Waistlines swelling in Utah, U.S.

WASHINGTON — Utah is one of 31 states where obesity rates rose in the past year, a new report shows.

Utah is the 43rd-heaviest state in the nation with 20.8 percent of adults considered obese. That's an increase of 1.2 percentage points from last year, when the state ranked 44th, with an obesity rate of 19.6 percent, according to the report compiled by Trust for America's Health, an advocacy group that promotes increased funding for public health programs.

Mississippi continued to be the heaviest state in the country. An estimated 29.5 percent of adults there are considered obese, an increase of 1.1 percentage points from last year.

Meanwhile, Colorado remains the leanest state. About 16.9 percent of its adults are considered obese. That mark was also up slightly from last year's report, but not enough to be considered statistically significant.

Utah Department of Health officials are not surprised with the report's findings.

"Our data has found the same thing," said Dr. Richard Bullough, director of the diabetes prevention program. "Utah is getting fatter."

To help combat obesity in Utah, the Department of Health released a blueprint for reduction called "Tipping the Scales" last year. It stated many of the same issues and recommendations as the national report, Bullough said.

"We have some very firm goals," he said. "Our goal is that Utah's families, communities, schools, work sites, media, health care providers and government will take active roles in addressing obesity."

Obesity rates were unchanged in 18 states. The only state that experienced a decrease in the percentage of obese adults last year was Nevada.

"Obesity now exceeds 25 percent in 13 states, which should sound some serious alarm bells," said Dr. Jeff Levi, executive director of the advocacy group.

Health officials warn that a high incidence of obesity in a particular state doesn't mean it treats the issue less seriously than others. States have different challenges to contend with when it comes to obesity, said Dr. Janet Collins of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Populations are not equal in terms of experiencing these health problems," Collins said. "Low-income populations tend to experience all the health problems we worry about at greater rates."