Coventry is Getting Fatter, Like the Rest of the Country

America’s epidemic of fatness extends all the way to Coventry, and obesity rates are increasing even faster in Kent County than in the rest of the state and much of the country.

More than one-third of all area men (33.8 percent) and women (33.4 percent) were obese in 2011, the most recent data. Those obesity rates are up 8 percent and 11 percent, just since 2001, the biggest increase in the state. Using the map above, you can see the rate was only 25.7 percent for men and 22.3 percent for women in Kent County in 2001.

Obesity among men in the county increased at a slower rate than the rest of Rhode Island, which saw 9.4 percent more RI men reach obesity in the same period. Women in Kent County, however, are increasing their bulk at a much faster rate than the 8.1 percent state average. Nationwide, the obesity rate increased 7.7 percent for men and 7.1 percent for women in those 10 years.

While Kent County is beefing up the fastest, Providence County still has the highest percentage of obese residents in the state — 34 percent of men and 36 percent of women. 

Compared to other states, men and women in Rhode Island, collectively, are slightly slimmer than the national average. Obesity rates as of 2011 in the US were 33.8 percent of men and 36.1 percent of women. In total, more than one-third of the country is obese, the numbers show. In Rhode Island, the obesity rates are 32.9 percent for men and 33.6 percent for women.

The county figures on the map were obtained from a recent study from the University of Washington, which found that nationwide women are more obese than their male counterparts.

According to the CDC, obesity affects 35.7 percent of the population in the United States. Obesity is calculated by measuring a person’s height and weight, and deriving at a ratio called the body mass index, or BMI. This number often correlates to an individual’s amount of body fat, and is used to ascertain whether a person is considered underweight, a normal weight, overweight or obese.

Obese individuals have a 50-100 percent increased risk of premature death, and it’s estimated that obesity may be the cause of 300,000 deaths per year according to the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Interestingly, Americans claim to be exercising more during the same time period that obesity climbed. “Around the country, you can see huge increases in the percentage of people becoming physically active, which research tells us is certain to have health benefits,” said IHME Director Dr. Christopher Murray in a press release. Murray added that “If communities in the US can replicate this success and tackle the ongoing obesity impact, it will see more substantial health gains.”

The good news is that there may be silver lining to America’s fat epidemic. While we’re still getting fatter, at least it’s happening at a slower rate than in past years. And if this rate continues to drop, Coventry might soon be reporting slimmer, healthier residents.