CDC: 42 percent of Americans obese by 2030

That is a staggering number. Something needs to be done, because this is becoming a public health crisis, particularly with health care and insurance costs rising as it is. Not sure what can be done without inciting the "Nanny State!" crowd, but we have clearly lost our collective self-control as a nation.

http://news.yahoo.com/fat-forecast-42-americans-obese-2030-192747932--abc-news-health.html

One thing I've noticed is that even what is "normal" has changed over the last few decades. I saw a chart from around the 1940s or '50s at one point, and it said that a 5-foot-9 man should weigh in the 135-145 pound range, if I remember correctly. Now, it'll tell you something like 155-170 is an acceptable range. I posted one time on here that I weighed in the low 150s, and people expressed concern that I have anorexia. Meanwhile, I still have a gut.

Sorry for the tangent, but I think that it just goes to show that our entire idea of what is a "normal" weight has been skewed by the high percentage of obesity in our nation. And, obviously, it is just going to get worse unless something reverses the trend.

 

I'm 5-foot-9. Last year I exercised 3-4 times per week (an hour-plus of sustained aerobic exercise each time), watched what I ate and lost more than 20 pounds, getting down to about 170. All of my blood chemistry was good, I felt good and was in the best shape I'd been in 7 or 8 years..
And yet, according to BMI charts, I was still 5-10 pounds overweight. The only way that weight was coming off was if I ate every other day and exercised for two hours every day.
Anything can be anything you want it to be, if you change the definition enough to make it so.

 

Hey, I'm ahead of the curve!

 

BMI is an inadequate measuring stick, to the point that about six or seven years ago the CDC had a big revelation that overweight was hurting America more than smoking was. Then they got called on the data, refigured and found that, lo and behold, the group that lived longest was the slightly to moderately overweight group.

That said, it's a useful gauge. Take BMI plus 10-12 pounds, that's about where a reasonable adult -- someone who has a job and a family and tries to fit in exercise when he/she can and likes to have a few beers on the weekend -- should be.

But when the CDC is talking "obese," that's a pretty on-target description when the numbers get that high IMO.

 

Obesity is the new cigarettes.

 

It is no coincidence that America has gotten much fatter since the introduction of soccer.

Or maybe it is a coincidence.

But still, we can blame soccer.

 

I blame Bush.




I mean, Sixteen Stone....geesh!

 

People are complete and total slobs with no self control. It seems like everyone has an excuse for being overweight now.

I've always been fairly trim, but after getting on the scale after returning home from the holidays, I weighed in at 186 pounds (I'm 5'9). I'm getting into my late 20s and didn't want to already be behind the 8-ball when my metabolism slows down even more. I decided to do something about it, have exercised, stopped eating out so much, and made much healthier decisions when I cook something. Four months later, I'm down to 162 pounds. The crazy thing is, IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!! All it takes is a little self discipline.

I'm sure there are legitimately people out there that have some type of disorder that prevents them from losing a lot of weight, and some people are naturally heavier than others, but for the vast majority of people, it's because they continue to shovel large amounts of crap down their gullets.

 

It has little to do with self control. We're being poisoned.

 

dools took my line.