Obesity

Obesity is a complex disease characterized by an excessive amount of body fat. It can cause other diseases and health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and certain cancers. In the U.S., obesity prevalence is 41.9 percent with severe obesity at 9.2 percent of the population. Body mass index (BMI) is often used to diagnose obesity. For an average adult, a BMI between 25 and 30 is considered overweight, and a BMI over 30 is considered obese. BMI = (weight x 703) / (height x height) with weight measured in pounds and height in inches Waist circumference is also a measure considered in the diagnosis.