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• 10. Robert Earl Hughes (1,070 lbs)

• 9. Patrick Deuel (1,072 lbs)

• 8. Michael Hebranko (1,100 lbs)

• 7. Francis John Lang (1,187 lbs)

• 6. Walter Hudson (1,197 lbs)

• 5. Carol Yager (1,200 lbs)

• 4. Robert Butler (1,200 lbs)

• 3. Manuel Uribe (1,320 lbs)

• 2. Khalid Bin Mohsen Shaari (1,345 lbs)

• 1. Jon Brower Minnoch (1,397 lbs)

Being overweight is a very serious condition because it is responsible for numerous deaths annually around the world. However, being overweight is, in most cases, an easily preventable condition. Unlike some people, whose overweight condition has a strong relationship to a malfunction in their metabolism or any other medical problem, most people can simply exercise or adopt a strict diet and they will never be at risk of any weight-related complications.

Therefore, it is very important for an individual to see a weight professional as soon as he or she discovers that his or her weight is getting out of hand. The reason for consulting a professional is because everyone is unique and your body might require a special form of treatment to keep your weight in check, different from what is working for other people.

The saying that 'you are what you eat' holds a lot of truth, because an individual cannot expect to eat excess amounts of junk foods containing harmful levels of cholesterol and think that he or she will retain the same lean figure that he or she has always had. Furthermore, one cannot expect to sit down on the couch the whole day every day and not think that his or her body is storing fats. Here is a list of some of the heaviest people who ever lived; let us learn from them because we need not head down that road.

10. Robert Earl Hughes (1,070 lbs)

Via thin2thick.tumblr.com

Born in June 4, 1926, Robert Earl Hughes was the heaviest man recorded in history at the time. Robert got to that alarming weight owing to a problem with his pituitary gland throughout his life, since he was already 200 lbs by the age of six years old. Hughes died in July 10, 1958 after contracting the measles, which rapidly developed into uremia, the condition responsible for his death. Robert's coffin was so big that it resembled a piano case, though some writers wrongfully claim that he was indeed buried in a piano case. At his death, he was the world's heaviest man weighing in at 1041 lbs.

9. Patrick Deuel (1,072 lbs)

Via acidcow.com

Patrick Deuel is a 53-year-old man from Grand Island, Nebraska, who is formerly the manager of a restaurant. Patrick was one of the heaviest people in the world at his peak weight of 1072 lbs, before he lost a record 570 lbs in just a year with the help of a gastric bypass surgery and another surgery for removing excess skin and a huge mass of fat from his body. A documentary about Patrick dubbed "Half Ton Man" showed how Rosalie Bradford achieved a 900 lbs weight loss, which is probably what motivated Patrick to start losing weight as well.

8. Michael Hebranko (1,100 lbs)

Via huffingtonpost.co.uk

Michael Hebranko was an American born in 1953, and remains to be one of the greatest success stories when it comes to losing weight. Suffering from a severe case of obesity, Michael grew to the weight of 1100 lbs, making him one of the heaviest people in his time. He was determined to lose the excess weight, and through exercise and dieting he got down to 198 lbs. Many people recognize him from the frequent appearances he made in commercials about losing weight as well as in TV shows. Michael died in July of 2013.

7. Francis John Lang (1,187 lbs)

Via i-am-bored.com

Francis John Lang also goes by the name Michael Walker, and he is one of those people who have tried their best to change the world through sharing his personal experiences. Born in 1934, he had a normal childhood and even got to serve his country as a soldier. However, his addiction to prescription drugs led to him becoming overweight. Francis got a mobile home with observation windows; he would exhibit himself at fairs and carnivals, and later talk to people about the negative consequences of taking drugs. Francis is reported to have lost over 800 lbs, and he is now approximately 370 lbs.

6. Walter Hudson (1,197 lbs)

Via line.do

Walter Hudson was born in 1944 in Brooklyn, New York. Walter's waist was so large that it still holds the Guinness World Record for being the largest, at 119 inches. The heaviest weight that Walter recorded was 1197 lbs, weight that is enough to make him one of the heaviest people in the history of the world. Walter managed to lose at least 720 lbs before his death, which was caused by a heart attack. In order to get him out of his bedroom, fire rescue workers had to tear down his bedroom wall because he could not get out of the house any other way. Walter died in December 1991.

5. Carol Yager (1,200 lbs)

Via pixshark.com

Carol Yager was a U.S. citizen born in 1960. Carol was the heaviest woman ever recorded in history, with a peak weight of 1200 lbs, a record that has yet to be broken by any other woman in the world. There are unconfirmed reports that she had gotten as heavy as 1,603 lbs, a weight which, if there was proof, would make her the heaviest human being in history. Carol is famous for losing over 520 lbs in three months without the help of surgical procedures. Carol began developing health problems that required her to go to the hospital 13 times in two years, a move that required at least 15-20 firefighters to realize. Carol died in 1994.

4. Robert Butler (1,200 lbs)

Via turnto10.com

Robert Butler is a U.S. citizen born in 1972, living in Providence, Rhode Island. Robert weighs approximately 1,200 lbs. His weight has forced him to live in Bannister House care home for close to ten years but he is now in hospital owing to the home's crippling debts. Moving him required a crew equipped with a crane to carry him out of the home to the hospital, because he cannot walk or even use a wheelchair. Butler is currently adding even more weight to his body, despite his calls for the government and Medicaid to approve a gastric bypass surgery to help him deal with the issue falling on deaf ears.

3. Manuel Uribe (1,320 lbs)

Via ibtimes.co.uk

Manuel Uribe was born in Monterrey, Mexico in 1965. Manuel was a celebrity during his lifetime, with the weight that was killing him giving him a lot of media attention. The sad thing is that Manuel was confined to his bed for over a decade, to the point of attending his own wedding while on his bed. With the help of nutritionists and doctors, Manuel managed to lose more than 400 lbs because his last weight measurement stood at around 869 lbs. Manuel's death had a close relationship to cardiovascular complications and liver problems. He died in May 26, 2014.

2. Khalid Bin Mohsen Shaari (1,345 lbs)

Via nydailynews.com

Khalid Bin Mohsen Shaari is a man who was born in Saudi Arabia in 1991, and is still alive and well. In August 2013, Khalid weighed in at 1,345 lbs making him the heaviest living person in his time. When news of his weight reached King Abdulla of Saudi Arabia, the king ordered that Khalid be moved to the capital Riyadh for treatment. Professionals had to use a forklift to get him out of his house to the hospital because he could not move himself. As a result, Khalid was able to lose over 700 lbs in six months, and is continuing with his treatment and living a much healthier lifestyle.

1. Jon Brower Minnoch (1,397 lbs)

Via en.wikipedia.org

Jon Brower Minnoch was a U.S. citizen born in 1941. Jon was and still remains to be the heaviest person in the world, weighing in at approximately 1,400 lbs at his peak in 1979. Jon Brower's weight is the heaviest weight ever recorded of a human being, with more than half of it attributed to his body's water retention resulting from a condition common in overweight people called edema. However, Jon worked hard to shed a lot of weight before he died, since one of his last weight measurements showed he was down to 796 lbs. Jon Brower died in 1983.