that aren’t surrounded by sea. Yes, it is middle America that has the most fast food restaurants per capita, with Kentucky taking the lead (fried chicken, anyone?). It may come as no surprise, then, that Kentucky is among the most obese states in America.
Check out the map in the article to discover how your home state stacks up to the rest of the county…
The most and least obese US States
To be perfectly honest, even our best states (ranging from 20-25% of population defined obese) is not very good. That said, it’s easy to recognize the direct correlation of the volume of fast food with obesity rates – nearly doubling in states with the highest volume of fast food restaurants.
The states with the LOWEST obesity rates:
1. Montana
2. Colorado
3. Nevada
4. Minnesota
5. Massachusetts
– The obesity rate in Massachusetts in 2013 was 22.2 percent.
6. Connecticut
– The obesity rate in Connecticut in 2013 was 23.2 percent.
7. New Mexico
8. California
9. Hawaii
10. New York
– The obesity rate in New York in 2013 was 24 percent.
The states with the HIGHEST obesity rates:
1. Mississippi
– 35.4 percent of residents obese in 2013.
2. West Virginia
– The obesity rate in West Virginia in 2013 was 34.4 percent.
3. Delaware
– The obesity rate in Delaware in 2013 was 34.3 percent.
4. Louisiana
5. Arkansas
6. South Carolina
7. Tennessee
8. Ohio
9. Kentucky
10. Oklahoma