Frayar, D.C., Ervin, R.B. Caloric intake from fast food among adults: United States, 2007-2010. NCHS Data Brief, No. 114, February 2013. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics, 2013.

Background The most recent statistics released by the CDC estimate that more than one third of US adults are obese. Likely our most pressing public health concern, obesity represents a major risk factor for several of our nation’s leading causes of preventable death including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of cancer. To compoundmatters, the annual medical cost burden associated with obesity is nearly $150 billion, with estimated expenditure being $1429 more for obese Americans each year compared with their nonobese counterparts. Although obesity affects all ages, socioeconomic strata, and racial/ethnic groups, incidence is highest in non-Hispanic blacks, followed by Mexican Americans.