WV Ranks 6 in obesity (Huntington, Wheeling: appliances, high school, organic)

[Anita Cornell]

Well, I was raised on that "country" food, but I have found that running the hills and holler's keeps any man or woman down in weight. West Virginians have a "God built gym" everywhere they go. I love it!

[Colby "The Punk" Wells]

Originally Posted by GottaHerdOn

and when I've asked transfer students from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, etc they tell me bluntly that West Virginia is not southern. Country... definitely, is a lot of the south in the country, yes. But being country and being southern are completely different

I can see Charleston, Huntington, Beckley and everything below those cities having some "southern" influence" But the state of WV is much, much larger than that.

I guess it all just matters who you ask

I base my opinions on geography, (not political geography, I realize that "most" of the state is below the Mason Dixon line) But I base it on similarities between the south and north. I see more resemblance to the north or Midwest with manufacturing, succession (while some counties may have voted for or against succession, that vote was over 145 years ago and regions, views, opinions change as people immigrate and emigrate in and out of the state), religious affiliations, and language dialect. (Again country vs. southern dialects) Also the south is a region of agriculture growth, cotton, tobacco, corn, soy bean, fruits, etc Aside from some apple orchards in the Romney area of the state the state pretty much is not a large scale agriculture state.

Yes, I agree with you Herd, it depends on who you ask. Just like me and you for example. Although we are both from Randolph County, you consider yourself as a Northerner, and I consider myself as a Southerner.

Anyway, I personally think a good divider between Northern and Southern culture would be U.S. Route 50, which goes from Keyser to Parkersburg. I think these cities along with Fairmont, Morgantown, Grafton, Bridgeport, Kingwood, New Martinsville, along with the northern panhandle, would resemble the north somewhat due to influence from northern cities such as Pittsburgh, and Columbus. From Route 50 down to around the Flatwoods area in Braxton County (halfway point in the state), the culture is divided. South of that, it would be classified as the South. (This Southern accent map is very close to my description.)


A good example between northern WV and southern WV is Kudzu. I could never find it in North-Central WV, but when I went through Nicholas County, it was there. I also found a couple of Kudzu pictures a gentleman took in Bergoo, WV (Webster County). IMG_8566 on Flickr - Photo Sharing! Other examples include availability of sweet tea and the Southern accent, which plenty of can be found in the southern half of WV.

So therefore I believe the southern half of WV (south of Flatwoods) is where you will find most of the obesity, including the Southern Coalfields. Earl Dotter, Coalfield Generations: Health, Mining, and the Environment; Southern Spaces

Lastly, on a religious note, the majority of WV is Baptist (along with the South). There are quite a few counties that are Methodist and the northern panhandle is definitely Catholic.

[GottaHerdOn]

Originally Posted by Colby "The Punk" Wells

Yes, I agree with you Herd, it depends on who you ask. Just like me and you for example. Although we are both from Randolph County, you consider yourself as a Northerner, and I consider myself as a Southerner.

Anyway, I personally think a good divider between Northern and Southern culture would be U.S. Route 50, which goes from Keyser to Parkersburg. I think these cities along with Fairmont, Morgantown, Grafton, Bridgeport, Kingwood, New Martinsville, along with the northern panhandle, would resemble the north somewhat due to influence from northern cities such as Pittsburgh, and Columbus. From Route 50 down to around the Flatwoods area in Braxton County (halfway point in the state), the culture is divided. South of that, it would be classified as the South. (This Southern accent map is very close to my description.)


A good example between northern WV and southern WV is Kudzu. I could never find it in North-Central WV, but when I went through Nicholas County, it was there. I also found a couple of Kudzu pictures a gentleman took in Bergoo, WV (Webster County). IMG_8566 on Flickr - Photo Sharing! Other examples include availability of sweet tea and the Southern accent, which plenty of can be found in the southern half of WV.

So therefore I believe the southern half of WV (south of Flatwoods) is where you will find most of the obesity, including the Southern Coalfields. Earl Dotter, Coalfield Generations: Health, Mining, and the Environment; Southern Spaces

Lastly, on a religious note, the majority of WV is Baptist (along with the South). There are quite a few counties that are Methodist and the northern panhandle is definitely Catholic.

I pretty much agree with that idea about WV south of Flatwoods being the southern. Is most of WV really Baptist? I thought it would be more Methodist or Presbryterian or something?

I have no doubt that Baptist is the predominant religion around the Huntington area, I noticed that very clearly when I started school down here. It is a little startling at first at the amount of religion firstly, then the concentration of Baptists is alarming as well. Not saying its wrong, just stating my observations

[Janipoo]

Originally Posted by harborlady

west virginia is for lazy lovers?

No, I'm pretty active. I consider it my workout .

Calories burning

[Bobilee]

I guess the CDC study just reconfirms "The Solid South".

[David Kennedy]

Obesity?

I've been in a blue funk all day...We lost our title as "Party School and Penn State beat us out...they # 4...WVU #5...will not say who took the Title...

[snorpus]

Gators got #1... Seminoles #10... so Florida places two in the top 10.

And my son keeps telling me that all they do in State College is study, and then study some more.

[appalachiangirl]

When I went to WVU I think it was the #2 party school! We're slacking off in partying!!!!

[David Kennedy]

And about this obesity thing? If it wasn't for the horrible taste of their food, I'd eat a few meals at McDonalds this week to try to get our Obesity up to # 1. When we'er close on something, we should give it a good effort to make a show...I think we can do it!

[r601020]

Places I've lived.

Maricopa County AZ (Scottsdale)
Average weight of males is 190 pounds.
Average weight of females is 150 pounds.
58.5% of residents drank alcohol in the past 30 days. This is more than average.
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29.7% of residents keep firearms around their homes. This is less than average.

Orange County FL (Orlando)
Average weight of males is 187 pounds.
Average weight of females is 152 pounds.
53.0% of residents drank alcohol in the past 30 days.
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19.5% of residents keep firearms around their homes. This is less than average.


Kanawah County WV (Charleston)
Average weight of males is 193 pounds.
Average weight of females is 158 pounds.
36.4% of residents drank alcohol in the past 30 days.
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45.2% of residents keep firearms around their homes. This is more than average.


It's the guns That's why they weigh more. And Orlando and Scottsdale drink more than Charleston. So obviously, one solution to losing weight, based on these statistics, is to drink more.