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EPIDEMIC - a word typically used for outbreaks of infectious disease is now being used by medical professionals to describe the prevalence and rapid rise of obesity in the United States. With over 60 percent of American adults either overweight or obese, the numbers alone support the use of the word. |
Obesity, defined as a body mass index (BMI) of greater than or equal to 30, has increased in both sexes; across all age groups, races and educational levels; and among smokers and nonsmokers. It is the leading lifestyle-related cause of disease and death in the United States after smoking.
A growing number of Americans are putting themselves at risk: The number of obese adult Americans increased more than 50 percent between 1980 and 2000, according to a 2000 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study. The increase of overweight young people has been even more dramatic. Between 1980 and 2000, the number of overweight children and adolescents in the United States tripled.
“Obesity is not a benign disorder,” says William Dietz, M.D., Ph.D., director of CDC’s Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity. “It’s a major public health concern because it is associated with chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some types of cancer.” In children, being overweight leads to hypertension, abnormal lipid values, sleep apnea, gallbladder disease, and bony abnormalities – particularly of the legs. Type 2 diabetes, formerly called adult onset diabetes, is now occurring in adolescents.
“A number of lifestyle changes have occurred synchronously that may contribute to obesity,” Dietz says. “People are drinking more sodas, skipping more meals, eating out more. Restaurants are serving larger portions. Busy people have little time to cook healthy meals for their families, and grocery stores offer hundreds of time-saving prepared foods containing high levels of sugar and fat. Physical activity has declined dramatically.”
Charlene Burgeson, health scientist in CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, says, “The equation is simple. Whether a person is overweight or not depends on the difference between the amount of energy consumed versus expended. To control weight, Americans must engage in both healthy eating and regular physical activity.”
Burgeson points to the change in lifestyles as a major contributing factor to physical inactivity. Exercise, such as walking or bicycling to work or school, is no longer a natural part of a daily routine, largely because communities are not designed to facilitate it, she says. In many communities, there are no sidewalks at all, only roads, so often it is not safe to walk. In addition, Burgeson says many schools are dropping recess and physical activities in favor of academics.
“We have to create safe environments that encourage physical activity, and we need to create an awareness that we aren’t making healthy choices,” says Burgeson.
The CDC Foundation supports a variety of programs to help CDC achieve its vision of healthy people in a healthy world through prevention. Learn more about the Foundation’s initiatives that focus on healthy lifestyles.
For more information on obesity and related CDC programs, visit these web sites: