Obesity in America is Much Worse Than We Thought

Now in all fairness, these mis-classified people weren't told they were skinny. The classification went from overweight to obese. The BMI test is free. So it's much less expensive than the NYU researchers used. Another indicators that doctors have started to use is the Body Adiposity Index. This compares a person's height and hip measurement.

If you're at all concerned about your weight and its impact on your health, then if your BMI indicates that your overweight, you might want to request the more detailed health tests. A BMI of 30 currently indicates obesity. A BMI of 25 or under is considered healthy.

Th Body Adiposity Test is now being evaluated on Mexican-Americans and African-Americans to determine if it accurately portrays their health or obesity. Further tests will be required on White and Asian-Americans as well.

Obesity in America has a distinct regional trend, with Southern States leading the way. Mississipi (34.0%) is the most obese state. Followed by West Virginia (32.5%), South Carolina (31.5%), Texas (31.0%), Oklahoma (30.4%), Kentucky (31.3%), Louisiana (31.0%), Michigan (30.9%), Missouri (30.5%), Alabama (32.2%).

The CDC estimated that in 2008 obesity-related medical costs totaled $147 Billion. Obese patients spent more than $1,428 each year than people of normal weight. Obesity has also been linked to less worker productivity and more time off from work.

Diseases affected by obesity include heart disease, diabetes, liver and gallbladder disease, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, and infertility.

A study released by the University of California at Davis suggest a strong link between women who entered pregnancy obese and the likelihood of delivering a child with autism. The way the study worked is that 1,000 children between the ages of two and five were studied. The results showed that an obese woman is 67% more likely to have a child with autism. Researchers believe that the combination of obesity, which then causes diabetes, combines to somehow affect the neurological development of the fetus. Although the study's finds said that obese women without diabetes were more than 67% likely to have a baby with autism.

Twenty percent of the mothers of children with autism were obese, while only 14% of mothers of children without autism or other developmental delays were obese.

Diabetes in and of itself might be a contributor to autism. The study determined that 9.3% of women with Type II diabetes had a child with autism and 11.6% had a child with at least developmental delay.