Five years ago, Indiana’s adults ranked fourth-heaviest in the nation in a state-by-state ranking of obesity. Now, they’ve improved to 16th — but there’s not much reason to celebrate.

Essentially the same percentage of adult Hoosiers (27.4 percent) as in the previous year are obese, according to the report released Wednesday by the Trust for America’s Health.

Indiana’s ranking improved from 11th in the previous year because adult obesity rates continued to increase in 23 other states, and no state experienced a statistically significant decrease.

Health experts were somewhat relieved that Indiana’s adults, on average, were maintaining their weight rather than getting heavier. They expressed hope, too, that efforts — including a statewide obesity prevention initiative and a network of trails — ultimately will help Hoosiers slim down by making it easier to exercise and eat better.

“There has been no significant change, which I do think is important,” said Eric Wright, director of Indiana University’s Center for Health Policy. “But it’s not a good thing, given where the rates are. The message is obesity is still a major problem, and we need to deal with it.”

Wright said Indiana’s obesity rate would need to remain stable for at least three years before he would become optimistic about a decline starting.

Nationally, more adults (34.3 percent) are obese than are overweight (32.7 percent), according to the report, which was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

“The only good news is that the pace of the epidemic growth is lessening,” said James Marks, the foundation’s senior vice president. “We’re still getting fatter, but maybe a little bit more slowly than before.”

Officials from the two groups, though, said the economic crisis could make the epidemic worse, because of rising food prices — particularly for nutritious foods — and because of increases in anxiety and stress linked with obesity. They worried about the high rate of overweight/obese children (29.9 percent in Indiana), even though it may be stabilizing nationwide.

They warned that the high obesity rate among 55- to 64-year-olds, the oldest baby boomers, and not just their large numbers will fuel a surge in Medicare costs.

In Indiana, nearly 34 percent of those boomers are obese (body mass indexes of 30 or more), and the report projects that rate to rise 8.3 percentage points by the time they’re 65.

Debby Talbott, Brownsburg, 58, is one boomer who took action.

She lost 75 pounds in 13 months with the help of the free Great Shape employee wellness program at Hendricks Regional Health in Danville.

Talbott kept a food journal, reported weight and body fat in weekly blogs, kept track of cholesterol and blood-sugar levels, and worked with dietitians and personal trainers.

“We really were able to concentrate not only on the pounds we were losing, but on the entire aspect of wellness,” she said.

The hospital’s Great Shape program is an example of the efforts the Indiana Healthy Weight Initiative wants to encourage among employers and schools and in communities.

Ellen Whitt, director of the nutrition and physical activity division of the Indiana State Department of Health, said 130 partners are working to create the state’s eight- to 10-year obesity-prevention plan, which is scheduled to be completed in the spring.

The plan focuses on making policy and environmental changes to increase activity, breast-feeding and the intake of fruits and vegetables while reducing time spent watching TV and the intake of sugary drinks and processed foods.

Whitt is encouraged by greater awareness, indicated by 84,000 people signing up for the state’s INShape Indiana Web-based health program, for example.

“I feel we’ve picked up some momentum around the issue. To have a population-level impact is going to take more time.”