Posted on 05/16/2008 9:18:04 AM PDT by gallaxyglue
Obesity contributes to global warming: study Michael Kahn, Reuters Published: Thursday, May 15, 2008
GENEVA (Reuters) - Obesity contributes to global warming, too.
Obese and overweight people require more fuel to transport them and the food they eat, and the problem will worsen as the population literally swells in size, a team at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine says.
This adds to food shortages and higher energy prices, the school's researchers Phil Edwards and Ian Roberts wrote in the journal Lancet on Friday.
"We are all becoming heavier and it is a global responsibility," Edwards said in a telephone interview. "Obesity is a key part of the big picture."
At least 400 million adults worldwide are obese. The World Health Organization (WHO) projects by 2015, 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and more than 700 million will be obese.
In their model, the researchers pegged 40 percent of the global population as obese with a body mass index of near 30. Many nations are fast approaching or have surpassed this level, Edwards said.
BMI is a calculation of height to weight, and the normal range is usually considered to be 18 to 25, with more than 25 considered overweight and above 30 obese.
The researchers found that obese people require 1,680 daily calories to sustain normal energy and another 1,280 calories to maintain daily activities, 18 percent more than someone with a stable BMI.
Because thinner people eat less and are more likely to walk than rely on cars, a slimmer population would lower demand for fuel for transportation and for agriculture, Edwards said.
This is also important because 20 percent of greenhouse gas emissions stem from agriculture, he added.
The next step is quantifying how much a heavier population is contributing to climate change, higher fuel prices and food shortages, he added.
"Promotion of a normal distribution of BMI would reduce the global demand for, and thus the price of, food," Edwards and Roberts wrote.
"We are all becoming heavier and it is a global responsibility," Edwards said in a telephone interview.If I ever meet this guy, I'm going to "pound" the feces out of him. No reason.
One time I saw this on a bumper sticker:
“Obesity fights crime. Fat people are harder to kidnap.”
Plus, fat criminals can’t make a getaway worth a dang. Can’t climb fences, can’t hide behind stuff, run out of breath easily, have trouble with car doors...
Lol, thanks for alerting me Lucy.

Phil Edwards.

Ian Roberts
just so you can recognize them - to pound the feces out of them both - for no reason other than they are both idiots.
found them here:link.
Wow, I’d better get to the gym. ;’)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2017475/posts
Global Warming May Lead To Increase In Kidney Stones Disease
Science Daily ^ | 5/15/08
So, obese people are actually *causing* kidney stones! Those fat ba-, oh wait, the moderator said watch our remarks about Senator You Know Who. ;’)
Global warming could worsen HIV/AIDS epidemic
MongaBay ^ | 4/30/2008
Posted on Sunday, May 18, 2008 3:43:01 PM by Entrepreneur
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2017578/posts
I saw a story last night about some HIV-positive joker who got 35 years for spitting on someone. :’) Okay, let’s see... that’ll mean more prison space, which means more concrete, concrete productions produces CO2... ;’)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.