In the town that made competitive eating a worldwide phenomenon, has witnessed the deification of the cupcake and the hamburger and is currently the site of a donut war, it comes as no surprise that nearly 60 percent of residents are goinked out.
But the percentage of New Yorkers who have exceeded their maximum density is right in line with state-wide figures, according to a report from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's office -- that is based on data compiled in 2003 by the Centers for Disease Control.
The report is part of Gillibrand's effort to pass legislation to protect kids from chicken nuggets.
“Children don’t always have access to healthful foods,” Ms. Gillibrand said in a conference call, reported Crain's New York. “They’re surrounded at school by high-fat foods.”
Gillibrand hopes to pass a bill that would ban trans fats from school lunch programs that take federal funding.
“I can't think of a single reason not to do this,” said Marion Nestle, a professor in the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University,
The city's five boroughs ranked by percentage of citizens overweight or obese are Manhattan at 42.3, Queens at 57.6, Staten Island at 57.7, Brooklyn at 58.6 and The Bronx at 62.7. Across the state, the percentage the is overweight or obese is 56.7, a rise of more than 10 percent since 1995, according to The New York Times.
