Losing the Battle of the Bulge

July 1, 2009
by Kate Leahy
Restaurants & Institutions

The report, F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies are Failing in America delivered some staggering statistics. Among them:

• Adult obesity rates have doubled in the past 30 years
• In 30 states, the percent of obese and overweight children is at or above 30%. In Mississippi, as many as 44.4% of children are overweight. The state also has the highest rate of overweight adults.
• 8 out of the 10 states with the highest rates of obesity are in the South.

Our country's expanding girth affects everyone's bottom line. If obesity rates had remained stable over the past 30 years, health care spending in America would be nearly 10% lower per person on average, according to the report. Annual costs for treating obese children more than tripled between 1979 and 1999.

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