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Obesity Pandemic
Look no further than your local airport, shopping mall, or company break room. It's all around you. Americans have super-sized themselves, and the implications are profound: • It costs 56% more to treat an obese person than it costs to treat a non-obese person.* • The number of obese Americans grew by 60% over the past 10 years.** • Obesity is linked to more than 50 different diseases.*** • Risk of death increases linearly with increased body mass index (BMI).**** • Roughly 70% of Americans are now overweight or obese.**** • Obesity will surpass tobacco use as the leading cause of death. ****
-------------------------------------------- * Health Affairs ** US Department of Health *** National Business Group on Health **** Centers for Disease Control
Preventable causes of obesity • Sedentary lifestyles • Massive portion sizes • High caloric density of foods • Ultra-convenient food sources • Misinformation about "healthy" foods • Low cost, fast foods = highest calories, lowest nutrition Fortunately, worksite wellness has been proven to have demonstrable impact on reducing body mass index (BMI) and corollary risk factors.
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