I am fat, I admit that. Well I am fatter than I wish I was but my BMI has not hit that evil O level. But I also go to the gym three times a week for 40 minutes of cardio followed by working with weights and other tortures.
I don't think my flabbiness has contributed to additional health ailments - I mean I have enough already. I know being overweight can contribute to all sorts of problems. And as obesity rises in the US, they project health care costs will bulge to cover them. I can understand that but I question the math behind it.
How did they get the weights of people? They called them and asked them. If someone called you and asked you on the phone your height and weight. Would you tell them the truth? Oh, please.
"The CDC data indicate
that the South is the most obese region of the U.S., but that may not be
entirely true either, said George Howard, professor of biostatistics at
the University of Alabama at Birmingham. No one was weighed or measured
in the collecting of the information; people were merely asked about
their heights and weights via telephone -- so they could have lied.
Howard speculates that
there may be bias in the data because "there's not a social stigma
attached to being fat in the South," he said. "If you ask people how fat
they are, they tell you."
Correlations between
obesity and the South may be tied to other factors, Allison said.
Certain ethnic groups, people from rural areas, and people of low
socioeconomic status are more likely to be obese than others."
So maybe our obesity rates are tied to our honesty rates as well as our waistlines. Not that we are a nation of liars but have you ever deducted a few pounds or a few years if asked? Why don't we have a real survey where people are weighed and measured.
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