Report: R.I. obesity rate improves from last year

RHODE ISLAND had the 12th-lowest rate of obesity in the nation in 2015, according to "The State of Obesity" report. / COURTESY ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION
RHODE ISLAND had the 12th-lowest rate of obesity in the nation in 2015, according to "The State of Obesity" report. / COURTESY ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island had the 12th-lowest rate of obesity in the nation last year, according to “The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America,” a report from the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released Thursday.
Rhode Island’s obesity rate was 26 percent, for a rank of 40th, or 12th lowest in the nation. The Ocean State improved one spot from last year, when it was 13th lowest with a rate of 27 percent. In 1990, the state’s obesity rate was 10.1 percent.
Massachusetts ranked lowest among the New England states for its 24.3 percent obesity rate, coming in 46th, or sixth lowest. However, the Bay State fell from last year’s ranking of 48th, or fourth lowest, when its rate was 23.6 percent.
The 13th annual report showed that between 2014 and 2015, adult obesity rates decreased in four states (Minnesota, Montana, New York and Ohio), increased in two (Kansas and Kentucky) and remained stable in the rest. This marks the first time in the past decade that any states have experienced decreases, except from a decline in Washington, D.C., in 2010, the report said.
Louisiana had the highest adult obesity rate at 36.2 percent, while Colorado had the lowest at 20.2 percent.
While rates remained steady for most states, they are still high across the board, according to the report, which found that rates of obesity now exceed 35 percent in four states, are at or above 30 percent in 25 states and are above 20 percent in all states.
In 1991, no state had a rate above 20 percent.
The data also showed that childhood obesity rates have stabilized at 17 percent over the past decade, with rates decreasing among 2- to 5-year-olds, holding steady among 6- to 11-year-olds, but rising among 12- to 19-year-olds.
“Obesity remains one of the most significant epidemics our country has faced, contributing to millions of preventable illnesses and billions of dollars in avoidable health care costs,” Richard Hamburg, interim president and CEO, TFAH, said in a statement.
Other report findings:

  • The number of high school students who drink one or more soda a day has dropped by nearly 40 percent since 2007, to around one in five (20.4 percent) (but this does not include sport/energy drinks, diet sodas or water with added sugars).
  • The number of high school students who report playing video or computer games three or more hours a day has increased more than 88 percent since 2003 (from 22.1 to 41.7 percent).
  • More than 29 million children live in “food deserts,” and more than 15 million children live in “food-insecure” households with not enough to eat and limited access to healthy food.
  • Farm-to-School programs now serve more than 42 percent of schools and 23.6 million children.

Data is based on telephone surveys by state health departments, with assistance from CDC.

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