Yet another survey shows that Adams County is among the unhealthiest counties in Mississippi and Concordia Parish among the worst in Louisiana.

Is anyone surprised?

We didn’t think so.

The bad, but not surprising, news came last week as the University of Wisconsin and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released the County Health Rankings report.

Adams County was No. 73 out of 82 counties.

Concordia was No. 63 out of 64 parishes.

That’s not good.

Critics will be quick to blame lots of usual suspects and those critics may be partially correct.

Yes, the number of fast food restaurants that exist offering cheap, not-always healthy food is a problem. But don’t blame Burger King.

Yes, processed foods are cheaper to purchase in the grocery store than much healthier alternatives. It’s not the grocery store’s fault.

Yes, food stamps do allow for the purchase of so-called junk food. Sure, it would be great if we could limit the program to only healthy alternatives. But don’t blame the poor, particularly if you’re not willing to pay more to help retool the food stamp program and provide the enforcement needed to police what is purchased.

Isn’t the real problem us?

We’re a society that is often the least educated in the state. We’d love to see the list of so-called “unhealthy” counties stacked up and measured by the average educational attainment of its residents.

Many of society’s problems often stem from a complete lack of focus on the importance of education.

A person’s educational attainment level serves as a significant indicator of one’s likelihood of earning a decent living, being a law-abiding citizen or not and yes, even whether or not we eat unhealthy foods.

The real health problem we face may not be the fat around our waists, but the fat between our ears.