Are You Fatter Than You Were Four Years Ago?

Posted on Oct 24, 2012

Photo by Ed T (CC-BY-SA)

Step away from the fried Twinkie.

The candidates have talked a lot about health care this election cycle, but not so much about the actual health of Americans. According to a study by Gallup, adult Americans of just about every age are likelier to be obese today than they were in 2008.

The first lady has made childhood obesity her signature cause, but she may need to expand her efforts to older citizens. According to Gallup’s data, which was collected from more than half-a-million respondents, “most Americans who are over the age of 35 are now significantly more likely to be obese than those who were that same age four years ago.”

According to the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the United States is the third-fattest country in the world, with an average weight of 180.62 pounds.

According to Gallup, in 2012, roughly 30 percent of Americans between the ages of 36 and 70 are obese.

—Posted by Peter Z. Scheer. Follow him on Twitter: @peesch.

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