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Obesity
PERHAPS YOU'VE HEARD THE NEWS.
Perhaps you've caught a glimpse of the staggering statistics on obe-
sity among Americans.
Perhaps you've simply noticed that, compared to a few years ago,
more people at the grocery store are overweight.
Perhaps you've been in classrooms, on playgrounds or at day care
centers and noticed how many kids are already Crippled with a weight
problem and can't run twenty feet without getting winded.
Our struggle with weight is hard to miss these days. Open a newspa-
per or a magazine, or turn on the radio or TV-you know that America
has a weight problem. In fact, two out of three adult Americans are
overweight, and one-third of the adult population is obese. Not only
are these numbers high, but the rate at which they have been rising is
ominous (Chart l.2, page 13).1
But what do the terms "overweight" and "obese" mean? The standard
expression of body size is the body mass index (BMI). It represents body
weight (in kilograms, kg) relative to body height (in meters squared,
m^2 ). By most official standards, being overweight is having a BMI above
twenty-five, and being obese is having a BMI over thirty. The same scale
is used for both men and women. You can determine your own BMI
using Chart 6.1, which lists the necessary information in pounds and
inches for your convenience.
135