There was scary news as well as news to inspire coming out of the first presentations at the Weight of the Nation, the forum sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention taking place in Washington, D.C. The meeting began on Monday and ends today. It’s supposed to “highlight progress in the prevention and control of obesity through policy and environmental strategies, and is framed around five intervention settings: early care and education; states, tribes and communities; medical care; schools; and workplaces.”

According to NPR’s Shots health blog, the scary news was this:

In the new study, researchers estimate that obesity will continue to rise and will affect 42 percent of adults by 2030. (Obesity represents a body mass index score, a ratio of weight to height, of 30 or higher. Separate estimates for children aren’t calculated.)

The news that should inspire us to figure out a way to reduce obesity was this:

Slowing the rising rates of obesity in this country by just 1 percent a year over the next two decades would slice the costs of health care by $85 billion.

Keep obesity rates where they are now — well below a 33 percent increase that’s been expected by some — and the savings would hit nearly $550 billion over the same 20 years.

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