Important new documentary coming out

Fortunately, it is to be on HBO. That means some people, at least, will see it.

If it were at the theaters, it would get acclaim, some would see it but not enough people. And likely, too, it wouldn't be the people seeing it who should see it.

This way, if it's on HBO, in our homes, in our living rooms, we don't have to get up and go anywhere to take it in.

And there's more and cheaper food, too.

Kansas and Missouri, No.'s 3 and 4 on "States with the Deadliest Eating Habits"?

Yikes.

Mississippi, on this list, I guessed.  I thought sure neither Missouri nor Kansas would be on it but there we are:

10 States With the Deadliest Eating Habits

4. Kansas

Grocery Stores Per 1,000 Residents: 0.35 (7th)
Amount Spent on Fast Food Per Capita: $610 (19th least)
Gallons of Soft Drinks Purchased Per Capita: 64 (23rd most)
Pounds of Sweet Snacks Purchased Per Capita: 121 (12th most)

Kansas has some of the easiest access (seventh-best) to stores where cheap and healthy food is available. It is clear, however, that most residents do not take advantage of this, as the state has one of the worst diets in the country. Residents consume the 12th-most sweet snacks per person as well as the 12th-most solid fats -- more than 20 pounds per person. The state ranks 28th in adult diabetes and 31st in obesity -- 28% of the state's adults are considered overweight.

3. Missouri

Grocery Stores Per 1,000 Residents: 0.26 (22nd)
Amount Spent on Fast Food Per Capita: $623 (21st least)
Gallons of Soft Drinks Purchased Per Capita: 65 (18th highest)
Pounds of Sweet Snacks Purchased Per Capita: 121 (17th most)

Missouri does not rank especially poor in any of the metrics considered, however it does rank badly in about almost every one. It has the 11th-lowest rates of adults eating the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables, the eighth-greatest rate of food insecurity, and relatively high rates of soft drink, sweet snack and solid fats consumption. Missouri has the ninth-worst rate of obesity among adults, with 30% having a body mass index greater than 30.

And only Alabama (at no. 2) and Mississippi are worse, for pity's sake.  I can hardly believe this. 

Additionally, so you know it's not some bogus, trumped-up Forbes Magazine article that's putting this out, it's from the "Recent data reported in medical journal Lancet" and it "showed that BMI (Body Mass Index), a recognized measurement of obesity, is higher on average in America than in any other nation."

Note, too, that it's not just an obesity ranking, it's the "deadliest eating habits" And from a medical journal.  Yow.

Not a good list to be one, by a long shot, eh, folks?

Pass the popcorn.

...and butter, while you're at it.

Link to original post:  http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/112083/10-states-with-the-deadliest-eating-habits

Kansas City and Missouri: Getting respect (sort of)

Two new surveys are out today--one on cities to visit in the Summer and one on obesity in the US. Good news, too, on both (mostly). Kansas City ranks 17th for cities to visit in the Summer Hey, it could be worse, right? Besides, rather ignorantly, they don't even mention our art galleries, theater or restaurants, as attractions. And Missouri isn't in the top 10 for most obese states in the US. (Unfortunately, we are number 12. Oops. Kansas is only marginally better at 16. Come on, people.) Yeehaw! Both are good news, as I said, I think. Unfortunately for America, however, the obesity rankings show that it--obesity--has jumped up in 28 states, including Missouri, Kansas and too many surrounding states: "More than two-thirds of states now have adult obesity rates above 25 percent," Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America's Health, said during a Tuesday news conference. "Back in 1991, not that long ago, not a single state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. There's been a dramatic change in a relatively short period." "Obesity is one of the biggest public health crises in the country," Levi added. "Rising rates of obesity over past decades is one of the major factors behind skyrocketing health care costs in the U.S., one-quarter of which are related to obesity." Mississippi weighed in for the sixth year in a row as the fattest state, with 33.8 percent of its adults obese, while Alabama and Tennessee tied for second (31.6 percent). The other top 10, also concentrated in the south, were West Virginia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Arkansas, South Carolina and Michigan tying with North Carolina for 10th place (29.4 percent). The healthiest states in terms of weight were congregated in the Northeast and West. In addition to geographic and economic differences, this year's report also focused on racial and ethnic disparities, finding that blacks and Latinos bear the brunt of the obesity problem. Blacks and Latinos outweighed whites in at least 40 states plus D.C. Important stuff to know. Now, for solutions. Link to the original report on obesity here: http://healthyamericans.org/reports/obesity2010/Obesity2010Report.pdf