According to a new study in the February 2010 issue of American Journal of Preventive Medicine conducted by researchers from Columbia University and the City College of New York, the years of quality life lost due to obesity is just as great as those lost due to smoking! This means that obesity will likely surpass smoking as America’s greatest health threat.
Then Now
The study was based on a survey of more than 3.5 million American adults from 1993 to 2008, and ranged in questions regarding health habits, poor health days, and perceived quality of life. In the study, smoking declined amongst participants by 18.5%, but obesity increased by a whopping 85%! Because of this, years added to life expectancy because of smoking reduction (good) are cancelled out by increasing obesity rates (bad). While we should applaud anti-smoking campaigns, we have another big public health danger in our midst.
Just how bad are overweight and obesity rates in America? Today, more than 33.3% of Americans are obese. A total of 66.7% of Americans are either overweight or obese. To put these numbers into some perspective, in 1980, 15% of Americans were obese, and if you take a look at the graph below, it is clear that obesity trends were steady before 1980. Not anymore.
*data from CDC
Obesity rates are increasing…really, really quickly. At this rate, it is reported that an expected 45% — almost half! — of Americans will be obese by 2020. Can you imagine? Seriously, take a minute and just imagine the country in 2020 with almost half of its citizens being at major risk for:
- heart disease
- high blood pressure
- arthritis
- sleep apnea
- stroke
- type 2 diabetes
On top of these risks, don’t forget the years of quality life lost. The trends are grim.
Both smoking and obesity are preventable. Anti-smoking campaigns helped reduce smoking. What do you think it will take to reduce obesity rates?
“Hungry” to know more? Sites Earth Fare visited for this post:
(1) http://tinyurl.com/l4ddz9 - F as in Fat 2009 Report by by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)
(2) http://tinyurl.com/ydqjc5e- “Hazards of Obesity Now Rival Smoking in U.S.” (U.S. News & World Report)
(3) http://tinyurl.com/y8ps2a2 – “America’s Greatest Health Threat: Obesity” (BusinessWeek)
(4) http://tinyurl.com/yk5wydk- “Obesity Epidemic Cancels Out Anti-Smoking Gains” (NPR)
(5) http://tinyurl.com/meshol – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) page on Overweight and Obesity
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Tomato Talk » Blog Archive » Just how bad is obesity in America? | americantoday
January 6th, 2010 at 6:20 pmpermalink
Why is obesity affecting Americans more than persons from other countries? I believe it is our portions and our processed ingredients. Thoughts…
Jennifer B
January 7th, 2010 at 11:17 ampermalink
Jennifer,
I suspect that you are correct. Most people in the US know how to heat a frozen meal in the microwave but probably don’t know how to cook a pot of brown rice (or any other whole grain). That’s very sad.
We must do a better job of educating people about the importance of what and how they eat. It’s not rocket science. I have a Masters Degree in Nutrition but you don’t need one to know that most fast food and processed food isn’t very good for you.
I will keep on educating people about the importance of eating more vegetables.
Jill, The Veggie Queen
January 7th, 2010 at 12:11 pmpermalink
Poverty is the number one indicator of obesity in this country. If our food industry cared about health, there wouldn’t be MSG in nearly everything people eat (see MSGtruth.org and click on disease states, then obesity) and the “epidemic” would not be happening. We need to hold food manufactureres accountable for what is bought and sold as “food”, especially to the poor. We can’t continue to blame the victims …
tess
January 7th, 2010 at 1:49 pmpermalink
In 1982/84, Coke and Pesi switched from cane sugar to high fructose corn syrup as the sweetener in their sodas. Outside of the US, cane sugar is still used. Since the 80s, the US also went form 12 oz sodas as the norm to 24oz or greater (supersize 32oz anyone?).
The fructose in HFCS is not connected to the glucose as it is in table sugar from cane.
The latest studies indicate that fructose may not only overtax your liver (fructose gets absorbed into the blood stream after processing in the liver, not the intestine like other sugars), it is also a probable culprit in leptin resistance and insulin resistance, that is, making your body not know when it is full and also not know how to use the sugars for energy you do consume.
Look at the graph of obesity rate increase and when it begins…coincidence?
Troy
January 7th, 2010 at 7:09 pmpermalink
It makes me so sad that people think that being healthy is expense. Eating healthy should be an option at every price point! And the food industry has gotten away with feeding us the artificial stuff for too long. If you eat real food, it will keep you fuller longer, and you won’t have to eat as much of it (lowering the cost overall)! I hate this epidemic plagues our society right now.
Maria D
January 8th, 2010 at 2:38 pmpermalink
Social comments and analytics for this post…
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uberVU - social comments
January 9th, 2010 at 7:07 pmpermalink
All you have to do is look around when you go out !
andrea
January 9th, 2010 at 8:07 pmpermalink
it is absolutely rediculous what people are doing to themselves. Marketing has completely turned the country into thinking that bigger is better… if you go to counties like France this isn’t an issue. Our portion sizes are 40% larger than just 30 years ago. No wonder we are all fatties.
charleston personal trainer
January 10th, 2010 at 7:51 pmpermalink
Americans are getting fat thanks to huge portions, cheap and tasty calories (in part thanks to high fructose corn syrup) and a lack of exercise. We are a fast food nation. Many places have started offering more healthy choices but people still need to make the healthier choice.
Forrest Samuels
January 12th, 2010 at 2:21 pmpermalink
Thank you for getting the dialogue going.
Jen, yes, we think portions and processed ingredients definitely have something to do with it!
Jill, thank you for educating people about healthy eating. It is so important, and we believe that knowing what you are eating makes it a lot more enjoyable!
Tess, thanks for the true note about poverty’s link to obesity. The causes of obesity are definitely complex. Yes, we wish all food companies cared about health, but unfortunately, this is not the case.
Troy, thank you for that educational bit! That is incredible — it does not seem like a coincidence.
Maria, we are with you in believing that eating healthy should be affordable!
Andrea, scary that it could be worse when you go out if we do not do something about the epidemic?
Portions have gotten out of control, Charleston personal trainer!
Forrest, indeed eating fast and convenient has become the norm in this country. We hope people will see that healthy does not mean cumbersome and tasteless!
earthfare
January 13th, 2010 at 10:54 ampermalink
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January 21st, 2010 at 5:27 pmpermalink
i BELIEVE THAT THE USE OF HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP HAS CONTRIBUTED THE MOST TO OUR DISEASE STATE. i AM OVERWEIGHT AND EAT TERIBLE, BUT, I AM EDUCATED ENOUGH TO KNOW BETTER. ONCE I MADE A DECISION TO EAT HEALTHIER I WAS AMAZED BY HOW MANY THINGS HAVE HFCS IN THEM. OMG EVEN MY CHILDHOOD FAVORITE MOTTS APPLESAUSE NOW HAS IT. I DID KNOW ABOUT COKE AND WONDERED WHY IT WAS SO ADDICTIVE FOR ME YET DIDN’T SEEM TO TASTE AS GOOD AS IT USED TO. I THEN DISCOVERED MEXICAN COKE WITH CANE SUGAR AND NOW BUY THAT IF I HAVE TO HAVE A COKE.
GAYLE BALABAN
February 1st, 2010 at 6:19 pmpermalink
obesity has gotten really bad is that cause of smoking and strees is that why?
tanya
February 8th, 2010 at 11:34 ampermalink
I agree that some of the issue comes from ingredients – processed food, high carb saturation, hidden sugars – but I have read several comments geared toward portion size and how (fat) people don’t know how to stop eating. I agree that our portion sizes have increased, as well. But people have to remember that you can be healthy at any size. There are several other factors that determine size other than ingredients, portion size, and “control”. Genetics – which plays a part in every single other aspect, including alcoholism, drug use, health risks, mental health issues, eye color, hair color, etc. – health issues, lack of exercise, medication, stress, and even income. I think it is great that people are trying to get healthier, but it should be an all around effort to get people healthy. There are several “obese” or “overweight” (according to the INSURANCE charts) people who are very healthy, vegetarian or vegan, and there are several “thin” or “normal” people who are unhealthy. I think it is a little offensive to point the finger at fat kids and tell them they need to eat better when I believe that eating healthy should be aimed at everyBODY.
holly
February 27th, 2010 at 7:37 ampermalink
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March 10th, 2010 at 4:32 pmpermalink
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March 11th, 2010 at 5:45 pmpermalink
Holly, Thank you for your perspective…I totally agree! I was one of those skinny people who was Very Unhealthy…and it lead to me being Obese and still Very Unhealthy! I have 100% changed the way I eat and am FINALLY getting healthy, but not losing weight due to some medication I am on. Hopefully I can get off of it soon and lose the weight, but in the meantime, I am learning and doing all I can…and from what I’m learning, I think it is URGENT that we teach people about the bad things they are eating – the sad truth is that they DON’T KNOW!!! I’m so glad I found this site…I think we should help and challenge each other to teach others!
Megan
April 21st, 2010 at 11:37 ampermalink
Public education and support will be the key if were going to reverse this alarming trend. South Carolina ranks 5th in the country in obesity and 1 out of 3 children are overweight. We’re going to have serious health care issues for this generation unless we turn the corner and get our communities healthier.
Shane
April 29th, 2010 at 5:32 pmpermalink
it is already quite an epidemic in the US and i guess it’s not only in US but to other neighboring countries as well. while smoking has been slowly phasing out of the scene, obesity is just more likely being into smoking-problem. i guess our lifestyle and the food that we eat nowadays have been a very influential part of obesity problem.
bariatric surgery
Nicole
May 15th, 2010 at 12:57 pmpermalink
It is a matter of self discipline. It is not easy, but if I drop off, I just pick myself up and start fresh the next meal or the next day. I feel so much better when I eat well. I choose fresh colorful raw vegetables most of the time. We eat at home most of the time because it is hard to find healthy meals at restaurants. When we do eat out, we choose the healthiest, lowest sodium meals available. I check the menu at the restaurant on the website before we go and we plan in advance what meal we will order. If we splurge for a dessert, we share. We drink water also. We exercise every day also. It is rare that we cannot work in a few walks with our dog, a long bikeride, or just running/jogging/jumping in place. I use light weights several times a week to help keep my bones strong. We also keep books on healthy eatting/living to share with each other and help keep us motivated. We highlight the things we need to remember.
Rhonda West
May 16th, 2010 at 2:36 pmpermalink