“Are you heavier or shorter than the average American?,” by Naomi Thomas, CNN

“America is struggling with an obesity epidemic, and a new government report says that the population is only getting heavier. … The average weight of American men in 2015-16 was 197.9 pounds; for women, it was 170.6 pounds. This is up from 189.4 pounds and 163.8 pounds, respectively, in 1999-2000. … BMI, a formula involving height and weight, also increased. In 2015-16, the average BMI was 29.1 for men and 29.6 for women. [30 is the cutoff for obesity.] Both numbers have increased since 1999-2000 when they were 27.8 in men and 28.2 in women. … While weight is going up, height is going down. According to the new report, the overall average height for women decreased slightly from 162.1 centimeters (5 feet, 3.8 inches) in 1999-2000 to 161.7 centimeters (5 feet, 3.7 inches) in 2015-16. For men, the average height in 1999-2000 was 175.6 centimeters (5 feet, 9.2 inches). It increased until 2003-04, when the average height was 176.4 centimeters (5 feet, 9.4 inches), and then decreased again until 2015-16, when it was 175.4 centimeters (5 feet, 9.1 inches).”

LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform):

Hmm. Fatter and shorter also applies to the size of our national debt and the time we have left to get it under control. So much bad news at a time of the year we all want to be happy.