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CDC: Americans Getting Heavier, Average Woman Weighs As Much As 1960s Man

Posted by samzenpus on from the bigger-is-not-always-better dept.

schwit1 writes: New statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that the average American has packed on the pounds in the past 50 years. Both men and women have gained a considerable amount of weight since 1960, with the average American woman now weighing 166.2 pounds — nearly identical to what American men weighed in the 1960s. U.S. men have been getting bigger too, gaining nearly 30 pounds from the 1960s to 2010 — 166.3 pounds to 195.5 pounds today. The good news is that both sexes have gained almost an inch in height since then, so that accounts for some of the overall weight gain.

5 of 409 comments (clear)

  1. Comparing apples to miniature oranges by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 3, Informative

    It should be noted that the average US male (5'10" vs. 5'8") and female (5'5" vs. 5'3") in 2015 are both two inches taller than their 1960 counterparts. Based on the cube law, you'd expact the average female weight to have increased almost 10% as a result ((65/63)^3 = 1.098).

    Increased height accounts for more than half of the weight gain noted in the study.

  2. Re:Bizarre time intervals by antiperimetaparalogo · · Score: 3, Informative

    World Health Organization (WHO) global data by country

    --
    Antisthenes: "Wisdom begins by examining the words/names." - excuse my English, i am (slightly...) better with my Greek!
  3. Re:So what's that in metric? by antiperimetaparalogo · · Score: 3, Informative

    Well, weight training "adds weight" (muscle), but in most normal cases (other than low fat people who train very hard), i.e., overweight/obese people, it helps lowering their weight since the muscle they build burns fat even while not exercising (just by existing at rest).

    --
    Antisthenes: "Wisdom begins by examining the words/names." - excuse my English, i am (slightly...) better with my Greek!
  4. Re:Point was made but wrong by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 5, Informative

    If nothing else he was correcting a bad summary.

    No he isn't. The summary is correct, and he is wrong. Americans are one inch taller than in 1960, not two inches. In 1960 the average man was 5'8", today he is 5'9". The average women went from 5'3" to 5'4".

  5. Re:What about body fat % by Trongy · · Score: 3, Informative

    There is an even simpler measurement that correlates well with obesity risks - waist circumference.
    e.g http://www.healthdirect.gov.au...

    No scales or body fat measuring devices are required, only a tape measure.
    The old excuses like being "big boned" or having high muscle mass don't apply.
    Don't focus on weight, which has many confounding factors. If your waistline decreases because you lose abdominal fat, you will be healthier.