Obesity Rates in Kid Stabilize , Adults Still Fighting the Fat : Report

Childhood obesity rates in the United States have stabilized with the adults still leaning to fat, says the latest obesity report published Thursday by the Trust for America's Health, a health advocacy and research group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Obesity rates have gone up in six states but 44 plus District of Columbia have shown no rise in numbers. In 2005, 49 out of 50 states saw year-over-year increases in their rates of obesity. In 2013, only Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, New Jersey, Tennessee and Wyoming were in that category, according to the report.

Most heartening is that obesity rates among the young have declined. Among the 40 states that collect BMI data on low-income children between the ages of 2 and 5, 18 recorded declines in their obesity rates between 2008 and 2011, while only three states saw rates go up, reports the Los Angeles Times.

"While we've seen some progress on the childhood obesity front, the progress is more mixed for adults," said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the trust.

Obesity is defined as having a body mass index of 30 or more, while a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is classified as overweight, according to Centers for Disease Prevention and Control guidelines.

Mississippi and West Virginia were at the top as the heaviest states, with their adult obesity rates at 35.1 percent. Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee rounded out the top five.

Colorado had the lowest rate of adult obesity at 21.3 percent, followed by Hawaii and Massachusetts. According to the report, in 1991 none of the states passed the 21 percent mark but now even the thinnest state stands above that mark.

The report said Americans ages 45 to 64 showed the highest obesity rates among all age groups. It also states that geography, socio-economic status and ethnicity continue to play a big role in obesity rates. 

Obesity rates among African Americans and Latinos remain high. Across the United States, 48 percent of African Americans and 42.5 percent of Latino adults were obese in 2011-12, compared with slightly less than 33 percent for whites, says the report.

How much one earns too is a factor in being on the heavy side. Among those who make less than $15,000 per year, 33 percent were obese in 2012. But those who made at least  $50,000 per year, the obesity rate was 25 percent.

Taking the good with the bad, the American population is still not out of the woods. With obesity come other health problems like cardiovascular diseases, heart disease, blood pressure and diabetes, which in turn increase the cost of state health care and burden.