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. 2014 Jun 1;1(2):82-88.
doi: 10.1007/s40471-014-0012-6.

The Obesity Epidemic: The United States as a Cautionary Tale for the Rest of the World

Christopher C Imes  1 , Lora E Burke  2
Affiliations

The Obesity Epidemic: The United States as a Cautionary Tale for the Rest of the World

Christopher C Imes et al. Curr Epidemiol Rep. .

Abstract

Obesity is a global epidemic and its prevalence continues to increase in many developed and developing countries. This brief review provides an update on the prevalence of obesity in the United States (US) and globally, reviews the underlying mechanism of several comorbidities associated with obesity, and discusses the economic burden of obesity. Although the overall prevalence of obesity in the US is not increasing, racial and ethnic minorities continue to struggle with rising obesity rates. Globally, the largest increases are being observed in developing continues. Given the comorbidities associated with obesity and its immense economic burden, nearly every country will soon struggle with the financial and healthcare implications of the epidemic.

Keywords: Obesity; cardiovascular disease; economic burden; obstructive sleep apnea; prevalence; type 2 diabetes mellitus.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest

CC Imes declares no conflicts of interest.

LE Burke declares no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Obesity prevalence, by sex and race and Hispanic Origin, among adults aged 20 and over: United States, 2011-2012. Data from: Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Flegal KM. Prevalence of obesity among adults: United States, 2011–2012. NCHS data brief, no 131. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2013.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Obesity prevalence by region among adults aged 20 and over, 1980 and 2008. Data from: Stevens GA, Singh GM, Lu Y, Danaei G, Lin JK, Finucane MM, Bahalim AN, McIntire RK, Gutierrez HR, Cowan M, Paciorek CJ, Farzadfar F, Riley L, Ezzati M; Global Burden of Metabolic Risk Factors of Chronic Diseases Collaborating Group (Body Mass Index). National, regional, and global trends in adult overweight and obesity prevalences. Popul Health Metr. 2012 doi: 10.1186/1478-7954-10-22.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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