The Obesity Epidemic In America Is Getting Worse
Americans Continue To Get Fatter, With 80% Over Recommended Weight And 33% Who Are Now 20% Or More Overweight
NEW YORK, NY -- (INTERNET WIRE) -- 03/05/2002 -- The latest results of The Harris Poll® on smoking, seatbelt usage and obesity revealed that though Americans are remembering to strap in and not light up, when it comes to the buffet table they can’t seem to back off.
Since 1983 Harris Interactive(SM) has surveyed the public to determine how many are overweight and underweight, as well as to track their seatbelt use and smoking behavior. This year The Harris Poll®, conducted between January 16 and 21 via telephone with a nationwide cross-section of 1,011 adults (18+), proved once again that the biggest obstacle Americans face when managing their health is managing their weight. More specifically, the poll found:
· Among people over 25 (the population for which the
Metropolitan Life tables were developed) 80% of the public
are overweight, up from 58% in 1983, 64% in 1990 and 71%
in 1995.
· Fully 33% are now twenty percent overweight, a reasonable
measure of obesity, compared to 15% in 1983, 16% in 1990,
and 22% in 1995. In other words, obesity has more than
doubled from less than one-sixth of the population eighteen
years ago to one-third today.
· While the proportion of adults who smoke cigarettes
is down to 23% in this survey, this is a decline of only seven
points (from 30%) since 1983, and of three points (from 26%)
since 1990. Indeed, all the modest changes in the smoking
rate, as Harris Interactive has measured it over the last few
years, are within the possible sampling error for this
survey. So if there has been any reduction in the smoking
rate over the last decade, it has been extremely modest.
· 81% of all adults say that they now wear seatbelts when
in the front seat of a car. This is a huge increase over the
19% who said this in 1983, the 65% in 1990 and the 73% in
1995. This is perhaps the biggest single success story on
public health over the last twenty years. One reason for this
huge change was the laws passed in the 1980s by states to
mandate seat belt use. It’s a powerful example of how
legislation, even when weakly enforced as it is in most
states, can change both attitudes and behavior very
dramatically. Another reason is that – unlike smoking
cessation or weight control – seat belt use requires no self-
discipline, no sacrifice of gratification and no need to
overcome addiction. There is gain without pain.
Success and failure in attempts to lose weight
Obesity continues to increase even though many people are trying to lose weight and a surprisingly large number claim to have been successful.
This survey found that:
· Most people (60%) say they would like to lose weight,
including 72% of those who are overweight (as well as some of
those who are not).
· A similar proportion of all adults (58%) say they have made a
serious effort to lose weight, including 65% of those who are
overweight now (and substantial numbers who are not
overweight).
· More than half (57%) of those who say they successfully lost
weight say they have managed to stay at more or less the same
weight. This represents 28% of all adults.
So what? The health impact of obesity
A recent issue of Issue Focus published by Grantmakers in Health reports that:
“According to U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, overweight and obesity may soon cause as much preventable disease and death as cigarette smoking. The conditions are already responsible for as many as 300,000 premature deaths each year and cost the nation $117 billion in 2000 alone.
Excess Pounds, Extra Problems
Obesity is associated with an increased risk for:
· Type 2 diabetes
· Hypertension
· High blood cholesterol
· Heart disease
· Stroke
· Cancer
· Gallbladder diseases
· Asthma
· Osteoarthritis
· Depression
· Complications in pregnancy
· Sleep apnea
While individual body weight has a complex set of causes, most researchers attribute the recent increase in obesity among both adults and children to two simple facts: We are eating more and exercising less. In the 1990s, Americans consumed more food and several hundred more calories per day than they did in the 1970s. Why? Fewer meals were eaten at home, average portion sizes grew, and the availability of convenience foods – foods that are high in fat and sugar – exploded.”
Dr. Louis Aronne, clinical associate professor of Medicine at Weill Medical College at Cornell University in New York City and one of the nation’s leading obesity experts, believes that if Americans were to focus on lowering their Body Mass Index just a few points the associated health benefits would be enormous. Body mass index, or BMI, is determined by a measurement based on height and weight. It is the most frequent tool doctors use to determine a person’s degree of obesity and how it correlates with other health risks.
“We’re not talking about unrealistic goals,” says Dr. Aronne. “If Americans were to make the effort to manage their weight using a variety of options, including better nutrition, more exercise, approved medications or even surgical approaches, we would be rewarded with significantly better health.”
TABLE 1
SMOKING, OVERWEIGHT AND SEAT BELT USE
TRENDS 1983 – 2002
Base: All adults over 25
Smoke Cigarettes(1) Are Overweight 20% or More Always Wear
Overweight* Seatbelts**
1983 % 30 58 15 19
1984 % 28 56 N/A 27
1985 % 30 62 15 41
1986 % 27 59 N/A 55
1987 % 28 59 15 57
1988 % 26 64 18 60
1989 % 28 61 17 63
1990 % 26 64 16 65
1991 % 25 63 15 69
1992 % 24 66 N/A 70
1994 % 26 69 N/A 71
1995 % 25 71 22 73
1996 % 24 74 24 75
1997 % 26 72 27 74
1998 % 26 76 28 77
1999 % 24 74 27 77
2000 % 21 79 32 79
2001 % 25 76 32 81
2002 % 23 80 33 81
*Adults over 25 (for weight only).
**When in front seat of car.
N/A=Not available.
NOTES:
Almost all these surveys were conducted in January or February in the years listed.
(1) The 23% of the public who smoke cigarettes does not include others who do not
smoke cigarettes but smoke cigars (2%), a pipe (less than 0.5%) or who chew tobacco
(1%). In all, according to our latest survey, 26% are exposed to tobacco through smoking
or chewing (see Table 2).
TABLE 2
USE OF OTHER TYPES OF TOBACCO
"Do you smoke a pipe or cigars or use chewing tobacco?”
Base: All adults
All Smoke Now Don’t Smoke
Adults Cigarettes Cigarettes Now
% % %
Pipe 1 2 *
Cigars 4 11 2
Chewing tobacco 1 1 1
NOTE: Those who use any type of tobacco including cigarettes: 26%.
* Less than 0.5%.
TABLE 3
WOULD LIKE TO LOSE WEIGHT
"Would you like to lose weight, or not?”
Base: All adults
Total Underweight Within Range Overweight
% % % %
Would like 60 12 24 72
Would not 40 88 76 28
TABLE 4
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE TRIED TO LOSE WEIGHT
"How many times, if ever, in your life have you made a serious effort to lose weight?”
Base: All adults
Total Underweight Within Range Overweight
% % % %
Have ever tried
to lose weight (net) 58 27 40 65
Once or twice 28 15 24 29
3 – 5 times 15 11 7 17
More than 5 times 15 2 10 18
MEAN (if tried) 8 3 8 9
MEDIAN (if tried) 3 2 2 3
TABLE 5
THE LAST TIME YOU TRIED TO LOSE WEIGHT WERE YOU SUCCESSFUL?
"The last time you tried to lose weight were you successful in losing weight, or not?”
Base: Tried to lose weight
Total Underweight Within Range Overweight
% % % %
Successful 85 87 88 86
Not successful 13 13 11 12
Not sure/Refused 2 - 2 3
NOTE: The 85% of those who tried to lose weight who say they
successfully did so represents 50% of all adults.
TABLE 6
IF SUCCEEDED IN LOSING WEIGHT HAVE YOU MANAGED TO KEEP IT OFF?
"Have you managed to stay at more or less the same weight you were then, or have you
put most of the weight you lost back on again?”
Base: Was successful in losing weight
Total Underweight Within Range Overweight
% % % %
Managed to stay at 57 93 78 53
(reduced) weight
Put most of 41 7 22 46
weight on again
Not sure 1 - - 2
NOTE: The 57% of those who successfully lost weight who have managed to stay at
their reduced weight represents 28% of all adults.
To become a member of the Harris Poll Online, and be invited to participate in future online surveys, visit www.harrispollonline.com.
Methodology
The Harris Poll® was conducted by telephone within the United States between January 16–21, 2002 among a nationwide cross section of 1,011 adults. Figures for age, sex, race, education, number of adults and number of voice/telephone lines in the household were weighted where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population. In theory, with a probability sample of this size, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the results have a statistical precision of plus or minus 3 percentage points of what they would be if the entire adult population had been polled with complete accuracy.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
About Harris Interactive(SM)
Harris Interactive (Nasdaq: HPOL) is a worldwide market research and consulting firm, best known for The Harris Poll® and its pioneering use of the Internet to conduct scientifically accurate market research. Strengthened by its recent merger with Total Research Corporation, the Company now combines the power of technology with international expertise in predictive, custom, and strategic research. Headquartered in the United States, with offices in the United Kingdom, Japan and a global network of local market and opinion research firms, the Company conducts international research with fluency in multiple languages. For more information about Harris Interactive, visit www.harrisinteractive.com. EOE M/F/D/V
How To Calculate BMI
For an easy way to determine BMI, visit www.yourbmi.com.
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