Obesity is a well-documented problem in the United States. Billions of dollars are spent every year to fight this epidemic and the plethora of diseases and problems it causes. This has been proven to be a problem at the state and national levels. To better understand the impact it has, we will discuss the issue of obesity as a whole, the problems associated with this disease, the costs of those problems, as well as possible solutions to this growing problem in our country. For the purposes of this document, It is important to provide reference points regarding some key definitions. The generally accepted way of defining obesity is in the National Institutes of Health weight classification system. This system is based on the use of BMI calculated using weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. The following limit values ​​are provided for the defined words: underweight - BMI < 18.5 kg/m2; normal weight: BMI from 18.5 to 24.9 kg/m2; overweight: BMI from 25.0 to 29.9 kg/m2; and obese: BMI > 30.0 kg/m2. These benchmarks will be the values ​​defined for the words provided in this document. According to a brief prepared by Dr. Eric Wright for the Indiana Center for Urban Policy and the Environment in May 2006, nearly 97 million adults in the United States are obese. or overweight. That number has doubled over the past 30 years and is expected to continue this upward trend. This means that nearly 2 in 3 adults in the United States are obese or overweight. Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona reported in 2003 that 1 in 8 deaths in the United States is caused by a disease directly related to obesity. Obesity is caused by a number of different factors, the main ones being: inactivity... middle of paper..., blacks had 51% higher obesity rates and Hispanics had 21% higher obesity rates %. Disease control and prevention. Web. Jan. 1, 2012. Finkelstein, Eric A., Ian C. Fiebelkorn, and Guijing Wang “Obesity: State-Level Estimates of Annual Medical Expenditures Attributable to Obesity.” " Nature Publishing Group: Scientific Journals, Works, and Information. Web. January 1, 2012. Carmona, Richard H. “The Obesity Crisis in America.” Office of the Surgeon General (OSG). Web. January 1, 2012. Paddock, Ph .D, Catherine. "Medical News News Article Today".. 2012.