Summary

A new Lancet study reveals nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, a sharp rise from just over half in 1990.

Obesity among adults doubled to over 40%, while rates among girls and women aged 15–24 nearly tripled to 29%.

The study highlights significant health risks, including diabetes, heart disease, and shortened life expectancy, alongside projected medical costs of up to $9.1 trillion over the next decade.

Experts stress obesity’s complex causes—genetic, environmental, and social—and call for structural reforms like food subsidies, taxes on sugary drinks, and expanded treatment access.

Non-paywall link

  • @[email protected]
    11•1 month ago

    i love personal anecdotes where someone makes sure to call everyone but them stupid and fat. eating proper meals takes time and money, which a great many people do not have, and large portions of the population do not have even live in areas with fresh food. ever heard of a food desert?

    also the BMI system is based entirely on white Irish men of a specific height who lived like a hundred years ago.

    also also, being ‘fat’ does not always mean you’re unhealthy, and being ‘skinny’ does not always make you healthy.