Diets Stay the Same, Obesity Rates on the Rise
At The Health & Wellness Institute, when looking at diet compared to the average diet and health in the U.S., the statistic that we look at to determine whether or not our mission and purpose is realizing results is the obesity stat. The percentage of overweight or obese individuals is a true measure of whether or not the U.S. is getting healthier or not, on a broad scale. The health of a country's citizens can be measured to a large degree by the percentage of people that are overweight. Other illnesses, diseases, and conditions may shorten people's lifespan but none so purely based on the freedom to choose than is obesity.
This isn't to say that if these statistics start going down it will be due to the efforts of sending out messages like these, published books, audio content, along with the several other channels that spread the message that getting fit is a matter of personal decision and one that should be made for many reasons that would take a book to fill - and would be all to The Health & Wellness Institute's credit.
No, you may see a statistical decline because of many other people, organizations, other's efforts, or other factors and variables. One such variable that is even more concerning - you may see a decrease in the obesity stat because there aren't as many people around to keep that stat going up. Here are the actually numbers as being reported on WebMD --
Millions of Americans are watching our countrymen compete in the Olympics. But fewer and fewer of us bear any resemblance to those lean, fit figures.
The latest annual state-by-state obesity rankings do not paint a pretty picture:
- Number of states in which adult obesity rates went up: 37
- Number of states in which adult obesity rates went down: 0
- Number of states in which adult obesity rates went up for the third year in a row: 19
- Percentage of population that is obese in Colorado, this year's least obese state: 18.4%
- Percentage of population that was obese in the four most obese states in 1991: 15% to 20%
- Number of states in which at least 1 in 4 adults is obese: 28
- Number of states in which at least 1 in 5 adults was obese in 1991: 0
These are just a few of the shocking numbers in the fifth annual "F as in Fat" report from the nonprofit Trust for America's Health, with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Senior author of the report is Jeffrey Levi, PhD, executive director of Trust for America's Health and associate professor of health policy at George Washington University School of Public Health. Read more...
Bottom line: Make your health a priority. Don't be afraid to be a voice for health at the office, at home, or wherever - in favor of a change of two. Ask yourself: What is being served at work? Donuts? Suggest bringing a fruit plate or other healthy alternative. We don't have to be radical to make changes. Radical is the majority of the population being overweight and nobody caring. A few simple diet changes can make a big difference. If you read this, spread the word, even if it is subtly. These numbers do not need to continue this way if we all just started by changing one thing such as eliminating sugary drinks in favor of water. That one action could stall these numbers and even turn them around after a year or two.
More things will die than just a few people or a small segment of the population. The future of mankind depends on the health of the inhabitants of the planet. Think about it.
