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Obesity and men

Matt - Sun, 2012-10-28 18:38

Obesity is now a major health problem not just in the developed world but also in the less-developed world. Reasons are simple: People are getting less exercise by working or working out than ever before. And, people are eating more than they used to by calories per person, and the calories are more likely to come from low-nutrient or out-and-out bad-for-you sources, like soda and processed foods. The stats on developed world obesity are unbelievable, but believe it. Look at this chart for the US. The numbers are very similar in other western countries as well. Notice how the numbers climb for both sexes as people get older. But the real story is how it kills people prematurely. Look at this. Excerpt:

'Recent work commissioned by the Taskforce indicates that if current trends in overweight and obesity continue, there will be approximately 1.75 million deaths at ages 20+ years and 10.3 million premature years of life lost (PYLL) at ages 20–74 years caused by overweight/obesity in Australia in 2011 to 2050. Each Australian aged 20–74 years who dies from overweight/obesity in 2011 to 2050 will lose, on average, 12 years of life before the age of 75 years.'

There's no reason to believe the facts around Australian premature deaths don't hold true for other developed countries' populations. 12 years of life lost due to being obese or overweight. That's incredible.

A lot has been written in the MSM about how obesity in women has shot up, and it adds to their health problems as bad if not worse than obesity does in men. But very little is reported on the increasing rates of obesity in men even though it kills men prematurely as fast as it does women.

This is a good BMI calculator and takes Imperial as well as metric measurements. (To make life easier: 5 ft. = 60 in., 6 ft. = 72 in.). Yes, I understand your trepidation if you've noticed the gut hanging over your belt (and so has everyone else), but tell me: isn't it worth the extra 12 years of life you'll get if you face reality and do what you need to do to get those years back?