About Weight Loss

Obesity has become a national epidemic with an estimated 108 million adult Americans weighing more than is healthy. In 1991, obese adults made up less than 15 percent of the population in most U.S. states. Ten years later, only one state could claim that distinction. During this span, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's annual Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System recorded a 61 percent increase in obesity.

How much you weigh (in relation to your height), your waist size, and how much weight you've gained since your mid-20s strongly influence your chances of:

• dying early
• having, or dying from, a heart attack, stroke, or other type of cardiovascular disease
• developing diabetes
• developing cancer of the colon, kidney, breast, or endometrium
• having arthritis
• developing gallstones
• being infertile
• developing asthma as an adult
• snoring or suffering from sleep apnea, or
• developing cataracts.

Obesity now accounts for more deaths and chronic disorders, and poorer health-related quality of life, than either smoking or problem drinking. Plus, Excess weight leads to at least 300,000 deaths per year and costs more than $70 billion each year in direct costs alone.

If your weight is in the healthy range and isn't more than 10 pounds over what you weighed when you turned 21, great. Keeping it there-and keeping it steady-by watching what you eat and exercising will limit your risk of developing one or more of these chronic conditions noted above. If you are overweight, doing whatever you can to prevent gaining more weight is a critical first step. Then, when you're ready, shedding some pounds and keeping them off will be important steps to better health.

At our site, we have put together a guide to weight loss where you can learn whether or not you are overweight and what type of weight loss treatments can help you lose some weight if you are, including:

• Weight Loss Diets
• Weight Loss Exercises
• Weight Loss Drugs