In the United States, child obesity is a very serious problem that has only grown larger in recent years. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health even called child obesity “one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century.” In the United States, the childhood obesity rate is about 1 in 5, which is equivalent to about 14.7 million children and adolescents. So in the United States, which states have the highest childhood obesity rates? The team at Playground Equipment has a new infographic out that looks at the highest child obesity rates in the United States.
Per data from the Global Obesity Observatory, the obesity rate among children in the United States is the 12th highest in the world. According to the research conducted by the team at Playground Equipment, it was found that the state with the highest child obesity rate is none other than West Virginia at a staggering 26%. Following West Virginia, other states with the highest child obesity rates include Kentucky (25.5%), Louisiana (24%), Mississippi (23.1%), and Tennessee (22.5%). On the opposite end of the spectrum, the states with the lowest child obesity rates include Montana (10.2%), Colorado (10.8%), Wyoming (11.5%), Utah (12.0%), and North Dakota (12.6%).
Not only does this infographic from the team at Playground Equipment include data on the states with the highest and lowest overall rates of child obesity, but it also shows data on things like the percentage of children ages 1-5 who consume at least one sugary beverage each week. When analyzing this data, it was found that Mississippi had the highest rate at 79.3%, followed by the states of Oklahoma (72.6%), Tennessee (72.1%), Louisiana (70.2%), and Texas (68.8%). Louisiana also tops the list of children between the ages of 1 and 5 who have less than a serving of fruit and veggies daily, at a staggering 64.3%.
