Changing definitions of obesity in USA

An interesting article in the BMJ discusses a proposed change to childhood obesity guidelines in the USA. Currently, children above the 95th percentile for body mass index (those who are heavier than 95% of children of their weight and height) are classified as 'overweight' and
children above the 85th percentile for BMI norms are classified as 'at risk
for overweight.' The proposed change would include all those above the 85th
percentile in the 'overweight' category. This would mean that around 25-40% of
children in the U.S. would be classified as overweight.

As mentioned in a discussion article on the Food Consumer website, one side effect of the changes would be that many more children would be 'diagnosed' as obese and therefore potentially eligible to be prescribed weight loss drugs. This has led to suggestions of pharmaceutical company pressure, especially as the International Obesity Task Force, one of the major organisations behind the proposal receives much of its funding from drug companies.

Thanks to Francie Berg via the AED mailing list for drawing my attention to this proposal.