By JO CIAVAGLIA
phillyBurbs.com

While almost one-quarter of Pennsylvania adults are considered obese, the state is doing better than much of the rest of the country.

Pennsylvania is among 19 states where adult obesity rates didn’t increase over the past year, according to an annual report card on U.S. obesity rates released Monday. No state saw their percentages drop.

Overall, the state ranked 23rd highest in adult obesity in the nation this year, according to the report, meaning that 27 other states had higher rates. Pennsylvania also has the 29th highest rate of overweight children and teens ages 10-17.

Nationwide, adult obesity rates rose in 31 states over the past year, and in 19 states more than a quarter of adults are considered obese, meaning they’re 30 pounds or more overweight, according to the new report.

Pennsylvania is not at that point yet. But it could be soon.

While the state has seen it place among the most overweight states drop since 2005 — when it ranked 15th in the nation — the overall percentage of obese adults has remained at 24 percent, according to the report.

The Trust for America’s Health, a disease prevention policy group that produced the report, included other key state findings:

* The percentage of adults who don’t regularly exercise is 24 percent, compared to the national average of 22 percent.

* Pennsylvania doesn’t require school meals to meet higher nutritional standards than the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Seventeen states do.

* Pennsylvania doesn’t set nutritional standards for foods sold in vending machines, a la carte, in school stores or at school bake sales. Twenty-two states do.

Pennsylvania is one of 16 states that screen students’ body mass index or fitness status and confidentially provide information to parents or guardians.

For children under age 20, a body mass index at the 95th age percentile is equal to a BMI of 30 in adults, which is considered obese.

The state might be holding its own weight because of its involvement through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition and Activity (PANA), a four-year-old state group addressing the obesity problem, said Dr. Gary Foster, director of the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple University.

PANA has many public service campaigns happening in schools and communities to promote healthy lifestyles, Foster said.

The state also received one of the bigger CDC grants to address obesity.

“Even if we are holding our own, but the national progression is up, it’s a victory,” Foster said.

With information from phillyburbs.com