Minnesota No. 1 in health, but getting fat

Minnesota is still the healthiest state in the nation, so why are health officials worried? We smoke too much and we're getting fat. One in five Minnesotans still puffs away and nearly 24 percent are obese, according to the United Health Foundation annual survey released Tuesday. The fat epidemic has hit everywhere, but Minnesotans are gaining weight at a faster clip than the rest of the nation -- a 132 percent rise in the obesity rate since 1990 compared with 110 percent nationwide. "We want to celebrate our success, but it would be very easy to become complacent," said Dianne Mandernach, state health commissioner. "When we look at our obesity rate, that's not good."

Dr. Reed Tuckson, senior vice president of the Minnetonka-based foundation, which has been conducting the survey since 1990, said Minnesota is entitled to some bragging rights. The state has taken the top spot four years running and in 17 years has never fallen below second place.

Among its achievements:

Minnesota has the nation's lowest rate of uninsured (7.4 percent), the lowest rate of cardiovascular death and the fewest years lost because of premature deaths.

Workers in Minnesota are among the safest in the country, and Minnesota babies are less likely to die in infancy than those in just about every other state.

Still, said Tuckson, "we've got a lot of work to do."

The survey, which is done by independent national public health scholars and supervised by the University of North Carolina, notes that Minnesota is behind some nations in key areas.

Slovenia and Portugal, for instance, have a lower infant mortality rate. The Japanese have a life expectancy of 78 years, compared with 71 for a Minnesotan, according to Tuckson.

And for those without insurance, without access to quality health care, burdened by addictions to smoking or chronic disease, he said, "help is needed."

On the trails

A handful of healthy Minnesotans, jogging, biking and walking on a biting, blustery Tuesday, weren't especially surprised to hear about the state's stellar health ranking.

And to a person, they said state and local governments should mostly keep doing what they have been to encourage healthful habits.

Lynn and Matt Morgan, restaurant workers from Minneapolis, were walking their puppy, Frances, on the Stone Arch Bridge.

"It's like they already do a lot to keep us healthier, the bike trails, the dog parks, all the nice public facilities we have to use," Lynn Morgan said. "They should keep promoting ways for you to be healthy, instead of trying to regulate it. Of course, I'm all for a smoking ban."

Added Matt Morgan: "I already like to commute by bike, but maybe they could offer a tax write-off to encourage more people to do it."

'Ban the Bug,' 'Eat Five a Day'

A tax write-off may not be in the works, but the state plans to do plenty more to encourage healthy habits.

Already Minnesota has a "Cover Your Cough" campaign (not with your hand, thank you very much) and a hand-washing campaign, both widely copied by other states.

The state's "Ban the Bug" flu shot clinics cranked up for the season Tuesday, and Mandernach said the "Eat Five a Day" campaign (as in eat five fruits and vegetables) will probably get upped to seven or possibly nine servings. "Five's just not enough," she said.

A statewide ban on smoking in public places will come up for serious consideration in the next legislative session, with the support of Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

And because of climbing obesity rates, Mandernach said, she also is looking at a "Just Turn It Off" campaign that would urge Minnesotans to turn off their televisions and computers. Why? Research shows that the longer the tube is on, the more viewers munch, she said.

'Mature civilization' or nanny state?

The foundation's Tuckson said obesity is particularly worrisome because it is a key predictor for future health problems, such as diabetes and other chronic disease.

In 1990, he said, 90 percent of Minnesotans were close to normal weight in the survey, a figure that has fallen to around 76 percent this year.

That tracks with what's going on in the rest of a country where cars and remote controls have made movement an option and where food is entertainment instead of just sustenance. But it makes for a big problem.

Public health campaigns, Tuckson said, have their place in addressing issues that people can control on their own.

And while some may worry about government straying too far into a nanny role, he said, the results are worthwhile.

"When you have a chance to prevent human misery and suffering, I'm not sure there is such a thing as too much," he said. "This is the work of a mature civilization."

Dr. Robert Meiches, CEO of the Minnesota Medical Association, said a top ranking should not deter the state from a goal of even better health care.

"It's great that we're No. 1," he said. "But we have spiraling health care costs, hundreds of thousands of people without coverage, a business community that's crying uncle.

"We need the fundamental courage to do some things differently."

Staff writer Bob Von Sternberg contributed to this report Patricia Lopez • 612-673-7028 • plopez@startribune.com