ArticleNutrients2022
The Origins of the Obesity Epidemic in the USA-Lessons for Today.
Article in Nutrients, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- iCARDIO Alliance Global Implementation Guidelines for the Management of Obesity 2025.Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle · 2026Guideline
- Impaired boundaries, sense of self, and personal control: the lifelong trajectory of co-occurring obesity and adverse childhood experiences for adult women.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2026Article
- Medical progress, relaxed natural selection, and adolescent obesity: implications for global health.Future science OA · 2026Article
- Adipose Tissue Expandability as a Link Between Nutrition and Obesity-Related Metabolic Risk: Insights from Bariatric Surgery.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Observational
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Adverse In-Hospital Outcomes after Nephroureterectomy.Urologia internationalis · 2026Article
- iCARDIO Alliance global implementation guidelines for the management of obesity 2025 focus on prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic disease.American journal of preventive cardiology · 2026Article
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Versus Adverse In-Hospital Outcomes After Partial or Radical Nephrectomy.Annals of surgical oncology · 2026Article
- Trends in 1-year persistence and adherence among initiators of high-potency, weight loss-indicated glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists.Journal of managed care & specialty pharmacy · 2026Article
- Population estimates, trends, characteristics and prognostic outcomes of cardiovascular-kidney-liver-metabolic health: A population-based study.American journal of preventive cardiology · 2026Article
- Review
- Ultra-Processed Foods and Metabolic Dysfunction: A Narrative Review of Dietary Processing, Behavioral Drivers and Chronic Disease Risk.Metabolites · 2025Review
- Genetic ancestry influences body shape and obesity risk in Latin American populations.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Duration of Breastfeeding in Infancy and Levels of Central Adiposity and Systemic Inflammation in Early Middle Adulthood.AJPM focus · 2025Article
- Hijacked Brain in Modern Obesity: Cue, Habit, Addiction, Emotion, and Restraint as Targets for Personalized Digital Therapy and Electroceuticals.Journal of obesity & metabolic syndrome · 2025Review
- Concomitant mortality trends due to obesity and hypertension in the U.S.: a 20-year retrospective analysis of the CDC WONDER database.BMC cardiovascular disorders · 2025Article
- Impact of the Dinner Tonight Healthy Cooking School on Participants' Nutrition Knowledge and Cooking Confidence.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Alcohol Use Disorder Following Bariatric Surgery: A Narrative Review.Actas espanolas de psiquiatria · 2025Review
- Obesity, Metabolic Syndrome, and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSBs) in America: A Novel Bioethical Argument for a Radical Public Health Proposal.Journal of bioethical inquiry · 2025Article
- Eighty-five percent of menu items from the six highest selling fast-food restaurants in the USA are ultra-processed.Public health nutrition · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The obesity epidemic appeared in the USA in 1976-1980 and then spread across Westernized countries. This paper examines the most likely causes of the epidemic in the USA. An explanation must be consistent with the emergence of the epidemic in both genders and in all age groups and ethnicities at about the same time, and with a steady rise in the prevalence of obesity until at least 2016. The cause is closely related to changes in the American diet. There is little association with changes in the intake of fat and carbohydrate. This paper presents the opinion that the factor most closely linked to the epidemic is ultra-processed foods (UPFs) (i.e., foods with a high content of calories, salt, sugar, and fat but with very little whole foods). Of particular importance is sugar intake, especially sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). There is strong evidence that consumption of SSBs leads to higher energy intake and more weight gain. A similar pattern is also seen with other UPFs. Factors that probably contributed to the increased intake of UPFs include their relatively low price and the increased popularity of fast-food restaurants. Other related topics discussed include: (1) the possible importance of Farm Bills implemented by the US Department of Agriculture; (2) areas where further research is needed; (3) health hazards linked to UPFs; and (4) the need for public health measures to reduce intake of UPFs.
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