title: Estimating deaths attributable to obesity in the United States.
abstract: Estimates of deaths attributable to obesity in the United States rely on estimates from epidemiological cohorts of the relative risk of mortality associated with obesity. However, these relative risk estimates are not necessarily appropriate for the total US population, in part because of exclusions to control for baseline health status and exclusion or underrepresentation of older adults. Most deaths occur among older adults; estimates of deaths attributable to obesity can vary widely depending on the assumptions about the relative risks of mortality associated with obesity among the elderly. Thus, it may be difficult to estimate deaths attributable to obesity with adequate accuracy and precision. We urge efforts to improve the data and methods for estimating this statistic.
authors.affiliation: National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hyattsville, MD 20782, USA. kflegal@cdc.gov
authors.forename: Katherine M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Flegal
authors.forename: David F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Williamson
authors.forename: Elsie R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Pamuk
authors.forename: Harry M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Rosenberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015982:Bias; D002423:Cause of Death; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003644:Death Certificates; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000401:mortality* / Q000517:prevention & control; D011159:Population Surveillance / Q000379:methods; D015995:Prevalence; D012306:Risk; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology