Wednesday, July 1, 2009

We're gettng bigger, not better

It seems Americans are gung-ho on the dangers of smoking but are ignoring the dangers of obesity. While I'm not slim by any stretch of the imagination (in fact my BMI puts me in the moderately obese range) I do try to keep my weight under control and do some physical activity to keep my healthy and my fat cells at bay. Smoking does cause a variety of health problems but so does obesity. Eating healthy and staying active is something we can all do to make our quality of life better. Oh and I'm almost one of the 65 and beyond they are talking about.
AP Summary) – Mississippi's still king of cellulite, but an ominous tide is rolling toward the Medicare doctors in neighboring Alabama: obese baby boomers. It's time for the nation's annual obesity rankings and, outside of fairly lean Colorado, there's little good news. Obesity rates among adults rose in 23 states over the past year and didn't decline anywhere, says a new report.
And while the nation has long been bracing for a surge in Medicare as the boomers start turning 65, the new report makes clear that fat, not just age, will fuel much of those bills. In every state, the rate of obesity is higher among 55- to 64-year-olds—the oldest boomers—than among today's 65-and-beyond. That translates into a coming jump of obese Medicare patients that ranges from 5.2% in New York to 16.3% in Alabama, the report concluded. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-07-01-most-obese-state_N.htm

1 comment:

Harriet said...

This article hit our local newspaper today (2 July).