The Local newsletter is your free, daily guide to life in Colorado. For locals, by locals. Sign up today!
If America is losing its battle of the bulge, take solace in the fact that Coloradans, on average, are the least fat. In a new report, “F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2010,” Colorado claims the lowest rate of adult obesity in the nation: 19.1 percent. That also makes us the only state with a rate below 20 percent, according to the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (via the Denver Business Journal).
Thirty-eight of the 50 states and the District of Columbia have rates of more than 25 percent, despite some good efforts around the country to improve nutrition.
“Obesity,” says Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the Trust for America’s Health, “is one of the biggest public health challenges the country has ever faced, and troubling disparities exist based on race, ethnicity, region, and income.”
On the topic of magnitude, health.com has released its list of belly busters and the seven-pound breakfast burrito at Jack-n-Grill makes the list (via 9News). It contains seven potatoes, 12 eggs, one pound of ham, and an entire onion. Of course, it is also slathered in melted cheese and hot chili.
Back in May, Atlantic contributor Marc Ambinder took a look at Michelle Obama’s plan to combat obesity and recounted his own struggles with weight (video follows).