Four years ago US Center for Disease Control and Prevention ranked obesity has the number one threat facing America. Four years later, we cannot but expect things to get worse. Obesity resulted in an estimated 400,000 deaths annually.
Dr. Chester Ridgway, ex-president of The Endocrine Society says, “Obesity in America has reached epidemic proportions.” Indeed, and the implications too are enormous. Obesity not only impacts one’s lifestyle tremendously but can also lead to a variety of other problems like — low self esteem, depression, discomfort in social situations and reduced quality of life. Apart from these socio-psychological problems, obesity increases the risk of other obesity related health problems like hypertension, thyroid disease, PCOS, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Before delving in to the various treatment options available, it is better to explore the underlying causes of this epidemic.
Causes of Obesity
One of the basic causes of Obesity would be an imbalance between calorie intake and calorie consumption by an individual. However, it is not simple as it seems it be. There can be a lot of other reasons that can lead to obesity.
Genes — Obesity seems to pass down from one generation to another in some families. This is caused both by the family’s genes and their common lifestyle, habits and diet. Although, it is not necessary that you will also turn out to be obese if you have obese relatives.
Age — As some people age, they tend to lose muscle and gain fat. This slows their metabolism and both these lowers their calorie requirements.
Sex — Men and women have different bodies. Men have more muscle than women, on average. Since muscles tend to burn more calories that other types of tissues, men consume more calories than women, both while working and resting. This makes women more susceptible to weight gain with the same amount of calorie intake.
Environmental Factors — Environmental factor, such as your lifestyle can effect your weight heavily. Your lifestyle and people around you determine your eating habits and your activity levels. Some cultures have a lifestyle which tends to promote overeating and sedentary habits. This might contribute to your weight gain.
Emotional — Some people are emotional eaters. They tend to eat and overeat because of emotional problems like boredom, hopelessness, anger, depression and many such reasons which have actually nothing to do with hunger. Such people let their feelings dominate their eating habits. The pressure of looking good or slim may also make certain people detest food and turn anorexic.
Pregnancy — Women tend to gain about 4-6 pounds more after their pregnancy. For some this gain tends to increase with each pregnancy. Thus you will find many women who have about 4 or more kids bulkier than others.
Medical conditions — Certain medical conditions such as Hypothyroidism, Hormonal problems, depression and certain medications like steroids, anti-depressants, birth control pills etc can also promote weight gain. Other conditions like Prader Willi syndrome, Cushing syndrome and Polycystic ovary syndrome also causes obesity.
How to Prevent Family Obesity?
Kids who have obese parents are most likely to be obese adults. Obesity may run in family. Hence, parents can make certain lifestyle changes to prevent obesity in family. Here are a few tips to prevent family obesity:
- Eat healthy meals by cooking food with lots of vegetables. Also ensure that your family eats fruits
- Switch to healthy drinks such as fruit juices, milk instead of soft drinks or soda
- Avoid junk food, fast foods, as they contain lots of fat and calories. Also, do not store junk food, high calorie food, soft drinks in your house
- Have regular family meals. Kids tend to eat healthy if have regular family meals
- Incorporate physical activity such as playing games with your kids, going for a walk, doing household chores etc
- Limit the TV viewing time and enroll your kids in sports or encourage them to play with other kids
