Most Americans Overweight by 2020

According to a study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, three out of four Americans will be overweight by 2020, causing disease rates and health care costs to expand almost as quickly as Americans’ waistlines. Also this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a study concluding that only 26 percent of U.S. adults eat vegetables three or more times a day.

Coincidence? Not likely. Meat, cheese, eggs, milk, and other animal-derived products are loaded with saturated fat, calories, and artery-clogging cholesterol. Veggies, fruits, grains, and beans (aka “vegan food”) tend to be low in fat, so they fill us up without filling us out. That could be why meat-eaters have three times the obesity rate of vegetarians and nine times the obesity rate of vegans.

Maybe this will be the wake-up call that convinces many Americans to take charge of their health by trading in beef for beans and going vegan.

Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post