In the article, Study Sees Signs of Obesity Rates Stalling (November 29, 2007, New York Times), researchers say that obesity rates in women have leveled off and obesity rates in men are showing signs of the same. Since 1999, the obesity rate in women has remained steady at 35 percent. The rate in men has remained at 33 percent since 2003. However, obesity specialists are not satisfied with the recent findings. They find it discouraging that levels have yet to decrease. One expert even claims that there was a slight increase of 2 percent from 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 showing that the rates have in fact not completely leveled off. Madelyn Fernstrom, the director of the weight management program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, says the national goal of maintaining obesity rates at 15 percent is unrealistic. She says, "When the bar is set too high, people do nothing." Instead, she encourages maintaining weight as a more reasonable goal.
I don't see how a 15 percent obesity rate is an unrealistic goal. Dr. Fernstrom is only giving the obese an excuse to be obese by encouraging maintaining a very unhealthy weight. They should at the very least be trying to lose weight to stay healthy and alive. It doesn't seem right that a doctor is telling them that it's fine to be obese as long as you don't gain more weight, rather than finding ways to improve their health and help them live a better life. In time, the steady obesity rates we are seeing may begin to decline simply by doing what we are doing right now to level them off.
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