Obesity is one of the most serious health issues in the United States. Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer. It is also among the leading causes of preventable, premature death, according to CDC data. (Also See The States With the Highest Diabetes Rates.)
Obesity prevalence in the U.S. was 41.9%, according to the CDC, and statistics indicate that the nation is becoming more obese. In the Trust for America’s Health’s analysis of CDC data, in 2022, 22 states had an adult-obesity rate at or above 35%. In 2012, no state had an adult-obesity rate above 35%.
24/7 Tempo used five metrics to determine the most obese city in every state — adults who are obese, don’t exercise, report poor or fair health, have diabetes; and get less than seven hours of sleep a night.
Of the 10 cities that graded the lowest in four categories, eight were in Southern states. Outlying cities were in California, Arizona, New Jersey, and Hawaii. In the obesity category, seven Southern states were among the 10 most obese, with the remaining three cities in the Midwest states of Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois. (Also See The City That Hates Exercise the Most in Every State.)
In the obesity and exercise categories, all 10 of the most obese cities exceeded the state average. Nine of 10 topped the state average in the health, diabetes, and sleep categories.
Alaska: Fairbanks
- Adults who are obese: 31.20% (state: 31.8%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.00% (state: 21.1%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.90% (state: 12.2%)
- Adults with diabetes: 7.50% (state: 7.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 32.90% (state: 31.9%)
Arizona: Yuma
- Adults who are obese: 40.50% (state: 31.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 29.40% (state: 21.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 21.10% (state: 14.5%)
- Adults with diabetes: 13.00% (state: 9.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 36.60% (state: 33.6%)
Arkansas: Pine Bluff
- Adults who are obese: 42.90% (state: 37.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 33.70% (state: 28.8%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 22.80% (state: 19.4%)
- Adults with diabetes: 14.20% (state: 11.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 39.90% (state: 35.9%)
California: Merced
- Adults who are obese: 38.00% (state: 30.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 28.90% (state: 21.1%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 21.70% (state: 14.4%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.90% (state: 9.2%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 34.30% (state: 31.1%)
Colorado: Greeley
- Adults who are obese: 32.20% (state: 24.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 20.80% (state: 16.5%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.40% (state: 10.2%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.50% (state: 7.0%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 29.00% (state: 27.0%)
Connecticut: New Haven-Milford
- Adults who are obese: 33.30% (state: 29.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.80% (state: 20.2%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.60% (state: 11.0%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.40% (state: 8.2%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 36.40% (state: 33.0%)
Delaware: Dover
- Adults who are obese: 39.10% (state: 36.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 27.60% (state: 23.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 14.60% (state: 12.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 11.30% (state: 10.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.10% (state: 33.9%)
Florida: Sebring-Avon Park
- Adults who are obese: 39.10% (state: 28.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 29.60% (state: 25.8%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 19.20% (state: 13.3%)
- Adults with diabetes: 11.50% (state: 9.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.30% (state: 34.3%)
Georgia: Albany
- Adults who are obese: 41.40% (state: 34.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 29.60% (state: 24.5%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 20.00% (state: 15.1%)
- Adults with diabetes: 14.50% (state: 10.6%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 40.70% (state: 35.8%)
Hawaii: Urban Honolulu
- Adults who are obese: 24.30% (state: 25.0%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 19.80% (state: 18.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.40% (state: 10.3%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.60% (state: 9.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 42.30% (state: 39.4%)
Idaho: Pocatello
- Adults who are obese: 36.30% (state: 31.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.70% (state: 19.7%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 13.60% (state: 11.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.30% (state: 7.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.30% (state: 29.8%)
Illinois: Rockford
- Adults who are obese: 40.90% (state: 32.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 26.90% (state: 24.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.50% (state: 12.3%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.30% (state: 9.3%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 32.20% (state: 31.9%)
Indiana: Kokomo
- Adults who are obese: 41.20% (state: 37.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 26.80% (state: 25.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.20% (state: 15.1%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.30% (state: 10.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.20% (state: 35.9%)
Iowa: Waterloo-Cedar Falls
- Adults who are obese: 39.30% (state: 37.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.00% (state: 22.7%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.10% (state: 12.0%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.00% (state: 8.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 31.90% (state: 31.6%)
Kansas: Topeka
- Adults who are obese: 37.50% (state: 35.8%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 22.30% (state: 21.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 13.10% (state: 12.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.30% (state: 9.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 31.90% (state: 33.0%)
Kentucky: Elizabethtown-Fort Knox
- Adults who are obese: 39.20% (state: 37.0%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 28.40% (state: 29.3%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 17.80% (state: 19.5%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.40% (state: 11.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.10% (state: 39.1%)
Louisiana: Alexandria
- Adults who are obese: 43.20% (state: 38.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 32.30% (state: 28.2%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 18.60% (state: 19.0%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.50% (state: 12.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 37.60% (state: 36.6%)
Maine: Lewiston-Auburn
- Adults who are obese: 35.00% (state: 31.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 24.30% (state: 19.7%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 13.20% (state: 11.1%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.90% (state: 8.2%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.00% (state: 31.2%)
Maryland-West Virginia: Hagerstown-Martinsburg
- Adults who are obese: 37.70% (state: 30.9%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 27.00% (state: 20.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.10% (state: 10.6%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.50% (state: 9.1%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.00% (state: 34.1%)
Massachusetts-Connecticut: Worcester
- Adults who are obese: 30.30% (state: 24.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.80% (state: 19.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.00% (state: 10.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.20% (state: 7.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.30% (state: 31.6%)
Michigan: Saginaw
- Adults who are obese: 42.90% (state: 35.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.60% (state: 20.2%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.90% (state: 14.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 11.30% (state: 10.6%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 37.30% (state: 35.5%)
Minnesota: St. Cloud
- Adults who are obese: 34.80% (state: 30.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.50% (state: 18.7%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.60% (state: 10.0%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.30% (state: 7.8%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 30.80% (state: 27.8%)
Mississippi: Jackson
- Adults who are obese: 39.30% (state: 39.9%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 27.60% (state: 28.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 17.70% (state: 18.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.00% (state: 13.2%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 34.70% (state: 35.3%)
Missouri-Illinois: Cape Girardeau
- Adults who are obese: 40.10% (state: 34.2%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 25.80% (state: 24.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.50% (state: 15.2%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.80% (state: 9.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.20% (state: 34.2%)
Montana: Great Falls
- Adults who are obese: 35.00% (state: 28.9%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.30% (state: 18.0%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.90% (state: 12.1%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.50% (state: 7.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 31.00% (state: 29.7%)
Nebraska: Grand Island
- Adults who are obese: 39.00% (state: 34.0%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 25.70% (state: 21.0%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.80% (state: 10.2%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.70% (state: 8.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 29.90% (state: 28.9%)
Nevada: Carson City
- Adults who are obese: 34.40% (state: 28.1%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.10% (state: 24.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 16.30% (state: 16.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.90% (state: 9.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.40% (state: 35.3%)
New Hampshire: Manchester-Nashua
- Adults who are obese: 29.20% (state: 30.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 19.90% (state: 18.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 10.90% (state: 10.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 7.90% (state: 7.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.20% (state: 31.0%)
New Jersey: Vineland-Bridgeton
- Adults who are obese: 35.70% (state: 27.7%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 30.80% (state: 20.2%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 17.80% (state: 10.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 11.50% (state: 8.6%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 39.60% (state: 32.3%)
New Mexico: Farmington
- Adults who are obese: 35.00% (state: 31.7%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.90% (state: 22.5%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 17.70% (state: 13.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.60% (state: 11.0%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 36.30% (state: 30.8%)
New York: Binghamton
- Adults who are obese: 35.40% (state: 26.5%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.70% (state: 25.2%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.40% (state: 11.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.80% (state: 9.1%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 34.20% (state: 33.1%)
North Carolina: Rocky Mount
- Adults who are obese: 39.00% (state: 33.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 26.70% (state: 21.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 17.50% (state: 13.5%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.70% (state: 11.0%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.80% (state: 31.8%)
North Dakota-Minnesota: Grand Forks
- Adults who are obese: 35.90% (state: 33.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.40% (state: 24.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.60% (state: 11.6%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.90% (state: 9.3%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 31.90% (state: 30.5%)
Ohio: Mansfield
- Adults who are obese: 39.30% (state: 35.8%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 27.70% (state: 23.5%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 16.40% (state: 14.5%)
- Adults with diabetes: 11.20% (state: 10.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 36.40% (state: 36.5%)
Oklahoma: Lawton
- Adults who are obese: 39.40% (state: 37.1%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 31.20% (state: 27.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 18.00% (state: 17.3%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.30% (state: 11.8%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.60% (state: 33.8%)
Oregon: Salem
- Adults who are obese: 35.50% (state: 28.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 20.70% (state: 17.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 15.30% (state: 12.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.50% (state: 8.4%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 31.10% (state: 29.0%)
Pennsylvania: Chambersburg-Waynesboro
- Adults who are obese: 40.00% (state: 31.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 23.20% (state: 23.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 13.70% (state: 13.1%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.10% (state: 9.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 36.50% (state: 37.0%)
Rhode Island-Massachusetts: Providence-Warwick
- Adults who are obese: 29.60% (state: 30.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 22.60% (state: 22.9%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.50% (state: 11.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.70% (state: 9.0%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.20% (state: 32.8%)
South Carolina: Florence
- Adults who are obese: 41.70% (state: 36.7%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 30.80% (state: 25.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 18.40% (state: 15.9%)
- Adults with diabetes: 13.00% (state: 11.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 38.40% (state: 34.7%)
South Dakota: Rapid City
- Adults who are obese: 32.80% (state: 33.4%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.30% (state: 21.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 10.80% (state: 10.4%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.10% (state: 6.9%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 28.60% (state: 29.5%)
Tennessee: Jackson
- Adults who are obese: 40.70% (state: 35.8%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 27.10% (state: 23.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 18.00% (state: 15.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 12.80% (state: 12.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.40% (state: 34.4%)
Texas: Laredo
- Adults who are obese: 44.60% (state: 35.8%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 38.00% (state: 25.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 27.40% (state: 15.7%)
- Adults with diabetes: 17.00% (state: 12.0%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 37.30% (state: 33.4%)
Utah: Ogden-Clearfield
- Adults who are obese: 32.70% (state: 29.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 17.90% (state: 16.3%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 11.40% (state: 10.9%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.70% (state: 8.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.90% (state: 30.9%)
Vermont: Burlington-South Burlington
- Adults who are obese: 24.40% (state: 26.3%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 15.20% (state: 17.1%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 9.10% (state: 10.6%)
- Adults with diabetes: 6.50% (state: 6.7%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 27.00% (state: 28.9%)
Virginia: Richmond
- Adults who are obese: 36.20% (state: 32.4%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 22.00% (state: 20.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 13.80% (state: 12.4%)
- Adults with diabetes: 10.80% (state: 9.8%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 35.80% (state: 34.5%)
Washington: Longview
- Adults who are obese: 37.80% (state: 28.0%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 19.50% (state: 17.5%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 14.50% (state: 11.8%)
- Adults with diabetes: 8.50% (state: 7.8%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 37.20% (state: 29.9%)
West Virginia: Beckley
- Adults who are obese: 41.80% (state: 39.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 30.50% (state: 27.4%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 21.70% (state: 20.0%)
- Adults with diabetes: 13.00% (state: 13.1%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 43.20% (state: 40.5%)
Wisconsin: Racine
- Adults who are obese: 36.10% (state: 32.7%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 21.30% (state: 19.8%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.70% (state: 12.4%)
- Adults with diabetes: 9.20% (state: 7.6%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.30% (state: 31.2%)
Wyoming: Casper
- Adults who are obese: 34.00% (state: 30.6%)
- Adults who don’t exercise: 25.00% (state: 21.6%)
- Adults who report poor or fair health: 12.20% (state: 11.5%)
- Adults with diabetes: 7.30% (state: 7.5%)
- Adults who get <7 hours of sleep a night: 33.50% (state: 33.1%)