ALTHOUGH THE CAUSES of obesity are the subject of ongoing debate, there is little question of the consequences of obesity. In fact, obesity has been called one of the most pervasive health risks facing America today. Responsible for three hundred thousand deaths each year, obesity may well surpass smoking to become the greatest threat to Americans' well-being in the twenty-first century. As a disorder that affects more than one-third of all adults and one child out of five in America, obesity's consequences extend beyond physical health into the psychological, social, and economic well-being of the country.

The health consequences

A study completed in 1999 of more than 1 million Americans, the largest ever done on obesity and mortality, found that overweight people have a higher rate of premature death than...