Oh no, this is horrible! We're getting fat! It's horrible!

Are we eating ourselves to death?

According to a new report from the health-advocacy group The Trust for America's Health, Texas has adult obesity rates of 25.8 percent, ranking it the 10th heaviest in the nation. According to the study, we're part of the country's "Biggest Belt," consisting primarily of Southern states.

I'm surprised the group's report, F as in Fat, hasn't gotten more coverage. Obesity is normally big news, no pun intended. According to Google News, fewer than 250 stories have been published by traditional news outlets. I consider that to be a good thing.

Why? Yes, obesity is a problem. But these kinds of studies, which repackage data already released by the CDC, don't do much other than embarrass states. The bottom line is that obesity is generally higher in states with lower socioeconomic status (seven of the "fattest" states are also among the bottom 10 states in terms of per capita income.) The incidence of obesity is also higher in minorities.

The simple fact is that Texas is doing a number of good things to combat obesity, especially in children. Including:

1. Required school lunches to meet higher nutritional standards than U.S. Department of Agriculture requirements (one of only 11 states).
2. Banned sugar-sweetened beverages from being sold in elementary schools, and limiting them in middle schools.
3. Made physical education mandatory in public elementary schools.

The new report concerns "obesity," which is defined as having a BMI of 30 or above. While having a BMI between 30 and 35 is probably not a good thing for long-term health, it's almost certainly not going to kill you. You might think otherwise after reading the new report, and that's my real objection.

Frankly, I also don't think it's a terrible thing to have a body-mass index between 25 and 29.9, the "overweight" category. (Calculate your BMI here.) Mine's 24, by the way. However, the "overweight" and "obesity" categories are often lumped together as morbidly serious social ills.

If you really want to know why you're being made to feel fat, consider that according to the Federal Trade Commission, Americans spend $35 billion on weight-loss products and services. So there's a market for making you feel fat.

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