Obesity Rates Continue To Climb
August 27, 2007
Boston (dBTechno) - No matter how much we learn about obesity, we Americans just seem to be getting fatter and fatter.
The obesity rate has climbed in 31 states last year — no states showed a decline, found a new study from the Trust for America’s Health.
Colorado is once again the leanest state with an obesity rate of 17.6 percent.
Mississippi has the highest adult obesity rate at more than 30.5 percent.
The Trust for America’s Health say that the government needs to take a more active roll in fighting obesity.
Obesity has been linked to diabetes, heart problems and other chronic diseases that contribute to greater health care costs.
“It’s one of those issues where everyone believes this is an epidemic, but it’s not getting the level of political and policymaker attention that it ought to,” said Jeffrey Levi, the organization’s executive director. “As every candidate for president talks about health care reform and controlling health care cost costs, if we don’t hone in on this issue, none of their proposals are going to be affordable.”
At the same time, many believe weight is a personal choice and responsibility. Levi doesn’t dispute that notion, but he said society can help people make good choices.
“If we want kids to eat healthier food, we have to invest the money for school nutrition programs so that school lunches are healthier,” he said. “If we want people to be more physically active, then there have to be safe places to be active. That’s not just a class issues. We’ve designed suburban communities where there are no sidewalks for anybody to go out and take a walk.”
To measure obesity rates, Trust for America’s Health compares data from 2003-2005 with 2004-2006. It combines data from three years to improve the accuracy of projections. The data come from a survey of height and weight taken over the telephone by state health departments.
Generally, anyone with a body mass index greater than 30 is considered obese. The index is a ratio that takes into account height and weight. The overweight range is 25 to 29.9. Normal is 18.5 to 24.9. People with a large amount of lean muscle mass, such as athletes, can show a large body mass index without having an unhealthy level of fat.
Poverty seemed to be a significant factor, with 5 of the poorest states in the top ten when it came to obesity rates.
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THIS MAN RESEMBLES MANY OF THE FEMALE COWS IN WHEATLAND SAFEW**Y
That is…one of the most bizarre photos I’ve seen recently.
Proper diet and exercise is the answer. No magic needed to stay at a healthy weight.
that photo scared me..i just spit my twinkies out.
I hope that poor man gets the help and comfort he deserves.
It all comes down to eating on the run. No time for home cooked balanced meals, esp. for kids. As a working mom w/ a working husband and one son, we do our best to cook up healthy meals on a daily bases. After 8 hours at work(plus the time spent in traffic and picking up our son) there is little time left to really think about cooking. It’s almost like it’s an after thought, esp. on the weekdays. I’ve seen the most stead-fast health food eaters give into the occasional drive-thru. Most families cook right out of a package. Meals cooked from scratch, where you have more control over the fat and ingredients, is going the way of the 8-track. Sad, but true.
Too loose weight one does not need the best exercise equipment or the latest diet trend, All you need to do is follow the kiss method witch is [keep it simple silly]. As with exercise, walk. Start with short trips, we need to walk or ride our bikes to as many places as we can. Also lets shut off the tv and get off of our rear sides and find an activity that keeps us in motion. when it comes to food don’t starve yourself, that does not work. just have reasonable portions and healthier foods. last of all have an hamburger and fries now and then i think one will enjoy it even more.
We must help these persons.I hope the government will take serious action.
It’s a glandular problem, I’m sure.
Isn’t that what they all say?
Take a look in the shopping carts of fat people;
cookies, sodas, pastries, chips, cakes, meat, white bread, fried food, and perhaps a head of lettuce to balance it all out.
Karma
nice cleavage!
One of the of the most over used and false reasons for the bad choices people these days is how busy we all are. The truth is that modern life is easier than ever before.
My parents and grandparents used wringer washers and hung clothes on the line, then ironed them, actually preparing food from scratch and working rotating. Walked home up the hill and shoveled coal in the furnace.
We have it good and it shows by the number of people in the malls and airports that look like walking billboards on their sweatpants that would serve as a circus tents in the past.
People can be delusional and forget history like it never happened.
Exercise and healthy food will always work, but how about simply eating less? I dont know about everyone else but I can sit on my couch watching tv for 10 hours a day and only eat fried chicken and still be thin, as long as I only eat one piece. Why cant fat people just eat less. Supersize thier face. The guy in the photo is a costly burden on society. He is dangerous to himself and to others. He needs to be taken off the streets and locked up with one small meal per day. Whats the worste that could happen, he might be thankful?
>Jason Torres Says: Your comment is awaiting moderation.
>August 28th, 2007 at 2:31 am
>This guy is really fat.
Yea dude, he is seriously fat.
Interesting,
while people are dying from obesity, others, and many others are dying from hunger…
Here is a good advice to those who suffer from obesity: every time you sit at the table, try to imagine a child dying of hunger. Sure, your appetite will go….
You can go a step further, everytime you open you purse to buy food, take 1$ and say: this is to save a dying child..
I am sure it works..
Now, it is to all of you to make the math, how much health insurance and charity will be making money… well, not junk food stores …
No doubt these people need help. Is it the governments job to monitor weight? No. Should it be? No. What it boils down to is parents need to set the example by cooking healthy meals for their children, in turn those children will develop those healthy eating habbits. The government butts into too many aspects of our lives as it is and is already spending too much money on the most rediculous things. Taking responsibility for peoples diets is the last thing it needs to be concernng itself with.
there are new reports coming out every month claiming that obesity is now a disease. i feel as if these are excuses to explain why obese people get to the level they are. as many people have already said, you need a healthy balanced diet and to exercise regularly. my father was overweight but changing his diet and going on regular walks brought his weight down by a considerable amount. these people do need help but more importantly people need to be educated on the life threatening condition that they could find themselves in.
My God this man case is serious. he really have to cut down his diet. i think eating more of fruits and vegetable will help him stay alive
He looks jelly filled and about to burst!
He is staring at us as if to say, “you going to eat that”?
I am going to be ill…
For Fred on August 27, 2007, 6:11pm
Is the Government responsible for everything?
We are becoming a “Nanny” country where no individual is responsible for their own actions. It makes me sick.
There but for the grace of God…compassion, help and education is needed. Let us not turn our back on the suffering.
Obesity in many cases is NOT a choice.
Many kids are at a stage of obesity k-6 grades.
The parents are making that choice for them.
There is denial that their child just has big bones or inherits it, etc…
Lame excuses while putting their childs life and future in jeopardy.
I’m all for the schools grading so to speak.
This means that someone is communicating to the parents that something is not quite right.
It doesn’t have to mandate anything. Just like at work they give these free physicals with weight index readings. It can remain private. It doesn’t have to appear on a report card, but it should be something that gets back to the parent.
Really… it makes me sick seeing large parents with large kids running behind them using inheritance as an excuse without even looking into it.
I went into a White Castle for like 6 sliders and fries; I saw a woman (I’m guessing around 250-300 lbs) buy a crave case - 30 sliders and eat it herself. It’s no wonder you get people looking like that dude in the photo.
this guy is seriously asking the rest of us to pay for his stupidity? stop eating yourself todeath fool. get a life outside of the kitchen table or macdonalds.
You can only lose weight dieting, and control, and exercise.
Help yourself ; get a diet.
I remember back in 4th or 5th grade, I went over to my friend’s house for a sleepover. She was a pretty fat girl. In her room were quite a few dishes and an empty bag of chips. Also, for dinner, she asked her mom to order pizza. They ordered it. two mediums, one for each of us. I ate about two slices while she ate her whole thing. The entire box. Later her mom placed her on nutrisystem. Did she stick with it? No. At luncyh she ate her meal then scarfed down a lot of ours because she asked. They jsut eat too much people.
Most people can greatly improve their health and reduce their risk of disease with three simple steps. Drink more water (instead of soft drinks), excercise, and eat more fruits and veggies. One of the best easiest ways to get better nutrition is with fruits and veggies in a capsule. It’s simple and afforable. Check out http://www.VictoryUSA.com to see how easy it is to get started!
I am over weight at 320 pounds . I donot eat that much .Before I became obiese ,I weight 210 pounds of solid mussel .I had to start taking meds for blood pressure which slowed me down a lot . The more I tried to loose the fat the bigger I got . I have tried more deits than there states in the union .Nothing works . When ever I see an artical on fat people and why they are fat makes me a little angry . I don’t scarfe down my meals , but there are people that do . I would love to have liposuction done on myself but the cost is beyond what I can afford .I love a well prepared meal, but I don’t over indulge . At one point in my life my arms were bigger than Arnold’s the governer of California . I could pick the back end of a Honda Civic , but not anymore .My health is going down hill , the in the photo made his choice . I ran the mile 6 minutes when I was in high school . The man in the photo looks like he could clear an all you can eat buffet in 6 minutes .
“The Trust for America’s Health say that the government needs to take a more active roll in fighting obesity.”
BOLLOCKS!! I would say this is the type of behavior (please help us mister government we can’t do it on our own!) that’s started this steady decline. The last thing this country needs is to relinquish anymore power to “The Government”! This country was supposed to be ran as a republic….we are supposed to be a self sufficient Peoples Republic! LOOK IT UP Idiocracy is at play here folks and the government loves it. Americans are strong but America has become weak with complacency, lack of community and indifference. If these “fat” people want to be less fat then they need to do so. With programs like our current welfare (
part of the problem) I really don’t think our current government would benefit any of the obese. Unless of course we fatten up the pharmaceuticals CEO’s by forcing our public into some new and addictive cocktail of diet pills! Now that would be a plan our government would get behind. WAKE UP AMERICA….PEOPLES REPUBLIC!
Why do elementry kids have access to chips, cheetoes, and other junky foods in the lunch program? I asked the princple of our school and she said some kids need more calories. Ok, fine, but how about health calories instead of empty ones!!
Parents, listen up, please speak to your principle and tell them that it’s s*upid. Really.
that picture paints the true color of the world we live in today–people living in rich countries (like USA)are getting fatter while on the other side of the world people are dying of hunger — can’t the rich countries share some of their fats to the hungry world…at least you’ll stay lean and healthy by giving away your foods makes hungry people happy..
Just STOP eating SO much !
I grew up in a county where the goverment rationed the foods we ate. There were no fat kids there. But I remember at age 7 standing in line for 2 hours to be able to get the 4 potatoes “allowed” my family for the month as my mom stood in another line to get the 2 pounds of chicken per person “allowed” for the month. I remember nights my mom crying because there was absolutely nothing to eat. That is what we would end up getting if goverment starts getting involved. Where the heck is individual responsibility? Why are people asking for the government to get involved more and more in our lives? Keeping a healthy weight should be an individual responsibility and choice.
Look at what you have been writting here! You should all be ashamed of yourselves! I don’t think , this guy and probably 99% of all obese and morbidly obese people say to themselves, “let me eat , cause I want to be fat, unattractive,be unhealthy and die!” - How stupid are we! These people and by the way we are all at risk! we need to demand better health education in our schools, demand better/alternative snacks and foods where we work. We should demand from our grocers to reduce the number of junk foods to the number of “good foods”… we should demand from our gov’t (city/state/fed) for more sidewalks, promote fitness at work, etc…