Some welcome news for the Aloha State when it comes to health: Hawaii is the third-least obese state in the nation.
That comes from a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Trust for America’s Health.
Only Colorado and the District of Columbia fare better than Hawaii when it comes to waistlines.
The worst states were Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and West Virginia (tied) and Kentucky.
Adult obesity actually decreased in a few states, a welcome development.

But the report notes, “Despite these modest gains, obesity continued to put millions of Americans at increased risk for a range of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, and costs the country between $147 billion and $210 billion each year.”
Some items regarding Hawaii:
- Hawaii’s diabetes rate is 8.5 percent, 12th lowest.
- Adult obesity rates for Latinos are 31.8 percent in Hawaii, the 18th highest rate.
- Adult obesity rates for whites are 17.9 percent in Hawaii, the second lowest rate, and at or above 25 percent for whites in 39 states.
- In Hawaii, 13.4 percent of high school students reported drinking one can or more of soda per day.
- In Hawaii, 40.6 percent of high school students reported playing video games and 21.8 percent reported watching three or more hours of TV per day.
- 18 states, including Hawaii, and Washington, D.C., set a minimum amount of time that elementary students must participate in physical education.
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About the Author
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Chad Blair is the politics editor for Civil Beat. You can reach him by email at cblair@civilbeat.org or follow him on X at @chadblairCB.