Although the U.S. obesity rate is still high, it may have plateaued, according to two studies published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The two reports detail obesity rates for adults and children and are based on health surveys involving height and weight measurements of 5,700 adults and 4,000 children conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention every two years. Researchers compared data gathered from 2007 to 2008 to statistics from 1999 through 2006.
Results showed rates of obesity in men rose during the first five years and then leveled off. The rates remained stable in women. In children, the rates for most groups leveled off in 1999 and were steady. The prevalence of overall obesity rose, however, in Caucasian boys between ages 6 and 19.
Previously: Gains in life expectancy could be outweighed by increasing obesity rates
Via Wall Street Journal
Photo by Alan Cleaver 2000
