The title says it all.
1 in 5 adults obese by 2025. It’s 1 in 8 right now. This is a global number, which frankly, does not make it better.
Basically if the trends continue as they seem to be, 18% of men and 21% of women will be obese. This comes from a new comprehensive study published in The Lancet. (See it HERE). The study used BMI (Body Mass Index) data to evaluate records kept from 1975 to 2014 in 200 countries. With such an extensive survey of individuals, the researchers felt they could gain a good understanding of where we might be heading if things stay on their current course.
What is also telling from this recent study is the shift in the percentage of underweight people in the world. Whereas underweight individuals were more prevalent throughout the world several years ago, due in part to issues of food access and the like, now this has reversed. Now obesity has tripled among men and doubled among women. It has even risen in countries which did not have these issues before. Some speculate that the presence of the western diet, through fast food and such, in these countries has contributed to the rise of obesity.
What is clear in the study is that the United States is leading the way in obesity, with the projection that by 2025 43% of women and 45% of men will be obese in this country. That is a hard number to take in. The study also suggests that there is nothing we can do to alter this rise in obesity in the US.
We disagree. There is always something to do, and perhaps with more dialogue about the impact of diet on our health, it can change. Certainly a main issue is having convenient healthy choices available to everyone, since so much of what harms us comes pre-packaged or with a super sized soft drink. We imagine it will take time, but 10 years is enough to make a change for the better.
To read more about the study, check out this article from CNN. (See HERE) Or go to the study itself from the link above.
Later this week Dr. Miller will explore the impact of diet on diabetes. If you think it does not have a profound effect, then you have a surprise coming.
Until then – To Your Health.
