Our interactive map shows the most obese counties in America: where more than half the population is overweight

America’s obesity problem is growing, and it’s hitting one region of the country hardest.

The Southern United States is home to 90 of the top 100 most obese counties in the U.S., and the 15 fattest.

A CDC report found that 33.4 percent of American adults are obese, with separate figures showing that number is as high as 17 percent among children.

The recent CDC report found that levels barely rose in 2022, up from 33 percent the year before. But experts are more concerned about areas of the country where nearly half of the residents are obese.

In the country’s approximately 3,000 provinces, a third (1,098) now record obesity rates of more than 40 percent among adults.

And in 11 provinces, estimates suggest more than half of adults are now obese – up from eight provinces the year before.

The findings come from the CDC’s PLACES, Population Level Analysis and Community Estimates, released this month. They are based on more than 400,000 interviews conducted with a nationally representative sample.

Of the 11 counties with obesity rates above 50 percent, six were spread across Mississippi, a state known for its love of fried Southern food and limited access to health care.

It’s also the least active state in America, according to Apple Watch data, with only 38.5 percent of residents getting the minimum recommended 150 minutes of exercise per week.

Three other counties with majority obesity are in neighboring Alabama, and one each in nearby Arkansas and Louisiana.

Holmes County, Mississippi, was the most densely populated county in America, with an estimated 53 percent of adults obese.

Jefferson County, also in Mississippi, ranked third at 52 percent, followed by Phillips County in Arkansas, East Carroll County in Louisiana and Claiborne County in Mississippi, all at about 51 percent.

Mississippi’s obesity problem has been growing for more than a decade.

In 2011, Holmes County residents told NPR that obesity rates had become so high that 10-year-olds had diabetes and 26-year-olds were having strokes.

They said that even the school bus started reporting overcrowding, and that this was not due to an influx of people.

Calvin Head, the county’s former transportation director, said, “That was because the children had become so obese. There were no longer three to a seat. In most cases, there could only be two to a seat.”

In the states with the highest obesity rates, rates of obesity-related diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes, are generally higher than in the leaner states.

Life expectancy is also generally lower. Mississippi has the lowest life expectancy in the country at 71 years.

At the other end of the spectrum, San Francisco County in California had the least obese area in America, with an estimated 18 percent of residents being obese.

Boulder, Colorado, came in second at nearly 19 percent and Alameda, California, came in third at 19.4 percent.

San Francisco and the Bay Area are considered among the most active and healthy cities in the U.S., with California ranked as the healthiest in the country, according to a 2022 analysis.

In Colorado, residents are very active and enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking and skiing.

Doctors have repeatedly raised concerns about obesity, warning that it puts people at greater risk of long-term health problems such as heart disease and even cancer.

The report came shortly after the CDC released separate estimates showing that America is now fatter than ever.

Estimates show that before 2013, no state had an adult obesity rate of 35 percent or higher.

But by 2023, the latest available date, 23 states will have reached the alarming threshold.

A record four states—West Virginia, Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana—now have obesity rates above 40 percent.

CDC Director Karen Hacker said, “These new data underscore the need for obesity prevention and treatment, which begins with creating healthier communities where people of all ages have safe places to be physically active.

‘And where health care and healthy food are accessible and affordable for everyone.’

She added: ‘Preventing obesity at a young age is critical because we know that children with obesity often become obese adults.’

With obesity rampant across the country, experts hope the advent of hunger-suppressing drugs like Ozempic could help curb America’s obesity epidemic.

But since just a month’s supply costs about $900, it’s unlikely the drugs will have an effect where they’re needed most.