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Americans are continuing to get fat, with obesity rates nudging upwards in 28 states over the past year, a new report shows.

“More than two-thirds of states now have adult obesity rates above 25 percent,” Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America’s Health, said during a Tuesday news conference. “Back in 1991, not that long ago, not a single state had an obesity rate above 20 percent. There’s been a dramatic change in a relatively short period.”

Read more here: Obesity Rates Jump in 28 States, Report Shows

Last July 4, Joey Chestnut earned his third consecutive victory in Coney Island’s Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest—the gustatory champ downed 68 hot dogs in 10 minutes. That jaw-dropping stat is made scarier still when you realize that Chestnut consumed over 20,000 calories in that time. That’s a whole day’s worth of calories … per minute.

Read more here: Best & Worst BBQ Foods

Asylum.com sat down with Slashfood’s very own Erik Trinidad to talk about Fancy Fast Food, how it started and how his madness has transformed into a national phenomenon in the latest edition of Masterclash.

Read more here: Erik Trinidad Talks Fancy Fast Food on Masterclash

The Center for Science in the Public Interest says Happy Meals are responsible for overweight children. The Washington-based consumer advocacy group threatened to file a lawsuit against McDonald’s, charging that the fast food chain “unfairly and deceptively” markets the toys to children.

“McDonald’s marketing has the effect of conscripting America’s children into an unpaid drone army of word-of-mouth marketers, causing them to nag their parents to bring them to McDonald’s,” CSPI’s Stephen Gardner wrote to the heads of the chain in a letter announcing the lawsuit.

The center, which has filed dozens of lawsuits against food companies in recent years, is hoping the publicity and the threat of a lawsuit will force McDonald’s to negotiate with them on the issue. The group announced the lawsuit in the letter to McDonald’s 30 days before filing it in hopes that the company will agree to stop selling the toys before a suit is filed.

Read more here: Parents sue McDonalds over Happy Meals

When we were kids, you were very grateful for the food on your plate—whatever it might be—and you finished every last morsel thank you very much. I’ve carried that mantra with me into adulthood, which does not bode well when I’m at some BBQ picnic having a standoff with the pound cake or craving an ice cream banana split sundae on a hot summer day. (Find 7 tricks to survive the temptations at summer BBQs here.)

Read more here: 100-calorie summer treats to outsmart your cravings

When it’s 90 degrees outside, the last thing you want to do is fire up your oven. Even if the air conditioning is blasting, it still seems wrong to waste energy cooling down the kitchen in the summer. Thankfully, there are plenty of healthy, delicious meals you can put together without preheating the oven, turning on a burner, or even standing over a flaming outdoor grill in the sweltering heat. Here are ten of my favorite “no-cook” dinners to keep you feeling cool all season long:

Read more here: 10 No-Cook Dinners To Beat The Summer Heat

The release of the details of George Osborne’s first budget as Chancellor yesterday has seen a largely positive response, while acknowledging that tough times lie ahead.

“As expected, this budget has been tough, reflecting the current economic times. We welcome the Government’s commitment not to introduce VAT on food during its period in office,” said Jonathan Knight, Chief Executive of The Regional Food Group for Yorkshire and Humber. “Delaying the 2.5 percent VAT increase until January 2011 should encourage consumer sales momentum in the run up to Christmas, which will help the food and drink sector, especially independent retailers and producers.”

Read more here: Food Industry Responds to Osborne’s Emergency Budget