What Food and Activity Is Most Popular in Your State? Researchers Came Up With These Cool Maps

Tweets say a lot about a person, but they could also reveal a great deal about every state.

A new study by Cornell University reveals which snacks people in every state tweet about the most and to which extent the activities they also mention on Twitter help burn off all those excess calories they might be taking in.

Below are the maps that show which snacks residents of every state eat the most, as well as the activities they mention participating in most frequently. All data are based only on tweets from users in those states and are not necessarily conclusive. (Click on the images for a clearer view.)

Image source: Arxiv.org

Image source: Arxiv.org

While the results are not scientific, the maps are strikingly accurate when compared with other rankings showing which states are the most obese and which are the least active.

For example, cake was the most tweeted about snack among Twitter users in Mississippi while eating was the most commonly mentioned activity. Similarly, the most popular snack among Twitter users in West Virginia was cookies while the most common activity was watching TV or movies.

The results appear to go hand in hand with the results of another ranking published earlier this year in which those two states – Mississippi and West Virginia – were labeled the two "fattest" states in America, according to Business Insider. The two were also found to be among the ten least active in the country, according to a recent study.

Louisiana and Arkansas, which ranked as the third and fourth "fattest," respectively, were also among the third and sixth laziest states, respectively. And in both states, chocolate candy and eating were the most tweeted about activities and snacks.

Meanwhile, in California, tomatoes were the most commonly mentioned snack among Twitter users and dancing was the most tweeted about activity. In New York, apples were the most frequently mentioned food on the social networking site while running was the most tweeted about activity. These findings also seem to correspond with other similar rankings because both California and New York were among the 10 least obese states and neither was listed as a "least active" state.

Montana, Massachusetts and Colorado rounded out the five least obese states, coming in at No. 2, 3 and 5, respectively. But while the foods they tweeted about the most are high in calories – peanut butter, lobster and noodles – their most tweeted about activities – skiing, walking and running – seemed to provide a healthy caloric balance.

However, not all of the most recent findings necessarily correspond with previous studies. The snack Oklahomans tweeted about the most was chocolate candy but running was the most tweeted about activity. But despite what appears to be a somewhat healthy balance, the Sooner State was still the fifth "fattest" state and ranked fifth among the ten "least active" states.

(H/T: Daily Mail)

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