Poor US states among the fattest, survey finds

WASHINGTON, Sep 15 (Reuters) Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia have the highest percentages of obese residents, while Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii and Vermont have the lowest, the government reported.

The survey of 300,000 adults by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that overall, 60.5 per cent of Americans were overweight, 23.9 per cent were obese, and 3 per cent were extremely obese.

Obesity was as common in men as in women -- 24 per cent in both.

Among ethnic groups, non-Hispanic blacks had the highest rates, with just under 34 per cent of those surveyed considered obese, according to the survey known as the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

The overall obesity rate of 23.9 per cent is up from 15.6 per cent in 1995 and 19.8 per cent in 2000, the CDC said. The report can be found at http://www.cdc.gov.

But the rate is significantly lower than the one in another government survey, called the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, or NHANES, which found that 32 per cent of US adults were obese in 2004.

The latest survey relied on people's estimates of their height and weight to calculate whether they are overweight or obese, while the NHANES measured and weighed people.

Experts say both kinds of survey are important for comparing state-to-state data and differences among ethnic groups.

The CDC survey found that Louisiana, Mississippi, and West Virginia had obesity rates of 30 percent or more, while Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, and Vermont boasted rates of less than 17 per cent.

According to the Health and Human Services Department, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia are among the six poorest US states, based on welfare need.

REUTERS MQA PM0835