Study: Chicago Area Loaded With Couch Potatoes
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Mile-for-mile, the Chicago area is chock full of couch potatoes.
A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says when it comes to getting up and moving, the Chicago area is slightly above the national average, but we still have nothing to brag about.
The study says in 2008, the most recent year for which data are available, 24.9 percent of adults in Cook County, or about one in four, were obese. This is, in fact, far better than the vast majority of Illinois counties.
With the exceptions of Cook, DuPage, Lake, McHenry and Kendall counties and downstate Tazewell County, all Illinois counties have populations of 26.3 percent or more that are obese, according to the CDC.
As for physical inactivity, 23.1 percent of the population in Cook County is physically inactive, according to the CDC. Among Chicago area counties, Kankakee County ranks worst for inactivity, with 27.3 percent of the population considered physically inactive, while DuPage County ranks best, with 17.9 percent.
Overall, the survey estimated that 25.4 percent of Americans are physically inactive.
For those diagnosed with diabetes, Cook County ranks high statewide, with 8.5 percent of the population being diabetic, the report said.
Among areas that need the most help, a Chicago Tribune report on the study cites Maywood, where more than half of the adults between 25 and 45 are obese.
