Lancet Study: U.S. Obesity Rate to Reach 50% by 2030

According to four new papers published in the Lancet, Britain’s most prestigious medical journal, half of Americans will be obese by the year 2030.

“At the rate we’re looking at right now, it’s a dire prediction,” Claire Wang, one of the study’s researchers, told ABC News. “Something has to be done.”

Currently, 32% of men and 35% of women in the United States are obese, defined as having a body mass index (BMI) above 30. Body mass index is defined as the individual’s body weight divided by the square of his or her height. A BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight; 24.9 down to 18.5 is normal.

The consequences of half the country being obese are dire. Some 6.8 million additional cases of stroke and heart disease are expected, as are 7.8 million extra cases of diabetes and 539,000 cases of cancer. Such a negative health impact is expected to increase health care costs by a staggering $66 billion.

According to the Reuters, the United States doesn’t have the world’s highest obesity rate. That dubious “honor” goes to Tonga, where fully seven out of every ten citizens is obese. At the healthier end of the weight spectrum, only about 10% of Dutch are obese, and only  5% of Chinese and Japanese.

Within the United States, Colorado is the least overweight state, with around one in five residents obese. Mississippi is the fattest state, with more than three out of every ten people obese.

(Source: Huffington Post)

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