Obesity: A shrinking problem for women?

The obesity rate among U.S. women seems to be leveling off, continuing a trend that began in 1999, government data reported Wednesday.

Before then, obesity rates had been skyrocketing for both women and men since 1980.

WEIGHT-LOSS CHALLENGE: News and resources on dieting, exercise and more

Overall, about 34% of adults — more than 72 million people — in the USA were obese in 2005-2006, according to data from the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity is defined as a body mass index of 30 or greater, which is roughly 30 or more pounds over a healthy weight.

Specifically, 33.3% of men and 35.3% of women were obese in 2005-2006. This was not a statistically significant increase from 2003-2004, when 31.1% of men and 33.2% of women were obese.

"It's too early to say that overall obesity rates are leveling off, but I feel optimistic that for women it is, because we have seen no change since 1999," says Cynthia Ogden, an epidemiologist with the National Center for Health Statistics. "Among men, however, we have seen an increase since 1999, but there is hope for men, too."

Gary Foster, president of the Obesity Society, an organization of weight-loss researchers and professionals, cautions, "Even if there is a leveling off, we're still left with a staggering public-health problem with two-thirds of people in this country overweight or obese." Government data have shown that 66% of Americans weigh too much.

"This news should not signal a decrease in the intensity of our efforts to pursue effective prevention and treatment for obesity," Foster says.

The latest data are from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which is considered the gold standard for evaluating obesity in the USA because it is an extensive survey of people whose weight and height are actually measured.

Among the findings:

•Obesity was highest in people ages 40 to 59, with 40% of men and 41% of women this age falling into the obese category. By comparison, 28% of men ages 20 to 39 and 30.5% of women that age were obese.

•53% of black women, ages 40 to 59, and 51% of Mexican-American women were obese, compared with 39% of white women the same age.

•61% of black women, ages 60 and older, were obese, compared with 37% of Mexican-American women and 32% of white women the same age.

•About 65% of obese adults were told that they were overweight by their health care provider.




Via Usatoday

Share this Post with other