Food for thought

A sad commentary from a nurse's assessment of a patient in her 60s who is 5'6" and weighs over 400 lbs:

"Patient presents with a pannus that extends past her knees when standing." ("Pannus," for the uninitiated, refers to a roll of fat that hangs down from the abdomen over the lap. It comes from the Latin word for "apron," which is appropriate, though more than slightly disgusting.) "Patient is morbidly obese to the point that she cannot provide basic hygiene beyond washing her face. A strong foul odor fills her room and the surrounding hallway."

The strong foul odor comes from the flesh under her pannus, which is essentially rotting due to being constantly moist and dirty.

This is an example of the unfortunate effect of having easy access to a lot of cheap food that is bad for you. Everywhere else in the world, the poor are thin because they have no food. Here in the US, the poor are fat. And, the concomitant health problems that stem from the obesity epidemic are having and will continue to have serious effects on the cost of health care.

The CDC reports, to nobody's surprise, that the average BMI in the US has increased since 1960 for both men and women from 25 to 28 (click here for the report).

With that appetizing image in mind, Merry Christmas! See you at the salad bar...