Obesity Trends in United States.

If you haven't visited the Centers for Disease Control website and seen the slideshow that shows the dramatic increases in obesity rates over the last 22 years, I encourage you to take a look. http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/trend/maps/. The state of Colorado is now the ONLY state with less than 20% obesity.

2007 State Obesity Rates
Alabama - 30.3%, Alaska - 27.5%, Arizona - 25.4%, Arkansas - 28.7%, California - 22.6%, Colorado - 18.7%, Connecticut - 21.2%, Delaware - 27.4%, Florida - 23.6%, Georgia - 28.2%, Hawaii - 21.4%, Idaho - 24.5%, Illinois - 24.9%, Indiana - 26.8%, Iowa - 26.9%, Kansas - 26.9%, Kentucky - 27.4%, Louisiana - 29.8%, Maine - 24.8%, Maryland - 25.4%, Massachusetts - 21.3%, Michigan - 27.7%, Minnesota - 25.6%, Mississippi - 32.0%, Missouri - 27.5%, Montana - 21.8%, Nebraska - 26.0%, Nevada - 24.1%, New Hampshire - 24.4%, New Jersey - 23.5%, New Mexico - 24.0%, New York - 25.0%, North Carolina - 28.0%, North Dakota - 26.5%, Ohio - 27.5%, Oklahoma - 28.1%, Oregon - 25.5%, Pennsylvania - 27.1%, Rhode Island - 21.4%, South Carolina - 28.4%, South Dakota - 26.2%, Tennessee - 30.1%, Texas - 28.1%, Utah - 21.8%, Vermont - 21.3%, Virginia - 24.3%, Washington - 25.3%, Washington DC - 21.8%, West Virginia - 29.5%, Wisconsin - 24.7%, Wyoming - 23.7%

To say this is tragic is an understatement. It drives me crazy when I still see ads on tv promoting low fat products as if that's the problem. WAKE UP!!!! Fat is not the issue. If it were, we would all be thin since low fat products are everywhere. But the statistics prove otherwise. SUGAR is the real culprit here. In 2003, the average American ate 142 lbs of Sugar (64.5kg) and drank 46 Gallons of Pop (174L), compared to eating only 8.3 lbs (3.8kg) of Broccoli. Excess sugar in the body CONVERTS INTO FAT. Excess sugar sends our bodies on a hypoglycemic rollercoaster than leads to cravings for more sugar. The fact that Type II Diabetes is one of the fastest growing diseases in North America should be another clue.

Fat naturally found in foods like meats, dairy, nuts, etc. actually makes us feel full faster and takes longer to digest so we also feel full longer. Sugar does the opposite. Food manufacturers know this which is why they have replaced fat with sugar. Compare your labels. Low fat versions have more sugar and sodium than their higher fat counterparts.

If you are serious about losing weight, start by cutting out sugar (and alcohol, which also converts quickly to fat) and you will see dramatic results.

Visit my website at http://www.myhealthybalance.com/ to learn more.