Texas sits at No. 11 among “2015’s Fattest States in America,” according to a study by the personal finance website WalletHub.
Using data collected from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, the Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative and the Trust for America’s Health, WalletHub analysts graded all 50 states based on two categories: obesity and overweight prevalence, and unhealthy habits and consequences. Within each category, WalletHub calculated factors such as the state’s percentage of overweight adults, percentage of residents with high cholesterol and death rate due to obesity.
Texas ranked No. 10 in three subcategories: children who are obese, residents who are physically inactive and residents with hypertension. The state ranked No. 9 among percentages of children who are overweight, but not necessarily obese.
Mississippi was the No. 1 fattest state in America. Louisiana, West Virginia, Tennessee and South Carolina rounded out the top five. The city with the lowest ranking was Hawaii.
See the WalletHub’s graphic below showing the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. The states in darker blue show the areas where obesity is the most prevalent.