In just over twenty years, nearly 260 million people in the United States are expected to be overweight or obese, according to a study published in The Lancet. With, as a result, an explosion of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers…
- By 2050, 260 million Americans could be overweight or obese, according to a study published in The Lancet. This progression increases the risks of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and mental disorders, while costing hundreds of billions of dollars.
- Young people aged 15 to 24, especially women, are particularly affected. This trend is even more marked in southern states such as Texas and Mississippi.
- Researchers are calling for preventative measures: healthier school meals, regulations on sugary drinks and better accessibility to fruits and vegetables. But the lack of political will in the United States is slowing down the fight against this major health crisis.
“Obesity is at a national crisis point.” By 2050, nearly 260 million Americans could be overweight or obese, more than 80% of the population, according to a study published by the medical journal The Lancet and spotted by CNN. In detail, it predicts that 43.1 million children and adolescents and 213 million adults will be affected in less than thirty years. For comparison, in 2021, 36.5 million minors and 172 million adults were overweight or obese.
Obesity, a growing epidemic
An alarming progression which announces an explosion of complications associated with obesity: diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, respiratory and mental disorders. Obesity and overweight – defined respectively as a body mass index (BMI) of more than 30 or between 25 and 29.9 – are among the most rapidly increasing risk factors for premature death or disability in United States, according to the study led by researchers at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
In detail, it appears that obesity has doubled in 30 years among American adults and adolescents, and that women aged 15 to 24 are particularly affected. This trend is even more marked in southern states like Texas, where more than half of adolescents aged 15 to 24 are obese or overweight, or Mississippi, where 80% of adult women are. The economic consequences are also colossal: in 2016, the costs linked to obesity amounted to between 261 and 481 billion dollars.
Prevention, an essential solution
Despite efforts to raise awareness, current measures remain “insufficient” to curb this epidemic and medications for weight loss “are not a miracle solution”according to the researchers. The implementation of large-scale preventive solutions therefore appears essential, starting with healthier school meals, better accessibility to fruits and vegetables, and stricter regulations on ultra-processed foods and sugary drinks.
Public policies can make a difference: in Mexico, a tax on sugary drinks reduced their consumption by 6% in the first year. In Chile, strict nutrition labels reduced sugar consumption by 33% in three years. But researchers don’t expect obesity prevention to become a priority under Donald Trump’s second presidency, if the first is anything to go by. During his first term, his administration had repeatedly proposed cutting hundreds of billions of dollars from the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program. She also rolled back many Obama-era rules that were intended to give children access to healthier school meals.