Florida is home to many sunny beaches, Cape Canaveral (where space flights launch), and the city with the highest rate of lightning strikes per capita (Clearwater). Florida is a retirement destination, a vacation destination with Disney World located in Orlando, as well as an inspiration for internet meme culture and the ever-evolving obscure headlines involving the strange endeavors of “Florida Man.”
Key West is recognized for having the highest average temperature in the United States. Florida has ATMs specifically designated for rollerbladers and is the home of the designated sports fishing capital of the world (Islamorada). It is the only state in the country with two different rivers with the same name — the Withlacoochee and Withlacoochee rivers.
From 2012 to 2022, Florida did not fare too well in lowering the obesity percentage among its population of 22.7 million — the third most of any state behind California and Texas. Of its 67 counties, only five managed to reduce their obesity percentages over that decade. Check out the infographic below that maps the obesity percentages for each of Florida’s counties from 2012 to 2022:
Created by BarBend • Viewlarger version
[Related: Florida’s Top 50 Cities for Fit Lifestyles]
The five counties that managed to lower their population’s obesity percentages were Baker, Gulf, Okaloosa, Jefferson, and Liberty. The former three lowered their obesity percentage by two points while the latter two lowered theirs by a single point each.
Only three counties in Florida kept their obesity percentage static across the decade — Hamilton, Pasco, and Wakulla. On the opposite end of the spectrum, two counties increased their obesity percentage by at least 10 points. Monroe’s 20 percent obesity in 2012 climbed to 30 percent in 2022, and Holmes increased 11 percentage points to a staggering 41 percent. Holmes is one of two counties with an obesity percentage of at least 40 percent (the other is Hendry at 42 percent).
A whopping 54 of the 67 counties in Florida have populations with obesity percentages of at least 30 percent. The county with the lowest obesity percentage as of 2022 is Martin at 24 percent — a three percent increase from its 21 percent in 2012. With all counties considered, more than one out of every four people living in Florida are considered obese as of 2022.
Featured image via Shutterstock/Mia2you