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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 None of the states or the District of Columbia has met the "Healthy People 2010" goal of reducing the prevalence of obesity to 15 percent or less, the CDC said.
"Obesity is a major risk factor for a number of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke. These diseases can be very costly for states and the country as a whole," Deb Galuska, associate director for science at the CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, said in a news release.
The CDC defines obesity as a body mass index (BMI, a ratio of weight to height) of 30 or above. An adult who is 5-feet, 9-inches tall is considered obese if he or she weighs 203 pounds.
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In compiling the data, the CDC used its Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which collected information on more than 350,000 adults through telephone interviews. The researchers calculated BMIs using information reported by survey participants.
"These data from the CDC confirm that the epidemic of obesity continues to spread, whether looking at population trends in the short- or long-term," said Howard D. Sesso, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
The likelihood of America meeting the Healthy People 2010 objectives for obesity prevalence appears dim, Sesso said. "This report highlights the need not only to outright prevent the development of obesity over the life-course, but also to improve efforts to reduce body weight in those already classified as obese," he said.
More information
For more on obesity, visit the CDC.
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