Obesity in America Introduction to Obesity Causes and Effects of Obesity Treatment and Programs for Obesity Obesity Prevention: Conclusions and Recommendations Obesity Introduction to Obesity While it is common knowledge that many Americans are overweight, many people are surprised to hear that the number of people who are severely obese (at least 100 pounds overweight) has quadrupled since 1986, according to research (Gilles, 2003)
Dieting in adulthood decreases the fat-cell size but not the actual number of fat cells. There are many steps that can be taken to prevent or treat obesity (Hemmelgarn, 2004)
Sometimes a weight loss of just 5 to 10% can vastly improve health by lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels. An increase in physical activity is one highly recommended form of treatment for obese people (Pories et al
Unlike the first two options, infrared body composition analysis is a readily accessible model whose measurement is based on the principle that human fat soak up light at particular wavelengths in the near-infrared position of the spectrum. The resultant units emit the frequency and evaluate how much of the emitted energy is absorbed (Laymon, Kodat & Chung, 2010)
However, diabetes does not account for the higher prevalence of obesity among Mexican-Americans. This is primarily because the link between high-density lipoprotein cholesterol subfractions, risk factors of cardiovascular disease, and systolic blood pressure was similar to that of other populations in the United States (Nichaman & Garcia, 1991, p
This change shows up in consumption data. From 1977 to 1995, total potato consumption increased by about 30%, accounted for almost exclusively by increased consumption of potato chips and French fries" (Cutler, Glaeser & Shapiro 2003: 93)
Americans are becoming increasingly dissociated from basic methods of food production. However, in addition to rhapsodizing about Julia Child's ability to persuade people to get into the kitchen and experiment with intimidating foods, "today the average American spends a mere 27 minutes a day on food preparation (another four minutes cleaning up); that's less than half the time that we spent cooking and cleaning up when Julia arrived on our television screens" Pollan notes (Pollan 2009)
Contrary to recommendations that people need to eat fewer calories to lose weight, it is necessary to focus on carbohydrates instead, as excessive consumption of carbohydrates (found in abundance in foods like bread, legumes, potatoes and low-fat processed foods) cause insulin resistance and promotes the rise in obesity. Taubes cites one study which found "on the very low-carbohydrate diet… subjects expended 300 more calories a day than they did on the low-fat diet and 150 calories more than on the low-glycemic-index diet" because these diets did not cause insulin resistance (Taubes 2012:1)
Contributing Factors to Obesity in America Researchers have proposed various reasons for the dramatic increase in obesity in America over the last few decades (since the early 1980s). Some of the reasons given include an over-abundance of food availability in America's supermarkets and restaurants, particularly fast-food restaurants (Hill and Peters, 1998); the uncontrolled or unreasonable portion-sizes in America's restaurants (Hill and Peters, 1998); an increase in consumption of sugar-sweetened sodas and sweetend food (Bray, 2004); and an over-abundance of high-fat food choices paired with a lack of palpable low-fat choices
g., Wang, Monteiro, & Popkin, 2002; World Health Organization (WHO), 2000) reveal that child obesity has become a global epidemic, more prevalent in America than in many other countries, both developed and developing, with child obesity having tripled here during the last three decades (Wang & Lobenstein, 2006)
g., Wang, Monteiro, & Popkin, 2002; World Health Organization (WHO), 2000) reveal that child obesity has become a global epidemic, more prevalent in America than in many other countries, both developed and developing, with child obesity having tripled here during the last three decades (Wang & Lobenstein, 2006)
Studies show that a diet of 35% fat or higher contributes to obesity in sedentary animals (Hill and Peters, 1998). Although many overweight people claim that they eat less than others, studies consistantly indicate that they usually eat more than normal weight people do (Wing & Polley, 2001)