text: The average American woman weighs 166.2 pounds, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As reddit recently pointed out, that's almost exactly as much as the average American man weighed in the early 1960s. 
   
   Men, you're not looking too hot in this scenario either. Over the same time period you gained nearly 30 pounds, from 166.3 in the 60s to 195.5 today. Doing the same comparison as above, today's American man weighs almost as much as 1.5 American women from the 1960s. At 195.5 pounds, put five American guys in a room and you've gathered roughly half a ton of manhood. 
   
   Overall weight gain since 1960 is slightly greater for women (18.5 percent) than for men (17.6 percent). And both sexes have gained roughly an inch in height over the same period, which accounts for some of that weight gain. 
   
   But story is mostly one of growing girth, and it basically boils down to three factors: we're eating less healthy food, we're eating more of it, and we're not moving around as much. According to a study published in 2012 in the journal BMC Public Health, Americans are now the world's third-heaviest people, behind only the Pacific island nations of Tonga and Micronesia. 
   
   The average American is 33 pounds heavier than the average Frenchman, 40 pounds heavier than the average Japanese citizen, and a whopping 70 pounds heavier than the average citizen of Bangladesh. To add up to one ton of total mass, it takes 20 Bangladeshis but only 12.2 Americans. 
   
   Together, the world's adult human beings added up to 287 million tons of biomass in 2005, according to the BMC Public Health study. But if every country had the same weight distribution as the U.S., the world would be 58 million tons fatter, an increase of 20 percent. 
   
   The study concludes that "tackling population fatness may be critical to world food security and ecological sustainability." And as with so many of the world's problems, the solutions start at home -- on the bathroom scale in this case. But boy, those donuts sure do look delicious. ||||| Atlanta, Ga. (CBS ATLANTA) — The average American woman now weighs as much as the average American man weighed in 1960. 
   
   Both U.S. men and women have been packing on the pounds since 1960, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that the average American woman now weighs 166.2 pounds – nearly identical to what American men weighed in the 1960s. And U.S. men have expanded greatly in the same time period, having gained nearly 30 pounds from the 1960s to 2010 – 166.3 pounds to 195.5 pounds today. 
   
   The CDC data shows that both sexes have gained almost an inch in height from the 1960s, which factors into some of the overall weight gain. But women have seen an 18.5 percent increase in weight gain from 1960 and men have shown a 17.6 percent increase in overall weight gain. 
   
   Today’s American male weighs nearly as much as 1.5 American females from the 1960s, with today’s U.S. male weighing an average 195.5 pounds and having a nearly 40-inch waist circumference (39.7 inches). 
   
   American women today have an average waist circumference of 37.5 inches and weigh in at 166.2 pounds, up from about 140 pounds in 1960. 
   
   The CDC data shows that more than one-third (35.1 percent) of U.S. adults over the age of 20 are considered obese. And 69 percent of American adults over the age of 20 are either overweight or obese. 
   
   More than 1-in-5 U.S. children between the ages of 12-19 are considered obese, with 17.7 percent of kids ages 6-11 also weighing in at obesity levels. 
   
   A 2012 study published in the journal MBC Public Health finds that Americans are now the world’s third-heaviest people, trailing only the Pacific Island countries of Tonga and Micronesia. The average U.S. adult is 33 pounds heavier than the average Frenchman and 70 pounds heavier than the average Bangladeshi citizen. To compile a ton of total mass, it would require only 12.2 Americans in a room versus 20 average citizens of Bangladesh. 
   
   A 2005 BMC Public Health study revealed that the world’s adult human beings make up 287 million tons of biomass, but if every country was as large as the U.S., Earth would be 58 million tons fatter. 
   
   — Benjamin Fearnow
target: – Picture the average American couple in the 1960s. Now picture the average American couple today. Something more than questionable fashion should stand out, according to new data from the CDC, which finds the average weight of a US woman is now 166.2 pounds—about the same weight as the average man in the 1960s—up from about 140 pounds during that time, reports the Washington Post. That's an increase of 18.5%. Men, who weighed 166.3 pounds in the 1960s, now tip the scales at an average of 195.5 pounds, for a 17.6% gain. Is it as bad as it seems? Essentially, yes, though the typical height of men and women has grown by an inch, which at least accounts for something. But the main reasons for our growing bellies are no surprise: Americans are eating more food, but less health food, and are exercising less. The data shows 35% of Americans over 20 are considered obese, while 69% of adults are either overweight or obese, reports CBS Atlanta. As for children, one in five between 12 and 19 and 18% between 6 and 11 are obese. A 2012 study found Americans were the third-heaviest people on the planet behind residents of Tonga and Micronesia. The average American was 33 pounds heavier than a Frenchman, 40 pounds heavier than a citizen of Japan, and 70 pounds heavier than a person in Bangladesh, adds the Post. Dying to get back to that 1960s frame? It's actually more important to watch what you eat rather than exercise constantly, though exercising and eating healthy together is obviously beneficial. The New York Times notes that 30 minutes of jogging achieves the same calorie reduction as cutting back on two 16-ounce sodas. (Click to read why we weigh less on Fridays.)