Percentage of women trying to lose weight at any given time. 29% of men are trying to lose weight at any given time.
source: Chicago Sun-Times
In 1992, the New York Times reported: The National Institutes of Health held investigatory hearings and concluded that diets don't work and may even be dangerous to one's health.
Amount spent by Americans each year at 17,000 health clubs nationwide. $5 billion a year is spent on personal gym equipment; treadmills are the biggest seller.
source: MSNBC
Amount spent by Americans in 2001 on health and diet-related books.
source: MSNBC
The Food and Drug Administration stated in 2002: The fastest growing segment of the dietary supplement industry is weight loss aids. Since 1997, sales of diet pills and related supplements have been steadily increasing 10-20 percent annually, reaching $2 billion in 2002.
Number of people who attened Weight Watchers meetings in 2002. Each year, over $1 billion is divided among the big three weight loss companies: Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and LA Weight Loss Centers.
source: MSNBC
A 2003 study by UCLA/RAND Managed Care Center for Psychiatric Disorders states: Obesity, linked to health complications, including heart disease, strokes, diabetes, arthritis and certain cancers, can raise an individual's yearly healthcare costs by 37 percent and medication costs by 77 percent.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, virtually all people would benefit from regular physical activity. It is estimated that inactive lifestyles and unhealthy eating habits are associated with 400,000 preventable deaths each year in the United States; health problems associated with a sedentary lifestyle and poor diet -- overweight, obesity, and type 2 diabetes -- cost the nation nearly $250 billion annually.
Percentage increase in number of bariatric procedures, including gastric bypass surgeries, in 2002. 80,000 such procedures were performed that year. This year, that number is expected to rise to 120,000
source: Frost & Sullivan
The average cost per bariatric procedure ranges from $25,000 to $100,000, according to the Washington Business Group on Health. National spending is expected to reach $3 billion this year.
Number of people who are overweight worldwide. For the first time in history, this number exceeds the number of people worldwide who are undernourished.
source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
