The CDC on Thursday released state- and territory-specific data on adult obesity. The new information is based on self-reported survey responses from Americans compiled in the agency's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
Here are five key findings.
1. All 50 states had an obesity rate above 20 percent for 2016.
2. Obesity estimates per state ranged from 22.3 percent in Colorado to 37.7 percent in West Virginia.
3. Regionally, southern states reported the highest prevalence of obesity (32.0 percent), followed by the Midwest (31.4 percent), the Northeast (26.9 percent) and the West (26 percent).
4. Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia all had self-reported obesity rates above 35 percent for 2016.
5. Obesity rates varied by education levels. While college graduates reported obesity at a rate of 22.2 percent, adults without a high school education self-reported obesity at a rate of 35.5 percent.
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