The National Center for Health Statistics, which tracks such things, reports that the percentage of Americans defined as obese now exceeds the percent who are just overweight, 34% as opposed to just under 33%. This means that while the prevalence of obesity (BMI >30) has doubled since 1980, the prevalence of overweight (BMI 25-29) has stayed about the same. The big are getting bigger. Some overweight people are moving into the obese category. And their places are filled by the formerly non-obese. It doesn’t look like this problem is going to go away soon.
The National Center for Health Statistics, which tracks such things, reports that the percentage of Americans defined as obese now exceeds the percent who are just overweight, 34% as opposed to just under 33%. This means that while the prevalence of obesity (BMI >30) has doubled since 1980, the prevalence of overweight (BMI 25-29) has stayed about the same. The big are getting bigger. Some overweight people are moving into the obese category. And their places are filled by the formerly non-obese. It doesn’t look like this problem is going to go away soon.