With the stakes growing for both men and women in our culture in regards to the devastating impact of obesity on health, there are more and more studies concerning our obesity epidemic. In American adults obesity has doubled since 1980, and obesity in children has tripled. Correlated with these high incidences of obesity are heart disease, stroke, arthritis and some cancers. So, I guess it’s time for America to declare another war. This time America should do something really positive like recognize this dire threat in our homeland and declare a ‘War on Fat’. If we do, then how would the sexes fight this war? Would men and women fight alongside each other or end up on opposite ends of the battlefield? Just how would men and women fight the ultimate “Battle of the Bulge”?

Before we get into the differences between men and women and obesity, let’s review some startling statistics regarding those who are overweight in this country. According to an article in the Birmingham (Ala) News, the National Institutes of Health revealed that about a third of all American adults are overweight and an additional third are obese. Here are some shocking statistics comparing men and women who are considered overweight in America:

White Women: 58%
Black Women: 82%
White Men: 71%
Black Men: 69%

From Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientific officer for Weight Watchers International and author of She Loses, He Loses, men and women approach weight loss with the same goals but have very different ideas about how to achieve them. Even their language is different. When women say they want “support” in their attempt to lose weight, they mean they want unsolicited positive feedback. But when a man wants “support”, he means he wants help controlling his environment meaning less junk food in the house and healthier meals.

But the differences between the sexes certainly runs deeper than language. In our celebrity-worship, super thin, pop-culture conscious world, women are more preoccupied with weight, so men have been particularly ignored in the weight-loss industry. When weight-loss studies solicit participants, they typically find that 85 to 90 percent of the respondents are women. This is because women are more likely to do research and seek outside advice about how to lose weight. Men are most likely to seek advice only from their spouse or their physician.

Here are some other differences in the sexes that Miller-Kovach exposes in her book:

Overweight women are more likely than overweight men to accurately asses their own condition. But once concluding that they need to lose weight, men more aggressively attack the problem and are more likely to stick to a plan.

Both men and women are emotional eaters, though women are more likely to recognize the fact. Men are more likely to eat because they feel good–pizza during a football game, perhaps–and women are more likely to eat because they’re unhappy–a pint of ice cream during a sad movie, maybe.

After reaching adulthood, men put on weight faster on average, at about 1.7 pounds per year. Women add pounds at a rate of about 1.4 pounds per year, even including weight gain associated with childbirth.

Biologically, men have an advantage when it comes to losing weight because they can more easily burn calories due to their larger muscle mass. However, most diets are designed for women, so that advantage may be offset.

The differences aren’t all bad because when men and women tackle weight loss together, the differences can be complimentary, especially when both partners understand the differences. For instance, a man might encourage his spouse to burn more calories, while a woman might encourage her husband to consume fewer calories.

Furthermore, the benefits can go beyond just the loss of weight. With partners sharing the same goals, meals can be coordinated and shared together more. Exercise can also be something that they can do together, even if it just means a walk in the evening. What men and women may find as an unexpected benefit in their war on fat is that they may begin to spend more time together and even end up enjoying each other more.

So, don’t despair about the extra pounds you declare as your enemy, enlist your partner in your personal war on fat. The good news is that it can be won. But, whatever you do, don’t wait on the government to do anything about it. The only wars they declare are the ones that can’t be won.