Dive Brief:
- According to new research published in JAMA Internal Medicine, almost 35% of men and 37% of women are now considered obese, illustrating an increase since a similar study performed 20 years ago.
- The total number of obese people has now surpassed the total number of overweight individuals, which now stands at 40% of men and 30% of women over age 24.
- The authors suggest that prevention strategies could successfully counter the costly trend toward obesity if they are embraced as a public health priority.
Dive Insight:
The increasing rate of obesity is directly connected to increasing medical costs, and has yet to receive enough attention to turn it around. The one indication of success, the report notes, is a decline in obesity among children aged 2 and 5.
The report suggests several strategies for tackling obesity, including increasing primary care efforts to prevent and treat it.
Dr. Lin Yang, a lead researcher of the study, says part of the issue is that "clinicians are not talking enough with their patients" and that "they probably aren't doing counseling on the ways patients can change their lifestyles." She proposes, for a start, that providers place obesity education literature in their offices as a way to encourage discussion and raise awareness.