Donald Trump is accumulating physical signs that have raised alarms within the medical community: bruises on the backs of his hands, swelling in his ankles, episodes of apparent drowsiness during official events, and, above all, weight gain that puts him on the brink of clinical obesity.
This is revealed in an extensive report by the Washington Post published on Sunday, in which several doctors warn that the president's weight gain poses a significant health risk.
A weight that worries doctors
According to the medical report released by the White House in May, Trump weighs 238 pounds (approximately 108 kilograms) and stands 1.90 meters tall, resulting in a body mass index of 29.7: just 1.6 pounds shy of the threshold that defines obesity.
The figure contrasts with the 215 pounds listed in her police record from August 2023.
The administration itself acknowledged that the president gained 6.35 kilograms between his last two annual medical check-ups.
“We know that obesity is a significant risk factor for numerous health problems, as well as for disability and premature death,” said Scott Kahan, director of the National Center for Weight and Wellness and a physician at George Washington University.
Addressing obesity to protect the president's health should be a priority, just like ensuring the Secret Service's protection for his life," he added.
David Kessler, former director of the Food and Drug Administration, pointed to a specific risk: “That fat that accumulates around the waist, that visceral adiposity, is fat that accumulates around the liver, pancreas, and heart, where it shouldn’t be.”
However, not all specialists share the same level of concern.
The specialist in obesity, Gitanjali Srivastava, emphasized that at the age of 80 “it’s not so much about the number, but rather what the percentage of body fat is”, and added that the body mass index “is an excellent detection tool, but it’s not everything.”
The monitoring of Trump's weight and physical health has a long history.
During his first term, he went from 239 pounds in January 2018 to 243 pounds in February 2019, at which point he was technically classified as obese.
In June 2020, he reached 244 pounds, and four months later, he contracted a severe case of COVID-19, an illness whose severity is linked to obesity.
The marks on the hands and other visible signs
Weight is not the only physical indicator that has generated scrutiny.
The bruises on the backs of the hands have drawn attention during various public appearances.
The White House physician, Captain Sean P. Barbabella, attributed them in May to "minor irritation of soft tissues related to frequent handshakes in the context of using aspirin for cardiovascular prevention."
Swelling in the ankles has an official explanation since July 2025, when Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a benign condition commonly found in older adults.
Barbabella also recommended increased physical activity, dietary guidance, and continued weight loss in May, although the White House did not respond to questions about whether Trump has followed those recommendations.
Trump's and the White House's response
The president has addressed the issue with a blend of humor and resignation.
“Perhaps junk food is good and other food is not”, he said in the Oval Office in May.
"I know a lot of people who only worry about their weight, this and that, and in the end, they passed away, and here we are. I feel great," he added then.
In a recent podcast with Second Lady Usha Vance, Trump referenced former President William Howard Taft: “He was our heaviest president, and I have to be careful because I don’t want to surpass his record. And something like that could happen if I allowed it.”
The White House avoided responding directly regarding the peso.
Spokesperson Davis Ingle chose to compare Trump to his predecessor: "President Trump's mental acuity, his boundless energy, his tireless work ethic, and his historic accessibility stand in stark contrast to what we saw during the previous administration."
The institution also did not respond to whether Trump has ever taken GLP-1 medications for weight loss, although the president himself has denied doing so.
Trump turned 80 years old in June, becoming the oldest sitting president in the history of the United States, a fact that intensifies the debate about his physical condition and the transparency of the medical information that reaches the public.
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