By Brittany Kunza

For the Daily Titan

After an endoscopy, colonoscopy and likely other poking and probing, the lady lying on her side said, “Doctor, there isn’t anything wrong? Why does my stomach hurt when I eat?”

Even I could diagnose the issue. If I chose to claim my freedom of speech with disregard to the woman’s feelings, I would have made some comment to the effect of: “Well, yes, that hospital gown does make you look slightly overweight, but you probably weigh about 300-pounds. Not that I am jumping to conclusions of any sort, but this is probably why your stomach hurts … it hates you.”

Due to the plain fact that I am not her gastroenterologist or primary care physician, I had to keep my mouth shut, but ached for this woman and her need to seriously rethink her lifestyle choices instead of ordering more tests from her physicians.

I recently stumbled across the statistic that in the United States at least 20 percent of every state’s population is obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to the CDC, a person with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight while a BMI of 30 is considered obese, with the exception of athletes who may have a BMI that would define them as overweight but due to muscle mass they are not.

The BMI is calculated by dividing a person’s weight (in pounds) by their height squared (in inches) and multiplying that total by 703. A score of 18.5-24.9 is considered normal.

I am not aiming to poke fun, but rather encourage a little bit of introspection and offer some positive lifestyle changes that all people, whether overweight, underweight or of a healthy-weight, can implement and some statistics that may be enough motivation to do so.

Fact: Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States. Insight: being overweight or obese increases risk of heart disease, according to the CDC.

Fact: Diabetes mellitus type 2, which is caused by insufficient amounts of insulin in the body or not enough insulin to carry out proper function, effects about 16.8 million Americans. Insight: One of the causes of diabetes is obesity, according to the CDC.

Fact: Cancer is the second leading cause of death. Insight: Certain cancers (such as endometrial, breast and colon cancer) have increased prevalence in overweight or obese people, according to the CDC.

If that bag of greasy processed potato chips and over-sized meal portion bring a sense of satisfaction, is it worth an eventual death sentence?

The average American is 23 pounds overweight, but a loss of only 5-10 percent of that weight could show improvements in health, according to Dr. Keith Bachman, clinical leader of Kaiser Permanente’s Weight Management Initiative in Portland, Oregon who spoke at the Weight of the Nation conference in Washington D.C. in July.

Bachman recommends starting small. Giving up a fatty item such as french fries and incorporating walks into your daily routine may be a good start to see some change.

The government is also getting involved. Thanks to CDC Director Thomas Frieden, M.D., MPH, New York now has banned trans fats in city restaurants and required posting of calorie counts. This change has trickled down our way and saved me from 1,400 calorie sliders the last time I was at the Elephant Bar.

Because of the negative implications on so many lives, unhealthy items such as sugar-sweetened beverages may eventually be subject to a large tax, like cigarettes, to dissuade buyers.

People should educate themselves on the issue before it gets to that point (or the point of any severe health problems).

Take a nutrition class, utilize the Student Recreation Center, be aware of the nutritional content of the food you order and live a healthy life, because this tastes and feels much better than an old Twinkie and a triple bypass.