New CDC report says Americans are getting shorter and heavier

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A sobering new report shows just how serious America's obesity problem has become.

This isn't a good sign. On average, Americans are getting shorter and heavier.

According to the new CDC report, the average American man is 5'9" inches tall, and weighs about 198 pounds. The average woman, is 5'4" tall with a weight of 171 pounds.

That puts the body mass index for each at just over 29. A BMI of 30 is considered obese.

Over the past 15 years, not only has weight has gone up, so have waistlines - for women, they've increased more than 2 inches. For men, the increase was an inch and a half.

When waistlines get bigger, so do the chances for heart disease and diabetes.

Heart disease is already the leading cause of death in the US.

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