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Causes and effects of obesity
Causes and effects of obesity
Causes and effects of obesity
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Obesity has been on the rise in the United States since 1980. As of today, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of adults, along with one-third of children and adolescences, in the United States are considered obese. Obesity is becoming a serious issue in the lives of Americans. Obesity can be caused by a number of reasons such as an unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, and sometimes medical conditions. However, with all of these conditions combined I’m here to show you you why I believe obesity is strictly a lifestyle choice, and how it can most certainly be prevented. Obesity has to start somewhere. But where do we begin?
Having a disease has often been used as a way for someone to explain their reason for being obese. Some people claim that they are obese simply because it is genetic. Let us examine just how well genetics might play a role in obesity. According to Alexandra Sifferlin, obesity is in fact being linked to the mutation of genes in a person’s body. One of these genes is Leptin, or the “obesity gene”, and is made by fat cells. High levels of Leptin in the blood tell the body that it is starving. People with a mutation in this gene, researchers have found, are not getting the signal to stop eating. However, Dr. Joseph Majzoub, the chief of the division of endocrinology at Boston Children’s Hospital states, “Thus far mutations in about eight genes are known to cause obesity in humans. But these mutations account for under five percent of the obesity in our society, and certainly are not, by themselves, responsible for the current obesity epidemic, since the mutation rate in these genes could not have changed dramatically during the past twenty years” (Sifferlin). Basical...
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...e to allow anyone to call my body a disease. I am fat.” (Kreiter). If people do not want obesity to be considered a disease because they are comfortable with being fat, then that leaves no other choice than to consider it a lifestyle choice.
Obesity in America has become an issue, and one that probably will not disappear any time soon. Obesity does not have to be a problem if people are willing to take the necessary steps towards living a healthier lifestyle. This include: having a meal plan and sticking to a healthy diet, and choosing to get in the necessary amount of physical activity and exercise in order to maintain a healthy physique. A healthier lifestyle will help get rid of some of the problems with heart disease, and diabetes. If people take action, it can help diminish the growing problem of obesity, and we can become a better society as a whole.
In 1994, Zhang et al discovered the Ob gene and the hormone leptin1. This brought about the idea that obesity might have genetic-related factors and may not simply involve lack of self-control and overeating in the individual. The Ob gene regulates the amount of body fat storage in the body2. When the Ob gene signals, the hormone leptin is secreted from adipocytes1 and it travels to the hypothalamus in the brain2. This signals the hypothalamus to induce a feeling of satiety2. In other words, leptin secretion causes the stomach to feel full and ceases the necessity for eating. Once this discovery was made, the idea of obesity treatment came into play. If a hormone with satiety-inducing effects can be utilized for treatment then obesity may possibly become a null issue. Unfortunately this is an issue that still stands today – 20 years after the discovery of leptin.
The third and final reason obesity is not a genetic disorder is that obesity is often just the result of eating too many calories without enough exercise. With obesity the problem is the person afflicted by it is not exercising or being active enough to burn off the calories they have consumed. When this happens the body stores the extra energy in fat deposits between organs. This essentially turns the human body into a refrigerator, as mentioned in the documentary by Cross. By adopting a healthy lifestyle where one is both active and eating a healthy diet, anyone can avoid the growing plague of
Obesity is a rising problem in the United States. With obesity rates on the rise something must be done to prevent this massive issue. There are ways to help including educating at young ages, improving nutrition facts at restaurants, and providing more space for citizens to get physically active.
It is natural for a society to be concerned for the future generations. With the rate of obesity growing in adults and children, many begin to see it as an issue that needs to be addressed. New reports show “ childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years” (cdc.gov). Overweight and obese are not actually the same. Overweight is defined as “having excess body weight for a particular height from fat,” and obesity is defined as “having excess body fat” (cdc.gov). With obesity comes the chance for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Both can be
Genetics can play a huge role in the development of obesity in children. Studies have shown that obesity can be inherited. A child’s chances of being overweight or obese are increased by 25 percent if their parents are overweight or obese. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015) states that “the latest study from Stanford University has found that having overweight parents is the biggest risk factor for childhood obesity”(para 1).
The obesity epidemic is one of the most pressing issues at this point in both American society and U.S. public policy initiatives. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention 35.9% of U.S. adults over the age of twenty are obese (CDC, 2013). The CDC further notes that 69.2% of U.S. adults twenty years of age and over are overweight (this percentage includes those who are obese). The obesity problem is not exclusive to the adults in the U.S. The CDC notes that 18.4% of adolescents between the ages of 12 and 19 are currently obese (CDC, 2013). These statistics illustrate the severity of the obesity epidemic in this country, but what can be done to address or even correct this problem? Many people have proposed solutions, but few are as radical as the proposal from Michael Bloomberg (the New York City Mayor) in 2012.
Obesity in children across America has become an increasing public health concern. Obesity has been identified as an epidemic that is plaguing our children in the United States. In some countries around the world children are dying of starvation everyday. How can this happen when here in America the opposite is a major problem? This is not to say that in America there are no hungry or starving children. It has been proven that our children suffer from obesity, and “children who are overweight or obese as preschoolers are five times as likely as normal-weight children to be overweight or obese as adults” (“Hope”). Obesity not only can cause a child to become more prone to having health problems down the road, but it can also make them feel insecure about themselves. There needs to be action taken in schools as well as in homes to help prevent this growing epidemic.
Today, 78.1 million American adults and 12.5 million children are obese. Obesity in America is a unstoppable epidemic. Since the 1960s, the number of obese adults have doubled and the number of obese children have tripled. Because of America’s obesity problems, Surgeon General David Satcher issued a report saying; "The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight," said that obesity "have reached epidemic proportions" in America. Obesity in America has no doubt reached epidemic proportions. Since 2001, America has been the most obese country in the world. This essay discusses what obesity is and how it is affecting today’s America by answers the following questions:
Obesity has increased rapidly throughout the years, especially in the United States. As of today, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of adults in the U.S are considered to be obese. We all know that obesity is becoming a serious issue in the lives Americans. The effects of obesity can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and in serious cases, death. So the question we can all ask is, “What is the cause?” The cause of obesity can come from, but is not limited to, some of these things: eating habits, lack of exercise, or a medical condition.
According to the USDA, at the start of century 21st American people have increased their daily caloric intake by consuming five hundred calories more than in 1970. As cited by Whitney & Rolfes (2011), there are many recognized causes of obesity such as genetics, environment, culture, socioeconomic, and metabolism among others; but the cause most evident is that food intake is higher than the calories burned in physical activity. Excess of energy from food is stored in the body as fat causing an increase of weight. During the course of the last 40 years, obesity has grown enormously in the United States and the rates remain on the rise (pgs. 272-273).
Although inherited conditions have been linked to childhood obesity, they are rare. However it has been noted that children with obese or overweight parents are more than likely to be obese themselves, the reason for this as described by Heaton-Harris (2007) is because of the length of time it takes to break a bad habit. Unless the parents are correctly informed of healthy diets themselves the problem will continue from an ill-informed childhood into adult hood. Other probable causes are numerous ones. Fast food and processed foods becoming more read...
According to an article in Oxford Journals, “There is substantial evidence for the hereditability of obesity, and research in both rare and common forms of obesity has identified genes with significant roles in its etiology” (Genetics…).
Childhood obesity is a serious problem among American children. Some doctors are even calling childhood obesity an epidemic because of the large percentage of children being diagnosed each year as either overweight or obese. “According to DASH sixteen to thirty-three percent of American children each year is being told they are obese.” (Childhood Obesity) There is only a small percentage, approximately one percent, of those children who are obese due to physical or health related issues; although, a condition that is this serious, like obesity, could have been prevented. With close monitoring and choosing a healthier lifestyle there would be no reason to have such a high obesity rate in the United States (Caryn). Unfortunately, for these children that are now considered to be obese, they could possibly be facing some serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancers. All of these diseases have been linked to obesity through research. These children never asked for this to happen to them; however, it has happened, and now they will either live their entire life being obese, or they will be forced to reverse what has already been done (Childhood Obesity).
By taking a stand against the rise of obesity, America’s bodies will be in healthy condition, and are able to be the positive motivation for others to follow. Once more people choose to live a happy and healthful life, the decrease of obesity will begin to show. The solution to solving the issue of obesity in America can be possible by: eating healthier foods, getting proper exercise, and setting boundaries on what fast-food industries can sell to customers. People need to get up and get moving for the problem of obesity and its trail of nasty effects will consume the healthy way of life everyone knows today.
There are many causes of obesity. Of course some obese teens cannot help the fact that they are overweight. Genetics and s...