http://www.channel3000.com/sh/health/stories/health-20010108-100146.html
Are You Living In The Fattest City?
Houston, Detroit Top The List Of Unfit
January 8, 2001, 11:22 a.m. EST
HOUSTON – Typically known as the Space City, Houston was
renamed the smoggiest city last year and it seems in 2001 it’s getting a
new nickname – fattest city.
According to the February edition of Men’s Fitness magazine, which hits
stands Tuesday, Houston is the fattest city in the United States.
The list of the 25 flabbiest cities also includes: Detroit, Philadelphia,
Chicago, Nashville and Las Vegas.
Jeff Lucia, executive editor of Men’s Fitness magazine, told USA Today
that “obesity is a serious health problem.” Nearly 61 percent of adults are
estimated to be overweight or obese, according to the magazine.
…
Skinnier San Diego will be thrilled with their No. 1 ranking as fittest city
for the third year running (no pun intended), according to the magazine.
Other fit cities include: Minneapolis, Boston, Oklahoma City, San Antonio
and Albuquerque.
So why are they so fit and Houstonians so “fat?”
In a poll conducted by the magazine, one San Diego resident wrote,
“With all the thin and lightly dressed people, it’s difficult to be overweight
and not feel very conspicuous.”
As for Houston, the editors of the magazine write, “The climate is hot and
muggy; the geography, flat and soggy. Houstonians face a terrible
commute and breathe some of the worst air of any city on our survey, and
they have too few choices for recreational facilities.”
…
To come up with the list of fattest and fittest cities, the magazine looked at
the 50 largest U.S. cities and evaluated them in 15 categories: junk food,
air quality, climate index, access to health care, smoking
regulations/impact, parks and open spaces, recreation facilities, obesity
rates, gyms/sporting goods stores, alcohol use, TV viewing,
exercise/nutrition habits, water quality, geography and commute time.
According to USA Today, the editors of the magazine said that the fattest
cities have a couple of common characteristics: Residents tend to watch a
lot of TV and experience more bad weather and have poor exercise and
nutrition habits.
On the other hand, the editors said that the fittiest cities have taken steps
to ensure that their residents stay fit and healthy, including adding bike
lanes to the roads, offering community programs to get people out of the
house and sponsoring walkathons.