In the adolescent age group (12- to 19-year-olds), obesity prevalence — at 21% — has quadrupled since the 1980s, generating $14 billion in annual direct health expenses. Researchers are even more concerned, however, by the worsening picture in 2- to 5-year-olds. Studies show that early-onset weight gain has long-term risks; when children start kindergarten overweight, they are four times more likely to become obese by eighth grade as normal-weight kindergartners. In less than a decade (from 2007-08 to 2015-16), the prevalence of obesity and severe obesity in the 2- to 5-year age group rose from 10% to 14%. In the most recent two-year cycle, this sharp increase in preschool-age children — particularly boys, African Americans and Hispanics — prompted researchers to fret about the obesity epidemic having become "endemic." At a societal level, experts warn that "The obesity epidemic threatens to shorten life expectancy . . . and bankrupt the health care system."
The dramatic surge in childhood obesity began in earnest in the late 1980s. Given the growing evidence that environmental chemicals are key obesity triggers, it makes sense to consider what exposures may have increased over the same time period. Vaccines and glyphosate are two culprits that readily come to mind — and published evidence supports a link.
Comment: While the continually plunging quality of diet is no doubt at least partly responsible for the growing obesity epidemic, toxicity and inflammation are likely playing a huge role (perhaps moreso than diet quality). We've all seen people with garbage diets who seem to be relatively unaffected, while others need to pay strict attention to what they eat or pay consequences. Genetics can only explain so much, and the above article connects some dots that give a clearer picture than the mainstream calories-in-calories-out model will allow.
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