Charleston Gazette-Mail – A higher percentage of West Virginians are obese than in any other part of the country.
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With the state now poised to lose hundreds of millions of dollars annually in federal health care funding, Gov. Patrick Morrisey plans to embrace a “food-is-medicine” movement to bridge the gap and make the state’s residents healthier so they’re less reliant on the health care system.
As of early December, 41.4% of West Virginians were considered medically-obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That represents the highest percentage in the United States. And while heart disease remains the leading cause of death in West Virginia, the American Diabetes Association also reports nearly 260,000 adults in the state have been diagnosed with diabetes, with as many as 15,000 more being diagnosed with the disease each year.
