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(Voice of America) In an address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), First Lady Michelle Obama has spoken about the campaign she launched earlier this year against childhood obesity.

Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign, which she launched this past February, aims to shine a constant spotlight on childhood obesity in the United States, and the millions of young people at risk of developing related serious health conditions.

According to government statistics, one in three children in the United States is overweight or obese, with black and Hispanic children facing the greatest risk of developing heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses related to obesity.

Addressing the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights organization at its 101st annual convention in Kansas City, in the central U.S. state of Missouri, Mrs. Obama said the African-American community in particular is suffering negative effects.

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(San Francisco Examiner) Obesity has been a hot topic lately. Childhood obesity has drawn the attention of the White House and some have even called it a matter of national security. On Tuesday, June 29th, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Trust for America’s Health issued their report “F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2010.” The report painted a bleak picture for the nation, especially in the South.

Overall, 38 states had obesity rates over 25%. This is a drastic increase since no state was over 20% in 1991. In the past year alone, the number of states with an obesity rate over 30% has doubled. Last year there were only 4 states over 30%, now there 8 states. 28 states saw an increase.

The South did the worst of any region. 10 of the 11 states with the highest rates were in the South. Michigan, who tied for 10th place, was the only state north of the Mason-Dixon that made the top 10. Florida, the only Southern state that wasn’t in the top 20, was in a 3 way tie for 36th place. The state with the lowest rate of obesity was Colorado with a 19.1% rate.

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