Study: All adults could be overweight in 40 years
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/08/07/art.burger.fries.gi.jpg caption="A new study says that by 2030, 86% of adults will be overweight, with 51% obese."]
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Put down that burger and fries and consider this: a new study says that every American adult could be overweight in 40 years. We're actually not so far away now with two-thirds of the population already overweight.
Researchers say that if the trends of the last 30 years hold up… by 2030, 86% of adults will be overweight, with 51% obese. By 2048, they predict all adults could be overweight.
Certain groups – like African-Americans and Mexican-Americans – are expected to suffer the most from weight issues. In fact, all black women and almost all Mexican-American men could be overweight in less than 30 years.
And it's not just the scales we'd be tipping. The study shows that health care costs related to all this weight will double each decade, reaching $957 billion in about 20 years. Or even more.
Some experts doubt that all of us will be obese or overweight in 40 years, but they agree the problem is getting worse. Others say it just might happen if Americans keep eating more and moving around less. Researchers call for major efforts to improve lifestyles in this country along with social changes, like healthier food choices and making neighborhoods more pedestrian-friendly.
Here’s my question to you: What should Americans do so that all of us aren’t overweight in 40 years?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Raymond from Gatesville, Texas writes:
Very well might happen with all the games around for young people to play. Parents do not send them out to play and exercise. And fathers and mothers no longer cook when they can buy prepared unhealthy meals and go by fast food places.
Ozzy writes:
Well, Jack, Americans don't need to be afraid of putting their burgers down just yet – just start moving! You can eat what you like, as long as you keep it in moderation, but the key is to be more active. Our bodies were made to expend lots of calories, and what with our sedentary lifestyles (video games, desk jobs, etc.) we don't get a lot of movement.
Greg from Cabot, Arkansas writes:
Gas has more than doubled in the past few years, so I drive less and walk more. Food prices have skyrocketed because of the cost of fuel, so I eat less. If the price of gas continues to go up, oil companies will get fatter, Americans will lose weight… problem solved. Exxon can take the credit for whipping Americans into shape.
Mikey from Kansas writes:
Imagine a world without double Big Macs and breakfast tacos?! It would be madness!
Dave writes:
I think this study is completely ridiculous. Yes, it is true that we have a very overweight population. I mean let’s face it, our country is the only one in the world that has fat poor people, everyone else’s poor are starving… You can’t say that everyone will be overweight! I know I won’t be... I believe that our country is getting more and more health conscious every single day.
Monty from El Paso, Texas writes:
We’ve become addicts to finger-licking good and greasy victuals. I can’t resist the fries, burgers, enchiladas, tacos, and T-bone steaks. I’m trying to eat more vegetables. It’s not easy when our country is surrounded by golden arches and when we allow burger kings to rule our lives. Revolution is the answer! But first, I have to take my TV dinner out of the microwave oven.
@jackcafferty on Twitter
McCain is owned by Oilmen. After 20 years in Washington do you really think he cares that much? He is part of the problem. Only Obama understands what this country faces.
Jack,
We should eat more so it happens in 20. That way they will look for a solution quicker.
Dave
Iowa City, Iowa
Include lipo in universal healthcare.
Obviously, we need to eat less and excercise more. And just as obviously, that ain't gonna happen.
We need to stop being lazy bums, myself included. We have to exercise, eat healthy, and stop driving. Of course, without something like tax incentives, this is NEVER gonna happen. Oh well, one can dream
We need nutritional education in schools as well as healthy school lunches. Recess and physical education should be brought back in every school, every day. All Americans should have access to adequate medical care and physicians and nurses need to prescribe diet and exercise, not just pills. Lastly, when you go to the grocery store, an orange shouldn't cost a dollar while calorie-laden mac and cheese in a box is 35 cents. Fattening foods cost a lot less than healthy fruits and vegetables. That needs to change.
Duh.
Jack, since I am 60, I hope I can be overweight in 40 years.
As the world's food supplies dwindle, this is a problem that solves itself.
My most ascerbic response is that, within 40 years, all the adults will have died off from over-indulgence, lack of concern, couch-potato sores, and the like. I just hope that mandatory health insurance doesn't make me pay for their excesses.
Societally, we should educate, educate, educate kids on the benefits of weight management and other healthy habits. Maybe within 40 years, we'll have a generation that's fit.
Financially, health insurance should be scaled to someone's weight, airlines should be allowed to charge for 2 seats, maybe the same tax theory that applies to cigarettes (pays for the medical costs of the state) should apply to being overweight. Other than maybe the 1% with a genetic disposion to obesity, there are no excuses.
Quit watching cnn all day?
Rise up and walk!
Jack, I think eating less and exercising more is only part of the solution. Eating healthy is where it's at. We have to learn to read the labels and stay away from anything processed. Some foods should only be ingested if they are organic and the growth hormones in chicken are likely to make our guts grow as well...
I won't have to do anything Jack...I'm already 50 pounds overweight. Thank God because I'm really impatient, and I couldn't bear to wait 40 years.
What idiocy–most adults alive in the next 40 years will be overweight!!
We generally gain wait–especially in middle age.
Outside of the aerobics instructors–most of us will be at or above our max weight around middle to late middle age even with exercise!!
You idiots–I could have told you that without exercise!!
I suppose Obama should address a new programs to explain the obvious and tax our butts off to fix it?
It will never happen but get rid of the internet and video games. Then make 1 hour of Physical Educaton and Health mandatory 5 days a week in school. Then get rid of upsizing food orders for discount prices.
we need to eat less and exercise more and pass that on to our children. along with nutritional information for healthy eating and healthy foods
Jack, As is usually recommended by physicians, eat less and exercise.
I wont be alive in 40 years so I wont have a weight problem. For those still going in 40 years? It is kind of hard to grow crops when it is 145 degrees at noon and there aint a drop of H2O that can be found. If you think the national debt is high now just wait.
Jack
We need to stop sitting around watching you, Wolf and Lou, and eating onion dip and potato chips and answering these stupid questions.
I'm sorry but to answer your question I'll have to turn off my television and computer.
if the prices at the grocery store keeps on the path were on now, we won't have to worry .
try eating only rice,once a month. it's working wonders on the sudanese.unfortunately,they dont do well in athletics.so,no more olympians.
Jack, we should not do anything. America should lead the world in something. Let it be obesity.
For the folks who are overweight. It could be from health problems or from your family genes. People should just eat right and get what exercise you can. Why do you guys always put my comments in Moderation? email me back. Or you just don't like my opinions. After posting? Place that comment agfter I post.
Unfortunately the most affordable meals provide the worst nutrition and when people have to make a decision on whether they pay the rent or pay more to eat healthy they'll sacrifice weight for a roof over their heads.
Stop making bigger clothes.
Eliminate all sources of food except for Lean Cuisine!
Impossible...I thought the "surge" fixed all of our problems.
Eat right and exercise.
Have you looked at the price of groceries lately? The major step the Republicans made toward national health care was in combating obesity by eliminating the food budget of the middle class.
By the time we are through rebuilding everything Bush blew up in Iraq, we'll be lucky if we can still afford beans.
I think we should go back to eating homecooked meals, walking, and playing outside. We didn't have all these issues when I was a kid (almost 40 years ago). We were as healthy as horses. Now, not so much. Instead of preparing food, we're bringing saturated fats, overly breaded and other yummy toxins home. Then we sit in front of the flat screen to either play video games, watch movies or settle in for an evening with the Situation Room. Eat another fat pill and go to sleep. Awww the fat life living the dream!!
Simple Jack, vote for Drill McCain.... Remember the movie Soylent Green? That will be us in a few years if he's elected president. Being overweight will be the last thing we need to be concerned about during his short run as Commander & Chief....
It's television's fault. What's better, watching your favorite TV show, or watching it while you're eating? Even in the 1950s, I enjoyed watching Gunsmoke and Have Gun, Will Travel, while pigging out on canned ravioli. Of course, I also exercised, and that kept the baloon from inflating too much.
1. Never eat any portion bigger than the size of your fist.
2. Eat slowly.
3. Chew each bite 20 times before swallowing.
4. Get up from the table and brush your teeth.
Make breakfast your biggest meal of the day so it gets worked off during daily activities. Some fruit and or salad instead of fast food for lunch, and a light but tasty dinner. Walk at least 4 times a week for 20 minutes.
Get a fat inflation guage (scale) to check your progress.
This works, and it doesn't cost you a dime.
Shouldn't be a problem in 40 years Jack. With the population boom that the world is having there won't be enough to food to go around. Might be able to fatten up if your Daddy was an oil man in the early 21st century.
Jack, I don't believe this is true. Seems like as I get older my appetite decreases. Look at people in nursing homes–they hardly eat anything.
Most Americans are diet-conscious and don't want to be fat.
win win situation
wire our jaws shut
then no one can say we are whiners and we will be thin too
We should ask the congress to do an investigation as to what is being put in our food. I've read some things over the years about how the government and corporations are putting certain chemicals-etc, in our food for various reasons. In that same time period I think I can say that I have not seem the American population get any lazier but we have gotten significantly fatter. It's worth considering.
We should outlaw drive thru windows! Not only do they waste gas while we "sit" in them but waste a great opportunity for us to get out of our cars and walk in. The real danger these windows pose is in the garbage they handout, but everyone knows that already.
Jack,
I think we should elect Richards Simmons to Congress (provided he follow a strict dress code.) I agree with his that schools do not need to be cutting out P.E and Recess for children. Not only is it not healthy for the kids, it allows them to blow off a little steam in a healthy way rather than be tied to desks and chairs all day. I wonder how many ADD kids might be cured by allowing the kids to go out and run around the playground for a little while?
Jack
We need things to be accessible again. We like to drive everywhere, to the mall, grocery store, we drive to the gym. I see 8-10 cars in the drive through at Starucks, how about skipping starbucks and walking a little more, I know I'm guilty of that too. I see myself almost 36 getting "chunky" and I don't like how I feet, so I am doing something about it now! I remember in grade school through high school, PE was a big part of school, now a days it's "optional" and parents can write any excuse to not have their kid not exercise! It should be mandatory for all who are able bodied. It should be for 1 hour during each school day. If you start the good habits when they are young then they will enjoy it more.Then maybe that will get the parents exercising if the kids enjoy it!!
Anti-PUMA in Arizona!!
Jack,
All we have to do is stay alive for 40 years and do nothing. Our economy is taking care of this problem for us. In 40 years very few people will be able to afford the cost of groceries. So................ we will all lose weight. Ain't that great! A nation of skinny ,hungry and angry people.
Judie
St. Augustine, Fl
Yes, but we'll all be thin in the end. So eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow McCain might be your president.
Jack in 40 years? Who came up with this idea? With oil prices and energy prices no matter what type will only climb and so will the cost of everything housing,clothes and oh yes food. In 40 years we may all be at least 40 lbs. or more underweight if the current trend continues.
Paul Round Rock, Texas
Ask Dr. Sanjay Gupta.......
He'll get us all on the right track........
IF we listen.
Take if from an Ironman Triathlete, it's not rocket science.
1. Eat less.
2. Exercise more.
I am not surprised at this study Jack. After all, the world’s richest 20% consume 80% of earth’s resources. My solution would be to learn from other cultures and end this epidemic of instant gratification.
More emphasis on self-discilpine, from a young age, would help. Children really do not need every toy and every morsel of food that they see, particularly if either inhibits their active play. They must be encouraged to make the proper choices rather than being completely steered and scheduled by their parents. Our deepening economic crisis may force this upon us – that may not be such a bad thing. I won't be around to see it because in 40 years, I would be pushing 100. When was the last time you saw an overweight 100-year-old?
I doubt that I will be overweight, I'm in my eighties. The rest of you eat less exercise.
Common sense should dictate that excercise and healthy food
will help maintain a decent weight. Medication sometimes causes
people to put on weight, and it can be difficult to take it off. Doctors can suggest guidelines to help an overweight problem, but a person has to want to be helped.
That doesn't surprise me, we have an overweight population in general, including children.
We need to develop community programs that encourage healthy eating and continual exercise.
Most of all, we need to change our view of what is acceptable for ourselves and our lifestyles.
I think we've become lax in our belief that "it's ok" to eat whatever we want, and "it's ok to experiment with diet plans and pills" for the rest of our lives...when it really is not...
Healthy living is just that- "Healthy Living"
Well Jack. If the economy keeps going like it is our government will solve that problem for us. We will all be too poor to afford food and have no homes to live in. That is called the "Congressional diet". It is a good thing we have the bridges in America so some of us will have a place to hunker down under when it rains. Becoming homeless is becoming a reality for a lot of us. I wonder what congress is doing on their paid vacations while we are all kept at bay waiting on the "Energy decision to no where"?
Get off your butt!
Turn off the TV, go outside and play with your kids.
At age 50, I realized that I wasn't getting any younger. So I started doing Tae Kwon Do alongside my boys. I may still be overweight, but it hasn't gotten any worse. And I've found out I can do things that most middle-aged men can't. Like run three miles. Do fifty pushups. Break bricks.
But it all starts with getting off your duff.
I'm setting up a girdle hedge fund today!!!
Ban high fructose corn syrup. And bake everything instead of frying it.(like pizza, brownies, cakes and pies). Oh, and we can all throw away the microwave ovens and grill everything. And eat raw veggies and fruit. Or we can all go on diabetic diets. I have a million ideas, but like evereything else, that's where they stay. Just ideas. Something else to think about. All these ideas are making me hungry. Think I'll go raid the frig and think of somemore ideas.
Well, Jack we have to the have the will power to get up and move. If we move around as much as we eat the weight should take care of itself, but if you think you are going to eat and sit down know that you are setting yourself up to become fat. Will power, portion control and exercise now that's a winning hand.
Jack,
We should not bother to do anything. In Africa, being fat or obese is a sign of good living.
The is about the only problem I see that the Republican party can help with. If we elect a Republican this year our economy will probably put us all on a diet because we want be able to afford food.
If the economy doesn't turn around, the only thing most of us will be able to afford is rice anyway, so we'll eventually all be rail thin!
It is entirely possible that all Americans will be overweight in 40 years, but it is not likely to happen if food prices keep going up, and no one has a job paying enough to buy what little they can now days.
We should simply add 10 to each of the BMI categories.
Close McDonalds and fast food places...
Now out of my dream world: We need edible food for kids. You ever tasted school food, Jack? It SUCKS! If they made good food, there would be no junk food!
Here's another plan, get off the darn couch and exercise! Throw in some taunts, my favorite is, " catch me, fata**" and run as fast as you can!
The human body hasn't changed much in a thousand years, Jack. By its' design, it is a hunter, gatherer, farmer, etc. It is nourished by nature with exertion (physical and mental). Most overweight U. S. Americans have poor "instant gratification" eating habits. Most overweight U. S. Americans don't get enough exercise, Jack. They've got no one to blame but "the man in the mirror" and being stupid enough to fall for clever product marketing.
The answer is simple. Eat the proper foods (including lots of raw vegetables) and get enough exercise. "Fast food" is ok once a month, not as a lifestyle. Everything in moderation.
You know what really angers me; Jack? Parents giving their toddlers french fries as a finger food, and cola as a drink. It should be raw pepper slices and water instead. Children develop their eating habits for the rest of their lives within their first three years of life. How can any parent be so selfish? Just because they're overweight, do they have to let their kids become overweight?
Wall*E was right!
Walk more, eat less. Works like magic.
Boise, ID
ABINGDON, MD.
DON'T WORRY ABOUT OVER WEIGHT, ALL OF US WILL LOSS, LACK OF MONEY, JOBS, WON'T BE ABLE TO GET FOOD STAMPS, THERE ALREADY TAKEN BY 10 MILLION ILLEGALS.
Jack,
As much as food costs now, I can't imagine what it will cost in 40 years. So only the rich should be obese.
Jack, we should eat a diet low in calories and fat. We should develop plans of exercise now and for our later years. It would also help if we spend less time on our rear-ends listening to you, to Wolf, and to your "award-winning" panerlsd.
Eat right and exercise. Of course its the doing it part that will make the difference.
If we continue on our present path, the problem will take care of itself. Our profligate spending and failure to address over-population and environmental issues will result in poverty, plague, and a host of locusts. Overeating will no longer be an issue.
Donald in Hilton Head, SC
Each day, try not to consume more calories than your body will burn.
With the price of food rising so rapidly, only the very wealthy will be in danger of becoming obese. The rest of us will be on the "poverty diet."
Darren in Fairbanks, Alaska
Americans should ban together and outsource fast food outlets to the Chinese. The misplaced US workers sent to work on the farms picking vegetables and fruits. The chinese product will be so inedible (lots of chemicals)' that no one will eat it, thus causing a massive weight reduction in the US population. Now for the Mexican farm workers, they'll just have to bite the bullet.
Everyone should get a treadmill, convert it to a generator and use it to generate their own electricity. That would solve both the obesity problem and the energy crisis in one swoop.
Uh, eat less?
I'm overweight now, but growing up I was always skinny and it annoys me. What really annoys me is seeing a child that weighs as much as an adult when they are only in their preteen years. How can the parents let this happen? Simple. Plop them in front of a television shortly after they are born and when they start to walk and talk, give them a computer to sit at all day long. Refrain from making them get up to do anything except get more food. In a few years we'll be able to win all kinds of wars. The enemy will laugh themselves to death at all our overweight, fat soldiers yelling "FOOD!!"
That depends upon the definition of IS overweight! Given that McDonald's is now assessing its menu prices, perhaps these adjustments in prices as inflation goes higher will restrict people from access to cheap fattening food. With Bennington's going out of business, here is another answer to lowering fattening food sources. Me thinks you are too presumptuous regards fat accessibility!
Jack, the reason so many kids are obese is thay cannot stand gym class. Most kids wood rather take advanced algebra than go to gym class. Having to shower with strangers is one of the worst memories I have of high school. Usually the gym teachers find one or two to pick on so they can have a good laugh. I failed gym class every year because incompetant and cruel gym teachers did not come up with inventive classes besides dodgeball and tag.
Anybody seen Wall-E? Who says we need to leave Earth for the vision of the future body type to become the norm?
Eat alot of Chinese take out Jack!
Rabbits eat healthy diets and only live a year or two. I'll take fat and 80 thanks.
This is Wall-E becoming reality.
Do what I did 60 lbs. ago–make an entire individual lifestyle change. High blood pressure–high blood sugar–I said "no way am I going to let this go and suffer diabetes and heart disease later". No "extra" sugar, low cholesteral and sarurated fat foods, no trans fat, 3 meals only-no snacking, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, whole grains, lean meat. From190 lbs. to 130 lbs. in 18 months. Was it easy–no. Was it worth it–YES!!! Blood pressure–blood sugar–normal–and has been for 7 yrs. Will I ever go back to high fat, junk-food, high sugar–NO WAY–I feel great!!! Physically and mentally. Only YOU can do it–noone can do it for you.
If I am alive in 40 years, I know that I won't be overweight. I am 53 years old and have kept my 30-inch waist since high school. I only eat out about once a month, rarely eat fried foods, haven't drank alcohol in 16 years, and I walk three to five miles a day. Maybe other Americans should follow this example. I saw a study on CNN this week that said that obesity causes as many cases of cancer as smoking does so many of those who are now overweight, unless they change their ways, won't have to worry about it 40 years from now because they won't be here.
Brownwood, Texas
Simple. STOP eating junk food, processed food, and fast food! When I was in high school in the mid 60s, there were TWO visibly obese students there out of 1250, and they had medical problems that could not be controlled. So please, no one try to say it's all about exercise, and not what we eat. Back then, there were no fast food burger barns, far fewer bags of chips and associated crap, and yes, most parents simply did not allow their kids to eat unheathily and get fat. It obviously worked.
All one needs do is to observe in a supermarket who is loading their carts up with what. It's impossible to not see the correlation between full carts of junk and processed food and meat, and the huge shoppers pushing the carts. This is probably not a politically correct analysis, and frankly I could not care less. Most obesity is self inflicted.
So what about my own waistline? I will 58 tomorrow, and I am not overweight. I quit eating meat and poultry 15 years ago, stopped all junk foods, and try as much as possible to limit chemical laced processed food. Also, I avoid restaurants when I can and do my own cooking, which is as low fat as I can get it, without compromising taste. It can be done, but a bit of will power is necessary.
It starts with taking resposibility about personal health instead of blaming everything else for it. People become overweight and obese by choice. Americans must start to choose to be healthy. It is that simple for me. Ask anyone who is fit. They will tell the same.
Nuwan from Houston, TX
Jack- not to worry, with this economy who can afford to eat?
Presidential leadership: Bring the President's Council on Physical Fitness back into the public eye, and into the schools so as to create a culture of physical activity and healthy eating at an early age.
It won't be a problem, rather than deal with a negative our government will issue a revised chart that shows a new norm, bringing the bulk (pun intented) back to normal.
They aren't already?!?!
The republicans and McCain are all for everyone being overweight. Remember the political ad claiming that Obama was too skinny to be president?
Forget all this health crap that the doctors tell you. Everyone's body is different, and no one plan works for everyone. I figured out in high school exactly what my body needed to stay in shape, and it mostly included staying away from fast food. That new-fangled "food pyramid" thingy works wonders, and you can get some damn tasty meals out of it!
"Experience" is what we had in Washington for the last eight years! Those opposing the disastrous Iraqi war exhibit intelligence and political savvy.
Thank-you!
Simple, tax foods that are bad for you, provide tax breaks for people who are members of a gym (and actually go), and provide tax breaks for companies who get a percentage of their work force to bike or walk to work. See that, I solved part of our health problem and energy problem in two short sentances, when I get to be 35 America better be ready Jack.
I doubt this study takes into account that we will all be riding bicycles or walking within the next 40 years.
With modern advances in cosmetic surgey and diet pills, in 15 years fat will only be a choice. Well that is if your rich enough.
This it one that I don't have to worry about at the age of 59.
Well, Jack, I have put in a large garden this summer, I have a back room in my basement with shelves for food, I have bought a tricycle with a big basket on it for exercise and to get to the store without using my car, I have a large yard and a power mower that is propelled by me. I live in a small town where I can bike everywhere. If I'm overweight in 30 years, I'll be the healthiest overweight 86 year old around town.
My solution is termed 'the red m&M concept.' Years ago, red m&ms were removed from supply because they were harmful. Since they did not exist, folks did not have a choice whether or not to eat them. Fast forward: Get rid of fast food restaurants. People obviously aren't going to make the right choices themselves, so do it for them. Well, it worked in the 60s with the m&ms.
Ah, let's see. How about eating less junk. Then getting off our fat backsides and engaging in some physical activity. No that wouldn't work. Eating less junk would harm the fast food industry and adversly effect the number of new jobs generated. More pysical activity would leave all of our televisions, computers and game systems unused and unnessary. That wouldn't be good for the economy. Though question. I'm going to grab a snack when get home and think this over while watching the "Situation Room".
I'm over sixty now so, I'm glad I didn't wait.
A nice depression would surely skinny up the population. So let's elect John McCain so we can continue the Bush economic plan to its logical conclusion. It's the healthiest thing we could do for our country.
It's evolution Jack. As the climate gets warmer, we are getting bigger – just like dinasaurs.
Maybe ya'll will, but I WON'T!!!
More of us are going to have to do what I just finished doing – hit the gym, watch the amounts of food that we eat, and eat more healthy. The eating healthy part creates another problem because eating healthy can be expensive. If it comes down to paying all your bills or eating healthy most people will pay their bills.
Push back from the table! Eat like humans and not pigs!
Jack, it's already too late. We just watched "Jaws 1" and our teenage daughter said "look how skinny all the people were in the seventies." Go to any American beech today and the shameless display of "double wides" is enough to scare off a 40 foot Great White. We need a "fat limit law" for people to take their cloths off on vacation.
I hate to say it, but part of the blame lies with the "Political Correctness" that's taken a hold of the media. Yes, it's wrong to make fun of overweight people and yes it's wrong to only use skinny people in ads and in movie roles, etc., but we're not doing ourselves any favors by swinging so far in the other direction and saying there's nothing wrong with being fat. I also blame our schools for getting rid of things like gym class and recess. And of course, we could blame tv and video games. But honestly, playing the blame game all day won't make people more healthy. Putting the fork down and going for a jog will.
Jack,
My 5' 8" husband weighed 272 lbs. He decided to eat less and exercise more. After 18 months he now weighs 155lbs and is in excellent condition.
There was no magic formula involved merely will power.
Sophia
Louisville, Ky
Jack,
I'm sure there will be an obesity tax involved.
This totally sucks--As a fat person, I've managed to miss every " fat is acceptable" trend in the human history . I must've been really bad in my last life. John Framingham MA
Did you ever think that somewhere out there there are others who are fattening us up getting ready for dinner? It's a dog eat dog world and we should all be very afraid.
Jack,
I would love to answer your question in detail. However, I am too busy eating my third lunch.
I wonder what's for dinner?
Go to the gym instead of sitting at home, being lazy, and eating fast food everyday. Haven't we all learned from Super Size Me and Richard Simmons?
Americans need to move their bodies more. We watch to much TV, drive everywhere we need to go, play video games, and sit at our desk for lunch. Kids in my neighborhood or rarely outside. I make it a point to eat lunch away from my desk, I play a sport like tennis to mix up attending the gym, and I only eat red meat, if at all, on a summer holiday or if I eat out (very seldom). Small changes in our eating habits and physical exercise habits will make the difference.
Simply put ... be personally accountable for your own health and weight. Don't expect the food industry, the health care industry, the government, the restaurant industry, the fitness industry or any diet plan to do for you what you need to be doing for yourself. If we're all as really as smart as we think we are ... then, being accountable and personally responsible for our own choices to ensure our best weight and health will be inevitable.
I don't have time to answer this question right now, Jack. I've got to get my extra large pizza out of the oven before it burns.
We should elect Paris Hilton, she'd keep us totally hot.
Jack, it is sad but true, the very same things that are regulated....liquor, cigarettes, fast food, over the counter meds that can be abuse. I know we live in the land of the free... we cannot blame anyone but ourselves for the problems we have
40 years heck i'm fat now but I can still get up on a wakeboard at 52!
Insist that the FDA take high-fructose corn syrup out of prepared foods, put more fiber in all packaged foods (I don't mean by eating the box!) and at the same time put mandatory nutritional and exercise classes in the Educational System – classes should be mandatory for the parents of children with over-eating obesity.
Demand the standards change for what defines overweight. I'm 5'6" and weigh 150 lbs and although my BMI is low, I'm considered overweight. The current standard requires us all to be frail to make the mark so those of us who regularly weight train are out of luck.
I don't think Americans are eating more I think it is all of these chemicals that they put in this food. They shoot the cows up to produce more milk, we have no idea what the effects on our bodies. That is why these children are so humongous compared to when we were small kids. They feed the chicken steroids to make them bigger what do you think it is going to do to us as humans. This is why so many countries don't want our meat too come to their nations. We are putting fructose in everything and that is just sugar. And even if you try to eat less you are still putting these chemicals in your body. And the organic stuff is just too expensive. The average family can't afford to shop their.
Start with putting recess back in schools! Eating healthy sounds like a good solution, but healthy food is more expensive, and we keep getting warnings about contamination in healthy food! But if the energy crisis gets much worse, a lot of us will be walking more, because we can't afford to drive. Maybe Congress could set an example! Most of them look pretty well fed!!
FORTY YEARS? Hell! WE can do better than that. Pass the biscuits and gravy, Jack, and throw another waffle on the griddle.
Pablo in Arlington, Texas
Jack,
I'm 63. I exercise daily. I walk/jog several miles each day with my dog at my side. I'm careful what I eat but not that careful. My BP & weight are fine. My cholesterol is 160. When my sons were in grade school, they would come home & ride their bikes all over town or rollerblade or be sports practice. As they got older they worked out. Today they are fit & trim young men in their late 20's & early 30's. I set the example for them & they followed. I'm not immortal but I'm doing the best I can to stay healthy. BTW, most people are amazed when I tell them how old I am. They usually guess about 7-10 years younger.
When I was growing up, our food did not have all the additives they have now. There was no such thing as a TV set or video games. I never saw a fast food restaurant. We were out and about playing. People may make fun of the "good old days" but if you were there, they were for a lot of reasons.
If people are overweight, that's their choice and none of my business or yours. I think we need to stop telling others what to do with their lives and start looking at how to improve ourselves as human beings. That would solve the weight issue and several others.
Common sense, by eating, or otherwise consuming healthy, and just plain old exercise. I can't believe that there are so many lazy people in this country, no wonder aliens can come in here and get jobs. I know a man so lazy that when he hit the lottery, he asked them if they could just roll him over, and put it in his pocket.
In 40 years the earth's population will exceed 9 billion and if they're all overweight, the planet's gonna tip over and since china/india have the most, they'll be on the bottom.
Contrary to what people may say or think, most weight issues have less to do with what we put in our mouths and MORE to do with mental health issues that CAUSE the putting of food in our mouths.
The fact that we're so overweight as a nation says to me that we're seriously lacking in our mental health. No surprise there given that we're overworked, generall underpaid unless you're a celebrity or CEO, and have little vacation time.
So what should we do? Get MENTALLY healthy. The rest falls into place after that.
Hey Jack. We need to keep Americans talking instead of eating. I hear "money talks" so let's give all Americans who maintain their Body Mass Index an annual tax break.
You have to want to change something Jack, not just that but decide how far you want to go with political correctness in getting the message across that its your choice.
Sports in school for everyone, good idea, I hated it since I was self concious. and you know what one day i noticed I was good at it, and that motivated me more to have FUN while taking care of myself ! Its not a chore really, treat it like fun, a game a social outing even...next thing you know you want to take care of yourself!
It might not sound like much, but it would help to build more sidewalks. That way I could go jogging without getting hit by a car.
Leave the country.
Raise the limits and definitions of "OVERWEIGHT" in 39 years and 11 months if the USA is still around.
We should not have trans fats in our food supply. No amount of trans fat is safe for humans to consume. Currently, two-thirds of Americans are overweight. Losing weight means eating leans meats and fruits and vegetables. Look around everyone is huge. These people eat whatever they want and don't seem to care.
Have you seen the size of chickens, hogs and cows lately? Whatever the farmers are feeding them is going straight to my belly.
alf – las vegas
Morph into curmudgeons like you, Jack. You don't appear to have a weight problem. Must be the lifestyle.
Jack, either stop eating or stop acting like adults.Give me a 32 ounce porterhouse, extra fat and fries cooked in lard. YUM, YUM.
Tom C. Stuart, FL.
Stop eating Chicken, since they get fed hormones in their feed.
Stop eating beef, since they to get hormones in their feed too.
Stop eating vegetables and friut since their DNA have been changed to make them PLUMPER and BIGGER.
Guess where all that hormone and DNA changing fruit and veggies goes, when you eat.
Yep, right into you.
We all know this is happening, but we all pretend that it is not.
Jack, it's simple. shutdown all fast food restaurants , LEARN how to cook at home, DO NOT eat too much and EXERCISE frequently
It is pretty much up to the individual isn't it? I guess health care premimums including medicare taxes could be graduated upward for ever pound you are consider to be overweight. Americans respond mostly to money and if it cost more to be overweight then fewer will be. Gas costs more and we are using less. Same principle applies.
Go with the Social Security last number diet law. Even numbers eat Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Odd numbers eat Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Nobody eats on Sunday. The penalty for violating diet laws will be working in a restaurant on days you can't eat.
Watch the Cafferty file and when you get through throwing up each day you are bound to lose weight.
I trust Obama far more than John McCain! Obama is smart and honest. McCain, while not as stupid as Dubya, has done nothing to fight off the oil barons who run our foreign policy. He's even willing to do their bidding and start a war with Iran – not to "win" anything over there, but to keep oil prices high here.
And McCain is trying to help the gas companies make a land-grab, and a sea-grab, by letting them take possession of national resources instead of drilling on the land we've already "leased" them at give-away prices.
Obama. Not McSame.
Lets see I'm 71 years old now and in 40 years I'll be
111 years old and overweight so I hope they still make coffins
in extra large.
We have a "sin" tax for smokers to help pay for medical cost, what about a tax for candy bars and fast food to help pay for their medical care? Just a thought from a physically fit uninsured American.
The Individual has to take some responsibility on choosing the food and stop being gullible with food ads that look good, false advertising!
Be a shopper who truly thinks and read all contents and choose foods that are grown and raised without hormones or pesticides.
Someone said "stop making bigger clothes." Don't be ridiculous. Make lots of attractive, comfortable large clothes that people are willing to be seen in, and maybe it will be easier for them to get out and walk around.
There's hardly ANY plus-size exercise wear to be found out there! Come on, fashion industry, be patriotic and give the public a break!
It is about time Americans start taking some personal accountability and responsibility for their own lives and their own health. The chickens are coming to roost on our healthcare system when all these obese people fall apart.
They blame the fast food companies, they blame the government, they blame genetics, they blame an unfair society but in reality none of those people make the choice to eat what they do and the choice not to exercise. They would rather blame than look into the mirror to fix their own problems themselves.
How do we fix this Jack? Let's start by putting accountability into their lives. Sure we can give them all the healthy options they can handle but when it comes right down to it, it is THEIR choice. I know it is not politically correct but it needs to be said.
Stop tempting us to sit at our computers and writing comments to your blog! But seriously, we all need to eat less and move around more and the Internet has become addictive to many of us. It's not so bad for us old folks but young people have forgotten what it is like to walk or play outdoor games like softball, etc. And stop urban sprawl where the houses are so far away that the parents drive their kids to "play dates."
The vast majority of schools serve far too much high-calorie, high-fat, processed food for lunch. Nachos and pizza every day, power drinks, snack chips and cakes are the norm for the school in which I work. Most students ignore the salad bar and fresh fruits. Schools also make a lot of money serving the junk-food and don't want to lose the money the sales bring in.
we should consider the economic differences here. if you earn less money you are more likely to eat unhealthy and become overweight and you probably cannot affort a gym membership anyways. If you are doing decenly well it probably means you take into consideration what you buy and eat a lot more because you can be picky. When you are poor and on a budget all you have is the cheap stuff and that is not healhy food.
So there you have it...in 40 years all of america will be poor and fat...kinda sounds like today
Tax snack food like we tax tobacco. Snack food is just as deadly.
We can't afford to buy groceries now that equates to a balanced meal. I don't believe we will be overweight !
I am always surprised at the hugeportions of food served in most restaurants in the USA. I can barely eat half of it, and if I take the rest home for next day's lunch, there goes my diet (which is already shot with the calories in the first half portion, anyway). And free refills for the sodas? Keep the calories coming. Europe has the servings which are about half the size of that in the US (though usually at a higher price!), and if you want a second soda, you have to pay for it.
Every time I travel in the United States, restaurants serve huge portions. Often, for 99 cents we can overzize the plate and the drink. Instead of a plate it looks like a tray for a group. Instead of a glass of coke, it looks like a pale of coke. This is part of the american culture : ABONDANCE ! Americans have the same culture when it is about the size of their homes, the size of their cars, SUV or trucks.... The attitude is WE ARE AMERICANS AND WE DESERVE AFFLUENCE....
Ottawa, Canada
Drinking water and walking moving all the parts of the body help in reducing the weight. Eating four times, every time eating light foods should also help. Being joyful may be a mental cure. Avoiding all kinds of reasons for being fat must be practiced.
Jack, look at the bright side in 40 years you will be able to buy cholesteral control and high blood pressure medications over the counter. Bummer! I just spilled chocolate syrup on my mouse.
Kevin
Warren,MI
Jack,
We have a problem in our country with corporate resturants not taking the time and effort to make choices healthier. The corporate mindset of profit over responsible actions has given us many things to look forward to in the future. Not to dismiss that every persons resposibility to themselves has become something of the past.
Joe
ST Louis.MO
Everyone's complaining about having no grocery money in this downward spiraling economy, but yet the 8 or 9 drive-thru's within 1/2 a mile of my home are jammed to the gills morning, noon and night.
Unless competence regains it's place over convenience, we're unfortunately destined to become the fattest populace on Earth.
Jim
Lake In The Hills, IL
Jack;
All I can say regarding this question is: I told my 16 year old boy, that things have changed, and I'm glad that I'm not looking for "dates" anymore. I'm overwhelmed looking at the prospects of some form of "union" these days, based on my experiences in the past. I'm blessed to be married to a "nowhere-near" obese woman. I do have reservations about my sons' prospects.
ES
Fat chance Jack. Judging from the last time I visited, I would be surprised if it took 14 years, much less 40. Maybe then they can tax people who are overweight, so America will once again live off the fat of the land.
So wait a minute Jack...
if I eat burgers and fries like the picture you have on the blog,
I'll be alive in 40 years?
SWEET!!!
Don't worry Jack with the rise in gas prices we will have to stop buying food all togather to fill up our tanks. Thus this problem will solve itself. On a more serious note, people are either just going to have to exercise (oh no) and watch what they eat. I find it hard to believe that ALL people will be overweight. There should atleast be one person in California that cares about their body.
Necessity is the mother of invention. As long as we can eat fat, rich foods cheaply and not be held accountable as cardiac bypass surgery will surely be picked up by Wal-mart shortly making it affordable, nothing will change. Eat less, exercise more....yaddha yaddha. We say that and few people change. We need a good recession where is costs more to eat forcing people to change.
A good start would be your personal physician. The AMA should encourage all American doctors to tell their patients "Hey fatso, you're killing yourself!"
too late...
With children spending their time playing video games instead of playing outdoors, and restaurants supersizing everything this fact is not at all surprising. What can be done... parents need to take the lead role for themselves and their kids. Schools need to bring back sports and the goverment needs to do something to help low-income families.
Eat less.
Start reading labels, if you see high futose corn surup, put that back on the shelf. That is one item in the food that will put weight on anyone and has. When food producer starting using that in place of sugar that is when we all started gaining weight!!!
put down the fork.
Stop watching the Cafferty file so much and stop eating all the stuff you advertise during commercials.
Does this mean they will have to halt air transportation, or will they have to charge us by the pound?
Jack,
How did you not manage to blame Bush for this?
When Obama is annointed President, he will save us, all will be good with the world then......
Your plan to stop bringing in foreign workers to harvest crops should take care of that problem.
Simple, Jack. Have the RNC consult with Paris Hilton for her advice on weight loss. After all, she's "hot" and according to McCain's political machine she has all the answers the country needs.
Put down the forks.
Everyone should start riding bicycles.
1.3 billion Chinese can't be wrong.
Don't worry about it, Jack, global warming is going to wipe us all out before that anyway. Can't you just hear all that fat sizzling?
Put down the fork.
push away from the table
stop eating like pigs.
Give us back our diet pills. Nobody was obese in the 1960's
Jack,
A simple solution would to move to Ethiopia!
Two Words Jack:
Soylent Green.
Dear Jack: That's easy. And you can solve the energy crisis at the same time. Park your cars.
Sandra/Edmonton
i won't be. but thoes who like to eat at the fast food places everyday will. we need to stop being lazy and start riding and walking every opppotunity we get.
Jack
The problem with America is that we are already a weight-obsessed culture. Practically everything on TV and bookshelves is about how to lose weight! How about instead we put some weight into our brains by watching less TV and silly books, and investing in our education of money, the World and the people around us. You cannot solve the American family's financial problems by becoming thinner and beautiful.
Jack,
Maybe those obese people would wake up if their health insurance went up according to their weight. 10 to 50 % overweight 10 to 50% increase in health insurance, How about a 10 to 50% increase in transportation costs, airline tickets would be a good example.
Maybe these people just need to increase their activity 10 to 50 % and get off their backside then the problem would probably go away!
There's an easy solutions to the weight problem, but nobody has the guts to mention it, much less enforce it: eliminate all insurance-paid health care coverage for any treatments needed due to excess weight. If people had to pay out of their own pocket for the damage they do to themselves by over-indulgence, they might learn some discipline.
Cut lunch in public schools, close all the the Macdonald's, Burger King, and many other fast food chains. Then encourage people to eat healthy and exercise rather than getting fat and dieing at an early age. People are starving around the world but for us its the opposite. Maybe we should send some food rather than money overseas. Thanks
100%!!! I sure hope they don't actually pay the people that did this "study". Not one (1) thin adult will remain in forty years!! Couldn't they say 99% and give themselves a little wiggle room? Well, based on this study there is some good news; anorexia, meth and cocain addicts will no longer exist! You know what they say...... "Figures don't lie, but liers figure."
Ban all fast food joints, ban soft drinks, chocolate or any other kind of sweets.
Serve only dried out low fat steaks or other meat types.
Get big on salad in the morning, lunch and dinner and leave all the grains and corn types of food for car fuel.
Pay for and issue each citizen and bicycle or those who cannot ride a scooter.
Don't import any luxury items and let's get back to the day the Pilgrim arrived on the east coast.
We can start again to some degree...
The obvious answer is that the American dream says you can have it all.
Now you want to take it away............. go figure!
Obviously it is a larger issue, but don't forget it also comes along with responsibility, and responsibility needs to be taught not left up to it's own to occur.
Jack: pass this on to your smart reader "Jayne" (today, August 7th, 2008, 2:04 pm ET): an orange (healthy nourishment) for $1.00 and Mac & Cheese (instant, unhealthy fake food) for $0.35? The only thing I can think of is that is easier to open a box than to peel a piece fruit. What a sad state of affairs, considering that the orange is a heck of a lot cheaper to manufacture and has many more health merits than pseudo cheese powder, not so pure noodles, printed intructions and packaging that doesn't get reycled. But, that's the habit that U. S. Americans have chosen for themselves (not smart).
Why don't you guys wake up and starting eating real food and learn to cook? There are millions in the world starving and many of you argue about which fast food chain it's gonna be tonight. I'm starting to sound just as bitter as Jack.
The reason everyone will be overweight is because we are working 80 hours a week instead of having time to exercise in order to pay for the reduced medical coverage the corporations believe we deserve.
Outlaw high fructose corn syrup.
Duh! - Try eating less. Give incentives for eating less like indexing air fares, health and life insurance premiums to weight. We card folks for age when they try to buy alchohol at the super market. How about carding for weight when they try to buy fatty and sugary foods?
You should start with the kids..there’s little hope for the already lazy and obese adults, jack. Give them less junk, and for crying out loud, try cooking good food AT home. Take away, and fast everything is not a good example ... If u cant take time to make it, your kids wouldnt even know the various nutrients and how they affect their bodies. As for those who are already obese now, prayers, jack, prayers. And some old school military sports regimens.
Jack, The way I see it, this would solve the social security problem as well as lighten Medicare costs, nursing shortages, etc. Life expectancy for obese people is far shorter than for those with average weights. What's the problem?
Pam
The overweight problem may be self-resolving. It was just reported recently that fuel costs are driving fast food prices up and causing some restaurants to make the portions they serve smaller for the same price. Also, when China finally owns all of our trillions of dollars of National debt and our natural resources they may restrict how much we eat. I hope you like rice.
Steve
Washington
it's easy jack.discipline yourself and most importantly your kids diet.let them know from a young age just how nasty fastfood/junkfood is for our health.there is a surplus of imformation out there particularly on the internet.oh yeah and sue the crap out of mcdonalds
Avoid all foods that are white, white sugar, white flour, high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oil.
Use your television time wisely, and exercise an hour most days of the week, include strength training and aerobic activity.
Obese individuals need to pay an additional health tax to provide for their health care, just as people are required to pay for eyeglasses, dentures, hearing aids, et cetera.
1. It's in the best interest of companies to have healthy workers. But Americans are working longer hours with less buying power. Companies should have paid lunchtime at work and pay their employees enough to workout at the gym. Also, have more telecommuting careers!!
2. The government should be subsidizing meat & vegetables, not sugar and wheat.
Daily exercise and thinking about what we eat. It really is simple. Get up and move; park further from the stores; take stairs; walk the dog. Have your french fries, but only the small serving and only once a week. Do not drown a "healthy salad" in a quarter cup of full fat dressing. Go outside and play with the kids. Get them to move away from the computers and video games. It really is rather sad to see school age children getting larger and larger (along with their parents)
Thanks for listening. PS . I lost over 80 pounds 20 years ago and have kept it off by simply doing moderate exercise and thinking about my daily intake of food.
We get educated to workless and spend our time working cushy jobs behind a desk for 10hrs a day, to only go home and play video games and respond to our Blackberry's. We need to go back to being primitive, working hard labor jobs and get away from the technology. What did we do when we did not have cell phones? We ran from house to house to gossip and ate-less because drive-in windows took forever. With that said, we need to work-less, eat-less, and stop being worth-less.
Well,I think the solution is simple. Everyone just needs to eat healthy,and perhaps go vegetarian. Laying off the red meat can do wonders,no lie. Fruits and veggies are better for the human stomach anyway...the food pyramid is a hoax and doesn't help anyone..just more propaganda.It's not nearly balanced enough!! I may be 12 years old but even I can see that the meat category seriously needs to shrink...by the way,if Sen. Obama becomes president that helps too.
The bottom line is this, "If you don't put it in your mouth, it won't go on your ass"!
The first step towards a better life style for people is giving the billions of dollars in tax breaks congress is granting oil companies to the ordinary American farmer and food supplier. This would allow healthier food producers with better marketing and efficiency to compete with the producers of today that sacrifice America's health for profit.
I'm 52, and work part time in an "upscale" market, in the deli section, across from our bakery section. We're an overweight society because the
fools who have all this disposable income, despite our recession are eating their way into the record books. It is difficult to fathom the amount of food and the type of food people eat constantly, and the rationalizations they tell people like me, (as if I care why they're buying two pounds of some kinda pasta and 4 twice baked potatoes big steaks and a cake) and polish it all off with a diet cola. Then they get into their three ton SUV, drive home, gorge, watch TV, and get up the next day and do it again.
My inlaws are the poster children for what I just described, unless of course they're eating out somewhere, having burgers, fries, hush puppies, dessert and, oh yeah, unsweetened iced tea.
Why? because they can.
I'm sorry, Jack, but the solution to the obesity problem can't be answered in a sound bite. The issues are really complex...even "eat less, move more" can be hard when people don't know how many calories they are eating. A typical fast food meal can give you an entire day's worth of calories! And our cheap food (yes, when compared to what it costs in other countries) contains lots of calories, fat, sugar, salt...it's expensive to eat well unless you really know what you're doing and how to cook. So blame the fatties, but they aren't the only ones to blame
Linda in CT
Education is the key. Obesity should be made public enemy No. 1. Childen should have lessons at school making it clear what the consequences are of over-indulgence. The lessons should not only cover nutrition, but the health and medical consequences of over-eating..
1) if somehow plastic surgery becomes cheap, ban lipo
2) buy Wii fit
3) ask yourself what you're doing on the caffertyfile
4) with the help of gene technology, insert the 'fat' gene of keira knightley into everyone
5) eat so much junk that you get sick of it
6) hope potato prices plumet
7) build a safe house and fill it all with food before everyone eats it all
Jack we just returned from Western Europe where residents seem more fit and healthy. Why? Part of the reason is the high reliance on public transportation, walking and bicycling.
Have you ever wonder why are we getting fatter year after year? It is because we have been driving to everywhere from Sunday to Saturday.
People, let us drive less and ride or walk more.Then, you will see that you will not only safe your life but you will also put some money into your wallet.
It is ludacris to suggest that every single American will eventually become overweight. You would have olympic marathon runners that are overweight.
And in 120 years, everybody alive right now will be dead...except for me due to my calorie restricted bran, grapefruit and cat hair diet. I will live forever, quite unhappily.