The numbers, like scales, do not lie. Texas is home to 5 million obese people, according to a study by the state demographer. And that figure could triple within 30 years unless drastic action is taken.

In Bexar County, the outlook is equally dismal. More than four in 10 adults could be obese in 30 years — a 91 percent increase from current figures. The study, commissioned by Methodist Healthcare Ministries, is a frightening wake-up call.

State demographer Karl Eschbach said he hopes the projections are wrong. They have to be wrong, he said. If not, the county — and the state — are in for a lot of misery.

“... we can't simply continue to go down the path we're going,” he told the Express-News. “The health care burdens are such that we cannot continue without doing something about it, because the costs are too high.”

Those costs include health problems associated with obesity — diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure. But the costs are financial as well as physical. The economic burden of medical problems related to obesity could reach as much as $39 billion by 2040, according to Comptroller Susan Combs.

The problem will require a personal commitment — from those already obese and those in danger ofbecoming obese. They should launch a health regimen, supervised by a physician, which focuses on diet and exercise.

While this scourge demands individual effort, it will also require action by state legislators. The problem cuts across age boundaries, but young people seem especially vulnerable. The obesity rate grew from 10 percent to 20 percent among young adults in seven years, according to the study.

“If people in their 20s are overweight, as we go forward and that age group ages into their 30s and 40s, the future obesity problem in Texas can be staggering,” Eschbach, a demography professor at UTSA, said.

Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, telling reporters that obesity is the most serious threat Texas faces, pledged to push bills stressing nutrition education for elementary and middle school students — an excellent approach. Eating habits, goodand bad, are formed early.

As for adults, legislators should support workplace wellness programs to promote healthy lifestyles.

“Obesity strains the entire health care system,” Nelson said at a news conference unveiling the bleak study in Dallas, according to the Dallas Morning News. “It hinders our economic productivity. It drains out state budget.”

And, unless we start attacking the problem, it will get worse.