This Texas Town Has Been Named the Most Obese in America–Again

(KNUE-FM) Last night, I was perusing YouTube and randomly happened upon a video by Yes Theory called Dark Secrets of America's Most Obese Town.

I started to scroll on by until I happened to see that America's most obese town is here in Texas.

That made me a little bit more curious.

What We Can Learn—Without Judging

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I watched the video, which I will share below in case you'd like to watch it, and I was a bit heartbroken to hear about what well-meaning residents of this South Texas town are dealing with.

The town of McAllen, Texas, has been named once again the most obese town in America. It was named so in 2024, and now WalletHub has shared a new study revealing it maintains the top spot for 2025. At least so far.

The report reads, “McAllen, TX, ranks as the most overweight city in the country, because it has the largest percentage of adults who are obese, at 45%, with an additional 31% overweight but not obese.

McAllen also has the second-highest share of obese teenagers and the fifth-highest share of obese children.”

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McAllen’s Story Is Bigger Than the Stats

What's happening in McAllen that would cause it to take top spot on this list?

According to Becker's Hospital Review, the designation for this list comes from various factors, including obesity rates. However, it also looks at socioeconomic challenges in the towns being measured and access to recreational facilities that would help people stay active.

In this quick video shared on YouTube by Yes Theory, you can hear directly from area residents about the challenges they face. They spoke with people at grocery stores, people facing health challenges due to weight struggles, and medical professionals.

The video is about 25 minutes, but it's tagged so you can skip to the parts that interest you the most:

What the Numbers Don’t Show

One of the interesting takeaways from the video is how easy it is in such a sprawling metropolitan area to go through a drive-thru at the end of an incredibly busy work day rather than going home and making a time-consuming dinner.

This is not to mention during short lunch breaks or when families are trying to get their kids to their various activities.

It's hard to navigate.

Particularly when organic food costs quite a bit more.

It's not that fast food sometimes is a problem—we all love it! But when it becomes the mainstay day after day, it can start to affect our weight and overall health. Everything in moderation, right?

While McAllen is at the top of this list, many people all over Texas struggle with staying healthy when money is tight, time is short, and less-than-ideal options are convenient.

How do you take care of your health in this day and age?