--- description: Along with firefighters and security guards title: Cops are the Fattest Profession image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1652627bee838159/69876f6ee20a8718dea84177/police-fat-profession.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Obesity](/tag/obesity/) ## Obesity Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Law Enforcement Is the Fattest Profession, Study Finds  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 17, 2014 5:37 PM CUT  Policeman in office, portrait Policeman in office, portraitGetty Images  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 17, 2014 5:37 PM CUT Police officers, firefighters and security guards [have](http://www.wsj.com/articles/memo-to-staff-time-to-lose-a-few-pounds-1418775776?KEYWORDS=pounds "undefined") the highest rates of obesity of all professions, according to a Wall Street _Journal_ analysis of data from the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. According to the Journal, 40.7% of police, firefighters and security guards are obese. Other jobs with high obesity rates include clergy, engineers and truckers. On the other side of the obesity scale is a grouping of economists, scientists and psychologists, with an obesity rate of 14.2%. Other professions with low obesity rates are athletes, actors and reporters. Read more at The Wall Street [_Journal_](http://www.wsj.com/articles/memo-to-staff-time-to-lose-a-few-pounds-1418775776?KEYWORDS=pounds "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3637967/police-officers-fattest-profession-study/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3637967/police-officers-fattest-profession-study/"},"headline":"Law Enforcement Is the Fattest Profession, Study Finds","datePublished":"2014-12-17T17:37:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T02:56:43.440Z","description":"Along with firefighters and security guards","url":"https://time.com/3637967/police-officers-fattest-profession-study/","keywords":["Obesity","police","Journalism","health","Cops","firefighters"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1652627bee838159/69876f6ee20a8718dea84177/police-fat-profession.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1652627bee838159/69876f6ee20a8718dea84177/police-fat-profession.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Policeman in office, portrait","caption":"Policeman in office, portrait","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/obesity/","name":"Obesity"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3637967/police-officers-fattest-profession-study/","name":"Law Enforcement Is the Fattest Profession, Study Finds"}}]}] ```