TIME MAG: Why Are Southerners So Fat?

TIME:

People from Mississippi are fat. With an adult obesity rate of 33%, Mississippi gobbled its way to the "chubbiest state" crown for the fifth year in a row, according to a new joint report by Trust For America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Alabama, West Virginia, and Tennessee aren't far behind, with obesity rates over 30%. In fact, eight out of the 10 fattest states are in the South. The region famous for its biscuits, barbecue and pecan pies has been struggling with its weight for years -- but then again, so has the rest of the country. Wisconsin loves cheese, New Yorkers scarf pizza, and New Englanders have been known to enjoy a crab cake or two. So why is the South so portly?

Read the whole story: TIME

Comments

[Lorianne]

Critics Slam Overweight Surgeon General Pick, Regina Benjamin

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=8129947&page=1

[jennifer s]

No need to demonize Southerner­s--America­ns are battling obesity everywhere. There are many ways to address this problem, once of which is for the U.S. government to stop subsidizing corn. We don't need cheap corn to make HFCS--what we need is cheap broccoli, cheap bell peppers, cheap berries. How about subsidizing organic farmers who grow fruits and vegetables and raise pastured livestock?
-Jennifer Schonborn, Holistic Nutrition Counselor
http://www.jenniferschonborn.com

[CJWebber]

Because they are Americans?

[onwisconsin]

I have an allergy to corn and react to all corn products. Thus, we have taken all corn out of our home. If you ever decide to simply try to remove high fructose corn syrup from your diet, you may get a big surprise because it is in everything. You will definitely spend more on your food to avoid it but I am convinced that even if you are not allergic to corn like me, HFCS is bad for you. The corn growers' industry in this country receives such subsidies from the federal government that corn products are incredibly cheap.

[sarimn00]

I don't know, I just wish Dairy Queen would stop showing commercials of the new Girl Scout Cookie Blizzard. It just makes me crave it. And I think that is one of the problems with this country's obesity crisis. Even if you are watching what you eat, all you see is the temptation-whether it's driving down main street with all the fast food joints or turning on your television and seeing 100 commercials of different fast foods.

[dirtyice]

The picture with this article is not only sexiest but southern-ah-phobic.
Large pile.

[Siobhan11]

Yes, but HP provides a link to that story and photo and then my comments actually discussing my weight issues in response to someone's comment never shows. Maybe a glitch because for the life of me I can't figure out what was offensive. Mu comment complaining didn't show up either, and I bet this won't.

[alwqb]

Partially Hydrogenated Oils and High Fructose Corn Syrup are the real culprits and cheap food reeks of the stuff. Fact - High Fructose Corn Syrup not only adds sugar that doesn't break down properly but it also makes you hungrier and crave more. Kind of like the sugar in McDonald's fries.

We can thank the 80's with then GOP Senator Paul Simon and Archer Daniels Midland, the architects of the corn sweetener revolution for our food debacle. Government funded Big Ag is killing us, period.

Cheaper is never better, haven't we learned that by now?

[DakotaMinnesota]

Poverty, pride, laziness... and an inability to get outside and move due to hot, humid weather.

Sometimes I think that Southerners are more conservative because leaving their house is such a painful process that their entire worldview becomes one of resistance to motion and progression.

[totaldisbelief]

there went my Breakfast.­.....thank­s a lot

[jymfrancais]

Somewhere they had to pay for beeing " Red States'

[indy girl]

Southerners are fat because the southern states have some of the highest poverty levels. People here (especially the poorly educated ones) eat the cheapest food possible: fast food, fried entrees, sugary sodas and junk snacks. They also feed their children that way. At our kids' schools if you see an obese parent in the hall, likely as not they are walking with an obese child, and there's often another roly poly one stuffed into a stroller.

I have some relatives who are on their 3rd generation of obesity. They talk about their kids' weight problems, but their kids have grown up watching mom and dad (and grandma and grandpa!) put three layers of food on their plates, then go back for thirds and fourths. One nephew used to eat margarine out of the tub with a spoon.

In our state we have an epidemic of kids with early onset Type 2 diabetics, due to obesity. I don't mean teenagers--these are elementary school kids. Some of them are so overweight they have trouble walking. Running in the occasional gym class, or on the playground, is out of the question.

Our KY public schools also still serve up unhealthy lunch entrees" like "taco nachos": the ballgame kind, with high-sodium cheese sauce and greasy ground beef. They have tried to rework the menus to make them appear healthier by adding whole wheat bread and a fruit option, but fat and sodium are the key ingredients in almost every main course.

[totaldisbelief]

I don't think you can blame poverty as much as you can blame ignorance or stupidity.
Snack foods aren't cheap and loading up on sugar isn't cheap. I think it's just laziness; people want to grab and eat as opposed to cooking a meal and eating.

[kennybean]

Yep - oatmeal, barley and dried legumes cost pennies per serving and are real food. Fresh vegetables in season cost practically nothing. Grow your own and freeze them. People need to think past corporate America.

[Boboday555]

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body,"
(1 Cor. 6:19-20).

Honor God with those bodies???
I guess God is obese too!

[kroltan]

Yep, ol' Jehovah has a *huge* f@t a$$.

[tanya1111]

I went to the grocery store and bought turnips and the woman looked at me like I was from mars... I refused to tell her what they were... she had to have the manager come tell her so that she could ring them up.... but they have ten kinds of pink pickled eggs... be afraid...

[blueken]

My own daughter didn't know how to cook fresh carrots. I had to tell her, you peel them and put them in boiling hot water until they are soft.

[Hayduke1969]

I think there's a feedback loop. When you surround yourself with fat people, your standards and sense of "normal" changes accordingly. That in turn efftects your behavior. This is certainly going to be the case if you're living in the deep south.

There are studies that support this.

[rf dude]

It's where eating more fresh vegetables and fruits

means getting a bigger Fry Baby...
--