21 Shocking Health Statistics
You may not be the biggest fan of statistics out there, but being aware of some alarming figures may help you reconsider your lifestyle and minimize your risk of disease. Even though some of these numbers may seem exaggerated or even too big to be true, the sad truth is that America’s health is deteriorating by the day and it seems that most people are neither aware nor interested in this rapid health decline.
These are the 21 most disturbing health statistics everyone should know:
1. ONE IN TEN PARENTS BELIEVES COCA-COLA IS A FRUIT
Coca-Cola has been one of the most famous beverages in the world for more than one hundred years and the carbonated soft drink owes its unprecedented popularity to millions of people across the globe who can’t imagine life without Coke.
Whether you enjoy drinking it or not, one thing’s certain – Coca-Cola is not the healthiest drink out there and everybody knows it. Well, everybody except for one in ten parents who foolishly believe that Coca-Cola is actually a fruit.
To cut a long story short, food company Green Giant conducted a survey in Great Britain and found out that hundreds of thousands of caring moms and dads think that Coca-Cola counts as part of their recommended portions of fruits and vegetables per day.
To make things even more shocking, those people also believed that chips and fruit-flavored sweets are healthy whereas they were certain that oranges and bananas do NOT count as part of their fruit/veg portions.
2. ONLY 6% OF AMERICANS EXERCISE ON A DAILY BASIS
Keeping in mind that the majority of modern jobs are sedentary in nature and that most people don’t have nearly enough time to do everything they want during the course of 24 hours, it doesn’t come as a surprise that obesity is one of the biggest problems in the world nowadays.
Some people are too lazy to exercise, others can’t find the time to hit the gym; some folks don’t have the energy to make healthy meals, others can’t imagine their day without a slice of pizza or delicious pastry – whatever the case, it all boils down to the same, America is growing fatter by the hour and it seems that there is no way of stopping obesity from spreading like the plague.
Doctors, nutritionists and fitness specialists recommend exercising 30 minutes a day to stay healthy and fit, but only 6 percent of U.S. citizens actually listen to them and work out on a daily basis.
3. 360 000 AMERICANS DIE EVERY YEAR FROM OBESITY-RELATED DISEASES
When German pediatrician Hilde Bruch immigrated to the United States in 1934, he was sincerely shocked at how fat Americans were. Mind you, this was decades before fast food restaurants became overwhelmingly popular, when U.S. citizens were still eating a healthy, balanced diet.
Eight decades later, we live in a country where 250 million Americans are either overweight or obese and 360 000 people die every year from diseases that are associated with obesity. To make things worse, one-third of all American children are also overweight or obese, 25 percent of them spending more than four hours a day watching TV and zero time being physically active. And that’s not all.
Due to all these numbers and statistics, experts say that this generation of American kids will be the first ever to live significantly shorter than their parents.
4. ONE OUT OF 6 WOMEN WOULD RATHER BE BLIND THAN FAT
As paradoxical as this may sound in our obese society, one out of six women would prefer to be blind than fat, according to a survey conducted by the Arizona State University.
Despite the fact that the majority of people insist that advertisements and contemporary beauty standards don’t have an impact on them, it seems that their claims couldn’t be further from the truth. Bombarded with handsome models, actresses and singers on every corner, women have never been more insecure and they have never been more willing to go to extremes to obtain that perfect body and preserve it by all costs.
We all know that the fashion and beauty industry has made millions thanks to the female desire to look as attractive (and young) as possible, but women would apparently be willing to go one step further and lose their eye sight rather than be fat.
5. NO ONE BUYS MORE WEIGHT LOSS PRODUCTS THAN AMERICANS
Despite the previously-mentioned statistic that states that only 6 percent of Americans exercise half an hour a day, U.S. citizens are determined to lose a lot of weight and get that perfect beach body. Since exercising is obviously out of the question, Americans use health supplements and hope for a miracle.
Of course, if weight loss products really worked, there would not be an obese person in the world – but they don’t: an astounding 80 percent of people in the United States are overweight. The number of obese teenagers and adults has tripled in the last 40 years and it doesn’t look like something is going to change for the better in the near future.
To make things even worse, up to 70 percent of the obese population are being diagnosed with serious health problems, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety, and depression.
6. SMOKERS LOSE UP TO 1/3 OF THEIR SHORT-TERM MEMORY
Although we all know that smoking is bad for us, it is not until we are faced with some actual numbers and statistics that we come to the realization just how bad cigarettes are. There are numerous health risks related to smoking that we are all aware of, but there are also several serious smoke-related problems that are not so obvious.
One of the most shocking statistics states that one person dies every six seconds from tobacco use, while another says that smoking has a negative effect on short-term memory: smokers can lose up to one-third of their everyday memory and perform much worse in memory tests than non-smokers or even former smokers.
Fortunately, there is some good news – memory can be restored to a great extent in people who quit smoking for good.
7. ALMOST 50% OF WOMEN WANT TO HAVE COSMETIC SURGERY
Considering everything we have previously said, it comes as no surprise that women are obsessed with their looks – everywhere they go, they see billboards and advertisements that tell them how they should look, what they should wear and how they should behave.
When they watch movies, they see super sexy actresses with perfect hair and make-up; when they watch videos, they see the same; when they open websites or newspapers, they once again see perfect women leading perfect lives.
All of this has contributed to the fact that confidence and self-esteem have never been this low – 48 percent of women would gladly undergo plastic surgery in order to enhance their looks. A further 23 percent are not quite sure, but would seriously think about it – if given the opportunity.
As far as men are concerned, 23 percent of them are interested in cosmetic surgery while another 17 percent would probably go under the knife.
8. WE COULD PREVENT ONE-THIRD OF ALL CANCERS
Cancer is one of the most notorious diseases ever known to man – it is responsible for more than 40 percent of all premature deaths in the world. Despite the fact that a lot of money and resources have been spent on investigating the causes of cancer and finding a potential cure, experts are still unsure as to what causes the disease.
On the other hand, many studies have shown that approximately one-third of all cancers can actually be prevented. The only problem is that people aren’t aware (or interested) what endangers their health and often opt for poor lifestyle choices.
For example, in order to reduce the risk of cancer, one should eat a lot of fruits and vegetables (and other cancer-fighting foods), stay away from processed and junk food, steer clear of alcohol and tobacco, exercise and avoid pollution as much as possible.
9. THE AVERAGE PERSON COULD UNKNOWINGLY EAT 46 TBS OF SUGAR PER DAY
We hate to break it to you, but avoiding chocolate and candy is not nearly enough to ensure that you are not consuming more sugar than the recommended maximum sugar intake.
One of the main reasons for this is the fact that food manufacturers put sugar into everything (especially junk food) in order to make their products more appealing (addictive, to be precise) to consumers. That way, they know that people will continue to buy their products and that is, after all, the main goal of capitalism.
The American Medical Association found out that the average person could eat up to 46 teaspoons of sugar a day – without even knowing it!
Numerous health problems are connected to consuming sugar in large quantities, including obesity, diabetes and heart disease. The only way to protect yourself is to carefully read all the labels and avoid foods that are packed with sugar.
10. WHEN YOU DRINK 0,5L OF SODA, YOU CONSUME 15 TO 18 TBS OF SUGAR
In order to demonstrate just how much extra sugar a person can consume on a daily basis, we decided to give you the easiest example possible: when you drink a 20 ounce soda, you actually ingest between 15 and 18 tablespoons of sugar.
Since a lot of people drink soda regularly and some even believe that beverages aren’t important for a healthy diet, the Harvard School of Public Health conducted a research and came to the shocking discovery that the majority of popular drinks are packed with sugar or some sugary substitute.
Their report emphasized the fact that such high amounts of sugar consumed every day raise the risk of getting diabetes by more than 25 percent and your risk of suffering from a heart attack by 20 percent. Basically, you should avoid sugary drinks and stick to healthy alternatives, such as water, home-made juices or lemonade and tea.
11. ACCIDENTAL DRUG OVERDOSES CLAIM MORE LIVES THAN CAR CRASHES
Even though we hear about fatal car accidents on a daily basis, the average person (between the ages of 25 and 64) is more likely to die of a drug overdose than a car crash.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted research and found out that the number of drug overdoses resulting in death have increased by 117 percent since 1999. However, although people who are addicted to drugs were also included in the research, the CDC stated that prescription drugs are the main culprit behind such high figures.
The most common causes of accidental drug overdose are drugs used to treat insomnia, pain and anxiety, medications that the majority of people use at some point in their lives. In order to stay safe, the CDC advises to listen to your doctor’s instructions and take the drugs for the shortest period of time possible.
12. THE AVERAGE MAN SPENDS MORE TIME SHOPPING THAN WORKING OUT
Since we live in consumer-oriented society, no one seems to be surprised to realize that the average person spends more time buying stuff than exercising. Due to the fact that the majority of people use cars or buses to reach their destination, folks spend 36 minutes per day shopping and only 25 minutes moving their bodies, reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Thanks to the Internet, more and more people are turning to online shopping, which basically means that you don’t even need to walk to the nearest store in order to purchase something. Of course, this has its good sides – you don’t need to spend hours wandering through a huge shopping mall and you probably won’t buy something you don’t need.
On the other hand, avoiding movement is the worst thing you can do to your body – physical activity keeps you safe from heart disease, several types of cancer and many other illnesses.
13. THE AVERAGE MAN SPENDS MORE THAN 3 HOURS A DAY WATCHING TV
It seems that the average guy can’t wait to get home after a long day of work to watch some TV – and when we say some TV, we mean that men spend more than three hours a day sitting in front of the screen.
This basically means that males spend one day per week doing basically nothing. To make things worse, watching TV is usually accompanied by excessive eating and/or drinking.
We know that people nowadays want nothing more than to relax after finishing work and completing daily errands, but there has to be a better way to spend your evenings than hypnotically staring at the idiot box – just think of everything you could do with three extra hours per day.
Understandably, watching TV can be entertaining and informative at times, but do yourself a favor and cut down your TV habit to 60 minutes a day.
14. ONE IN FIVE WOMEN SUFFER FROM AN EATING DISORDER
More than 70 million people around the globe suffer from eating disorders, 24 million of those affected being from the United States.
The National Institute of Mental Health reports that one in five women struggle with an eating disorder and more than 90 percent of those females are between the ages of 12 and 25. One of the reasons why young women end up fighting eating disorders is their sensitive age combined with the desire to achieve unrealistic beauty standards – in most cases, women begin with diets and take them to extremes – this is known as pathological dieting.
Even though all these numbers are shocking, the situation is more alarming than we thought. It is estimated that a total of 15 percent of young American females who are not diagnosed with eating disorders actually suffer from them and are either too embarrassed or delusional to ask for help.
15. 90% OF AMERICAN CHILDREN VISIT MCDONALDS AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH
There’s probably no need to go into depth when it comes to America’s love for fast foods – even though the United States ranked eighth on the list of nations whose citizens visit fast food restaurants the most, it’s pretty obvious that burgers and French fries are among the most loved foods in the country.
Still, it’s pretty shocking to discover that roughly 90 percent of American children eat at McDonalds at least once a month, with the majority of them visiting the chain even more frequently.
Although it’s perfectly fine to go to McDonalds every now and then, it’s up to American moms and dads to educate themselves and introduce their children to healthier foods – one-third of all American children are already overweight or obese and they certainly haven’t gained all those pounds by eating vegetables and being physically active.
16. 80% OF TEN-YEAR-OLDS ARE TERRIFIED OF BEING FAT
Not only are teenagers and adults obsessed with their looks, but more and more young girls are unsatisfied with their bodies and want to be thinner. More than 40 percent of 1st and 3rd grade girls don’t like their bodies and believe they would be happier if they went on a diet, according to the International Journal of Eating Disorders.
Almost 50 percent of girls aged 9 to 11 are frequently on diets – they grew up in families where dieting is something pretty common and say that they have higher self-esteem when they are on a diet, according to the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
And probably the most alarming figure that comes from the same source, a whopping 81 percent of 10-year-olds are terrified of being obese. Time Magazine has also studied the topic, concluding that 80 percent of all children have been on a diet by the fourth grade.
17. THE AVERAGE MAN SPENDS LESS THAN 20 MINUTES A DAY ON FOOD PREP
Although this one may not sound as shocking as some of the previous statistics, the fact that the average American male spends only 17 minutes a day on preparing his meals (and cleaning his home) is more than alarming.
In case you are wondering why this is such a big deal, every nutrition expert and doctor will tell you that the essence of a healthy diet is preparing your own food. In a nutshell, if you want to stay safe from all sorts of illnesses and maintain normal body weight, you have to avoid eating junk food as much as possible and dedicate some time to fixing your own meals.
When you prepare food for yourself, not only can you control your portions, but you can also pick the healthiest ingredients and enjoy a healthy, balanced meal. Besides, knowing your way around the kitchen is one of the most satisfying (not to mention useful) skills you can master nowadays.
18. 10% OF AMERICAN COUPLES STRUGGLE WITH INFERTILITY
Not many people are willing to open up about their infertility problems, but the sad truth is that 10 percent of all American couples (that’s roughly 7 million people) experience infertility.
The CDC reports that up to 1/3 of infertility cases are due to female infertility – out of those cases, ovulatory disorders are responsible for 30 percent of female infertility while the rest can usually be treated with success.
It is important to keep in mind that infertility is also connected with personal habits, including smoking (even secondhand smoke contributes to infertility), drinking alcohol, and coffee. Of course, obesity can also be a factor, which means that people who eat junk food and don’t exercise are at a higher risk of infertility.
Even though not everything depends on us, especially when it comes to disorders, there are definitely certain things you can do in order to increase your chances of having a baby.
19. ONE IN FOUR MEN DON’T HAVE CLOSE FRIENDS
This is one of the saddest statistics we found – approximately 25 percent of all American males have no close friends to speak with openly, according to a Duke University study.
What makes this so depressing is the fact that there have never been more ways to meet new people; we live in a global village and it has never been easier to connect with like-minded individuals from literally anywhere in the world.
Years of research have shown that every new generation of American males has fewer friends than the previous one and this is particularly true among middle-aged men. In case you are wondering how this is associated with health, research and numerous studies have all come to the same conclusion – nothing is better for your overall health than social support. People who lead solitary lives, on the other hand, are at a higher risk of premature death.
20. MORE THAN 30 MILLION AMERICANS SKIP BREAKFAST EVERY DAY
Everybody knows by now that breakfast is the most important meal of the day – except for approximately 10 percent of the U.S. population, which roughly translates to 31 million people.
Despite the fact that the majority of those Americans are aware that eating breakfast plays a pivotal role in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, they simply don’t seem to care about the dietary guidelines.
Apart from discovering the number of Americans who skip breakfast every day, the survey conducted by the NPD group was interested in finding out their reasons for avoiding breakfast and it looks like the most common reasons folks skip the first meal of the day are that they aren’t hungry, don’t feel like eating anything or they are too busy and running late.
As far as genders are concerned, women are more likely to leave the house with an empty stomach because they simply can’t find the time to eat in the morning.
21. MEN DRIVE THEIR CARS MORE THAN 100 MINUTES A DAY
Many people would assume that spending 101 minutes a day driving isn’t such a big deal, but the problem is that, according to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology study, driving your car around the city is equally stressful as skydiving.
When you come to think of it, there’s absolutely nothing enjoyable in city driving – traffic jams and road rage become part of your everyday life and before you know it, you start losing your temper when you see a red light or when someone overtakes you.
Time spent behind the wheel greatly contributes to feeling stressed all the time and we all know that stress weakens our immunity, widens our waistline and encourages the development of cancer and other serious health problems.
In order to keep your life as much stress-free as possible, avoid driving whenever you can and consider biking or walking. Apart from staying healthy, you’ll also help save our planet from pollution.
