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Obesity's toll on Americans' health and quality of life has overtaken that of smoking, according to a new report, even though tobacco still poses a greater mortality threat. The analysis of 15 years of public-health data concluded that by 2008, the obese were losing more quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) through disability and limitations on activity. That contrasts with 1993 data, when the QALYs lost to obesity were far behind the toll of smoking. Another new report, however, suggests that while US levels of obesity and overweight remain far too high, the rate of increase may be slowing. About one-third of adults were obese in the latest analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). But among women, the prevalence of obesity showed no statistically significant changes compared to 1999. Although men's obesity rate did increase over that 10-year span, the most recent three surveys did not differ significantly from each other. - American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association
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