1 Obesity is a risk factor for non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, coronary heart diseases, hypertension, gout, gall bladder disease, osteoarthritis of weight bearing joints, and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Obesity increases the relative risk of cancer of the breast, uterus, and colon.
Generally, obesity is correlated with low income and low educational attainment. 3 National data suggest there has been a dramatic increase in the percentage of overweight over the last decade. Ohio Department of Health. National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United States, 1995.