Mississippi Most Obese and No.1 Unhealthy state (home, casinos)

[triton1]

I have been reading quite a bit about obesity in the united states and was shocked and surprised to read that Mississippi is reportedly the fattest state in the country. (In all honesty, i thought the fattest state in the nation was Alaska.) Can anyone explain how the fattest state in the nation could possibly be located in the deep south and not the far north?

[mrgoodwx]

Triton1, I think it has a lot to do with a tradition of poor diet (including way too much fried food), along with little or no exercise. I grew up in Mississippi, but haven't lived there in 20 years. I abandoned the type diet I grew up with, and I also exercise daily to stay trim. Whenever I visit the deep south, I see lots of overweight/obese people, especially in east Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi. Most of my old friends are overweight and never exercise. I am a little surprised that Mississippi is labeled the fattest...I would have guessed one of the nearby states. Maybe people in Alaska burn a lot more calories trying to keep warm.

[lkstiles]

I think people in Alaska probably eat healthier as well. Probably alot of omega 3's like fish and whatnot. The south is the WORST for buffets... fried catfish, fried porkchops, fried chicken, fried froglegs... if it can be battered it can be fried. I am from the south originally but exercise daily. I'm only 26, but most of my friends are overweight as well. It's really sad. They will probably not live nearly as long either. On top of the food, there is the alcohol and very inactive lives. Alcohol is extremely high in calories, top that off with a big ole southern buffet and you got it.... Heart Attack on a platter! But honestly though, there are fat people everywhere. I see them here in St. Louis and in Michigan when I go home to visit in-laws.

[TimtheGuy]

Originally Posted by triton1

I have been reading quite a bit about obesity in the united states and was shocked and surprised to read that Mississippi is reportedly the fattest state in the country. (In all honesty, i thought the fattest state in the nation was Alaska.) Can anyone explain how the fattest state in the nation could possibly be located in the deep south and not the far north?

I think all the "fattest" states are in the deep south. To sum it up in 4 words....fried food & zero exercise.

[jsherman9901]

Originally Posted by TimtheGuy

I think all the "fattest" states are in the deep south. To sum it up in 4 words....fried food & zero exercise.

Actually, you need 4 more words ..... "all you can eat". Those four little words seems to be irresistible to most people. Seriously, this state is the king of the unlimited buffet. I think even the tiniest towns have at least one.

[TimtheGuy]

Originally Posted by jsherman9901

Actually, you need 4 more words ..... "all you can eat". Those four little words seems to be irresistible to most people. Seriously, this state is the king of the unlimited buffet. I think even the tiniest towns have at least one.

Very true and you can add the MONSTER BUFFETS at all the casinos! I think there are around 30 casinos in the state. They probably all serve at least 3,000 people a day on average. Thats 90,000 people/day! In addition to that, all casino employees also get to eat free buffets every day at work.

[triton1]

I also would figure that in a warm climate where winters are either non existant or very short and mild, a whole lot more people would be out doing activities that are commonly associated with exercise like riding bicycles, swimming, water skiing, roller skating, etc, and the more exercise you get, the more fit and slim you will be. seeing that I, myself, am a warm weather type of guy and that I can only do that stuff in warm weather, i'd probably be about 80 pounds lighter than I am right now. Also, I have seen extremely few overweight/obese people in south florida and in the florida keys. the rest of south florida locals were quite slim and in shape.

[triton1]

I also figured Alaska as being the fattest state because it is so cold that they get snow all 12 months a year. And when it is freezing cold like that all year round, I would imagine people would spend about 90 percent of the time huddled inside by the fireplace or near the furnace, watching TV, and in general, being sedentary. I mean, i have heard of dogsleds and dogsled events, but then again, from my point of view, very few people would dare to step outside in -10s or colder temps.

[aiangel_writer]

Originally Posted by triton1

I also would figure that in a warm climate where winters are either non existant or very short and mild, a whole lot more people would be out doing activities that are commonly associated with exercise like riding bicycles, swimming, water skiing, roller skating, etc, and the more exercise you get, the more fit and slim you will be. seeing that I, myself, am a warm weather type of guy and that I can only do that stuff in warm weather, i'd probably be about 80 pounds lighter than I am right now. Also, I have seen extremely few overweight/obese people in south florida and in the florida keys. the rest of south florida locals were quite slim and in shape.

You are forgetting that you live in the city where it is easy to do all the exercises you mention. Most of us live in the rural parts of the state. When you have to drive 1 to 2 hours just to get to work, then work a ten to twelve hour shift and come home, all you want to do is eat and fall into the bed to sleep. Some of us are lucky that we work very close to home, but for the majority of people, they have to drive a great distance. So, when the weekends come along, after working their butts off all week, they like to party hard and have a feast.

For the most part, I do try to fix more healthy meals, but my dh simply has to have meat at every meal, and he does not like to have a lot of pasta. He works very hard and expects a full meal when he comes in. I do fix a lot of fruit and veggies, and have given up frying for the most part, and use olive oil regularly and no margarine. Still, you won't see an honest to goodness good ole boy who has worked his tail off sweating at his job sitting down to pasta and water. Many of us are trying, but it takes time to get them weaned off the really syrupy iced sweet tea and fried pork chops or fried okra. Let's not forget the melt in your mouth buttermilk biscuits either.

So, we might be the most obese state, I can see why, but I also know that the majority of our people work hard in factories with little to no a/c or work outside in the sweltering heat and humidity and like to sit down to a meal that sticks with them a while, they can't work the way they do without eating a full good meal.

Then you have those who are subsidized by the government, and let's face it, many eat junk. It is quick and easy to prepare.

City life and country life are many worlds apart, just like the food we eat.

[allie_countrygirlatheart]

I honestly thought the fattest state was Texas.