1.   Among children and teen-agers, lack of physical activity is considered the biggest factor in the rising obesity rates in this country.

2.   But in an age of junk food, too much television and epidemic obesity rates, that logic no longer applies.

3.   But obesity rates have continued to increase, due in part to the increased consumption of highly processed fast foods and a more sedentary lifestyle.

4.   Californians are not exercising as much as they should, either, and the rising obesity rate shows it.

5.   Even in the poorest nations, where hunger and famine are still part of the landscape, obesity rates are climbing.

6.   Figures from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also suggest that obesity rates among teen-agers may be higher in New York.

7.   In Georgia, the obesity rate has doubled in the past decade.

8.   It also contributes to rising obesity rates.

9.   Orgain added that blacks have the highest obesity rates in the country and that some inner city schools serve mainly fast-food-type meals.

10.   Still, obesity rates soared.