The obesity trend is probably going to make the medical and medical supply industries even richer, but those aren't profits anyone really wants. The too-fat problem is forcing hospitals and other diagnostic/imaging centers to get bigger MRI and CT scanners with tables than can hold more than 300 pounds. X-rays can't penetrate deep levels of fat, so obese people require more rads, which means higher carcinogenic risk. Ordinary beds and surgical tables can't accommodate obese patients. Laparoscopic instruments are having to be made longer. Stethoscopes are being modified to hear better through a deep fat layer. Obesity affects every aspect of medical care anyone can think of.

At the last medical trade show I went to, there was a whole section of new equipment just for hospitals, nursing homes, and rehab units to use for super morbidly obese people. Tubs. Queen-sized gel-padded beds to alleviate pressure wounds. Slings. Double-wide walkers, wheelchairs, toilets, and room chairs. Steel-reinforced beds with special pull-up contraptions above. It was an incredible array of stuff, and the need for these things is growing.

This obesity epidemic is truly scary. They say with the current trend toward obesity in children, the next generation is likely to be the first that won't live longer than its parents did.