No, I don't mean by the
age
of forty; I mean that if the trends of the past thirty years continue, it's possible that every American adult could be overweight forty years from now. This is the warning coming from the Federal government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. You can read all about this in the journal
Obesity (online 7/24/08).
They estimate that 86% of American adults will be overweight by 2030, with an obesity rate of 51%. By 2048,
all
U.S. adults could be at least mildly overweight, a/k/a
fat
.The researchers also estimate that the healthcare costs directly related to excess body weight will double each decade, and reach almost $1 trillion in 2030, accounting for at least one of every six healthcare dollars spent in the USA.Being fat is voluntary. Healthcare costs are skyrocketing, largely because people "volunteer" to move less and eat more. Our Presidential candidates can mull over healthcare plans, but we need to take more personal responsibility for the state of our own health.
