Photo: Lee Carson, Flickr

By now, you've probably heard that Mississippi is (once again) the fattest state -- for five years running. And Colorado is holding tight to its status as the leanest state. But where does your state rank? Odds are, your state's obesity rate is climbing -- all in all, 23 states got fatter this year. Some more facts to consider:

• Four states have over 30 percent obesity. Mississippi tops the charts with 32.5 percent. But Alabama, West Virginia and Tennessee follow close behind with 31.2 percent, 31.1 percent and 30.2 percent, respectively.
• Baby boomers in Alabama are the heaviest for their demographic, but Michigan boomers are close runners-up.
• While only four states have adult obesity rates over 30 percent, 21 states have childhood obesity rates over 30 percent.

Considering that not one state reported an improvement in obesity rates, it's not surprising that this year's report by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation was titled F as in Fat. The report states that the economic crunch we're experiencing could make obesity rates even worse.

It's all kind of depressing actually. But That's Fit readers know that while the government types sort out any policies that can be put in place to help this growing obesity crisis, we can all take responsibility for our own health. After all, you are the biggest influence in your own health. Start taking steps to achieve a healthy weight today.

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Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly, our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy.

Nastia Liukin was the darling of the U.S. gymnastics team this year as she conquered Olympic Gold in the All Around competition and proudly added to her collection four more medals. That would be three silver and one bronze; I personally would kill to have just one in any color. She's Russian born, American bred and now working with the Secret Sport Challenge to help make other athletic dreams come true. I scored this interview this week while she was promoting the Challenge and bringing attention to the twenty $5,000 scholarships being given away to help others achieve their sporty goals. Nastia is ridiculously fit and has some great advice to help you look better, feel stronger and live longer.

Fitz: How many hours a week do you train before a competition?

Nastia: Before the Olympics I trained for about seven hours a day. It included about two hours of warming up and conditioning, and the rest of the time was spent practicing routines and skills on the events.

Fitz: If you weren't a professional athlete/gymnast how do you think you'd pursue fitness?

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The United States is two to three years behind most Western countries in terms of life expectancy -- it ranks 29th among all United Nations' member nations. Highest is Andorra, with an average life expectancy of 83. The U.S. magical age is 78. Still, we're making some progress in the life expectancy arena.

• Babies born in 2006 have an average life expectancy about four months greater than babies born in 2005.
  
  

• The male-female difference has declined over the past 15 years, from eight years to five years.
  
  

• Blacks have been gaining on whites.
  
  
• Flu and pneumonia deaths are dropping -- there were 22,000 fewer deaths between 2005 and 2006.
  
  
• Infant mortality rates are dropping.
  
  

• Deaths from stroke, lower respiratory diseases, heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes are on the decline.
  
  

While it's too soon to tell if some of these occurrences are caused by statistical fluke or real trends, there's a possibility the drop in diabetes deaths is the biggest researchers have seen in a long time. And that, my friends, would be some pretty good news.

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National Women's Health Week kicks off on Mother's Day with the purpose of empowering women to get healthy by taking action. Your health should be a major priority, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health has a few steps designed to help you achieve that. Businesses, government, and health organizations across the United States, hopefully near you, will be taking part in this event.

Objectives of the week are designed to teach women the benefits of:

• Engaging in physical activity most days of the week
• Making healthy food choices
• Visiting a health care provider to receive regular check-ups and preventive screenings
• Avoiding risky behaviors, like smoking and not wearing a seat belt

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I told you yesterday that schools are doing a better job of meeting the nutritional needs of its students. This is true -- some progress is definitely evident. Still, 20 states are failing when it comes to serving up healthy meals and snacks.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, issuer of America's school nutrition report card, did not assign any perfect As. But Kentucky and Oregon were given an A-. Recipients of a B+ include Nevada, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Washington, and New Mexico. Those receiving a B are New Jersey, Arizona, and Tennessee. Six other states got a B-, one got a C+, three others and the District of Columbia were handed a C, and two more took home a C-. Seven states received Ds. Overall, only 11 states have nutrition plans that apply all day to all grade levels throughout school campuses.

Schools are required to comply with USDA guidelines for nutritional meals, but this agency has no authority over foods sold outside the cafeteria or outside of meal times. And while the USDA policy doesn't allow foods of minimal nutritional value (FMNV) to be sold in food service areas during meal times, these foods can be sold at any other time or place. FMNV include soft drinks, jellybeans, and popsicles -- anything with less than five percent of the Reference Daily Intake of eight different nutrients. This criteria does not eliminate junk foods like candy bars from the nation's cafeterias, though.

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Want to put this obesity crisis into perspective? Check out this post from The Agonist. It shows several maps, which represent the percentage of obese people in each state via colour coding. The maps go from mostly blue (low levels of obesity) to all red, orange and yellow (high levels of obesity.) In fact, in 2004, no state has less than 15% obesity among it's residents, and most have above 20%. And that was three years ago -- I'd be willing to bet that these stats have gone even high since.

Obesity seems to be growing exponentially, and it's clear that if we don't do something soon, a huge chunk of the nation is going to kill themselves with their own indulgence. But how do we stop this epidemic before the entire map turns red?

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Gotta love top 10 lists, right? Even if they're on gross topics, like which American city could fill an Olympic sized swimming pool with sweat in less than three hours? Well here's a list that couldn't be more appropriate for the height of summer: the top 10 sweatiest cities in America (and yes, #1 can fill the pool -- yuck!).

1) Phoenix, AZ
2) Las Vegas, NV
3) Tucson, AZ
4) Dallas, TX
5) Corpus Christi, TX
6) San Antonio, TX
7) Austin, TX
8) Shreveport, LA
9) Houston, TX
10) Waco, TX

An Arizona city may have the #1 spot, but looking at this list Texas is the sweatiest state by far!



Via Gadling

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A new study reveals that Americans are less happy today than they were 30 years ago. The research comes from Italy of all places, but it looks at data collected from 1975 to 2004. Can you guess the leading causes of this drop in happiness? The culprits are longer working hours and diminishing personal relationships.

It seems obvious: just look at the drastic rise in medical treatments for depression nowadays! How did we get to this point? While it's safe to say not everyone is a walking puddle of misery, our culture has become increasingly competitive. Not only that, but many people perceive others to be untrustworthy and keep their distance. An interesting note in the study states that it's easier to drop from the middle class to the poor in America than in Europe. Because of this insecurity, Europe's "happiness trends" have remained relatively constant over the years.

However there is hope. For those who think money can buy happiness, the good news is that an extra $320,000 in income will bring the same level of joy as someone who has plenty of friends and social interactions. If you buy into that, then good luck. For everyone else, the fix is simple. Try curbing the occupational binge and start spending more time with friends and family! Finding a happy balance is not as hard as it may appear. Here's to the next 30 years-

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12 states are fighting to have a deadly disease lab facility built on their land. The research center would house killers like anthrax, avian flu, and foot and mouth disease, plus (I'm guessing) a whole bunch of dangerously fun "experiments." This new project is intended to replace a smaller lab at Plum Island, N.Y., where some questionable security practices back in 2001 required investigation.

Although the states themselves seem eager to "win" and get the lab, not all the residents in the proposed areas are that excited. And who can blame them? A lab test gone wrong, or even something as simple as an experiment with unpredicted results, could potentially infect the entire surrounding area. No, I'm not thinking I want a deadly disease lab in my area. Thanks, but no thanks.

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That good old southern cookin' generally has a bad reputation health-wise, and it seems it deserves it. Southern states, including Florida, Mississippi, Georgia and Alabama are among the unhealthiest states in the USA, with Louisiana taking the infamous title of most unhealthy. On the other hand, Minnesota was names the healthiest state, and had Vermont, New Hampshire and Connecticut as its main competitors.

The list takes in consideration factors like obesity, prevalence of infectious disease, percentage of population that smokes, death rates, infant mortality rates and more. Minnesota, which has taken the top spot in this list for 11 out of the 17 previous years, boasts a high amount of residents with health insurance, low rates of premature deaths and low rates of cardiovascular deaths -- I guess the fresh air does make a big difference!

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