What's Good
- On any given day in Mesa, there's a 21 percent more than average probability of sunshine compared to other cities surveyed.
- It rains only 36 days per year in Mesa. That's the 4th lowest number of rainy days in our survey.
- Prefer to lift weights 12 ounces at a time? You'll have a harder time doing it in Mesa than in most places. Per capita, there are 81 percent fewer bars here than the national average in our survey.
- Fast food, widely implicated as a contributor to obesity, is less common in Mesa than most places in our survey. In a per capita comparison there are 35 percent fewer fast-food joints here than average.
- Arizona is one of 28 states that participates in a CDC-sponsored program to reduce obesity and other chronic diseases.
- Donuts are 78 percent less popular here than average, according to a comparison of places that sell the fat-fried, sugar-coated breakfast food. Mesa has the 4th lowest number of donut shops per capita in our survey.
- Mesa is the most popular place in our survey for high-impact aerobic dancing. People here are 78 percent more likely than average to do it.
- Don't scour garage sales in Mesa looking for cross-country ski machines: People here are 74 percent more likely to use them than average. That's the 2nd highest rate of any city in our survey.
- Residents of Mesa are 119 percent more likely than average to play racquetball, the 2nd highest rate in our survey.
|
What Isn't
- Arizona state law limits or prohibits obesity-related lawsuits against food manufacturers and restaurants.
- Air quality here is among the most unhealthful of any city in our survey, according to EPA air quality standards. Unhealthy air makes outdoor exercise dangerous.
- Mesa's park acreage per capita is 69 percent lower than average and the 10th lowest in our survey. Research has found a connection between access to parks and green space and reduced obesity rates.
- Mesa has 64 municipal parks, among the fewest of any city on a per capita basis, according to our exclusive survey of municipal park departments.
- Mesa residents participate in sports much less than average - 20 percent less than average, in fact.
- There are 232 percent fewer tennis courts per capita here than average among cities in our survey.
- Mesa residents are 23 percent less likely to participate in fitness walking than average, the 4th lowest overall participation rate among cities in our survey.
- Mesa residents are 48 percent less likely than average to participate in yoga/tai chi. Compared to other cities, Mesa is the 4th least popular place in our survey for these activities.
- Residents are 20 percent less likely than average to bowl - the 4th lowest rate of any city in our survey.
- Even recreational walking - about the easiest fitness activity anywhere - can't attract participants in Mesa where people are 14 percent less likely than average to go for a walk, the 2nd lowest rate of any city in our survey.
- Mesa residents are 28 percent less likely than average to use treadmills - the 2nd lowest in our survey.
|
