America's Getting Fatter, but we're working on it!

Fat people have been in the news lately due to the sudden death of San Francisco 49ers lineman Thomas Herrion earlier this summer. Herrion's gross size got the better of him when he dropped dead in the locker room after a preseason game. A freak occurence?

According to NFL Players Association president Troy Vincent, obesity has become epidemic in the NFL. The average weight of an NFL lineman on the Green Bay Packers in 1966 was 244 lbs. The 2005 Buffalo Bills lineman average 327 lbs and is typical for the league. Thats an 83 pound increase on average.
Vincent concedes, "We are a bigger nation, I understand... But we need to look at the long-term health effects for our players."

Indeed, we are a bigger nation. The Center for disease Control states that between 1985 and 2003 there was at least a 15% increase in obesity in every state. Most states saw at least a 20% increase and 4 states saw 25% or greater. The least fat states seem to be in the Northeast and the Mountain States. Surprisingly, Californians, who proclaim to be so healthy, are getting fatter as fast as the Southern States. All this in spite of the Atkins and South Beach crazes and the obsession with lo-fat, no-fat, non-fat flavor free junk food. To think of the time we wasted trying to count carbs on our 4th trip back to the all you can eat buffet table!

Read the original article at the Rochester Domocrat and Cronicle...