Obesity A Growing Problem - 1658 Words

Running head: Obesity JoAnne DuBois Pima Medical Institute Abstract Obesity continues to be a growing problem in the U.S. with diet and lifestyle as two major contributors. Americans are becoming less active and eating more unhealthy foods that are easily accessible. Diet and lifestyle seems to be the more obvious causes for obesity, but there are many different factors that play a role in the continuing rise of this epidemic. Other factors include: environment, inactivity, genetics, socioeconomics, stress, medications, and illness such as hypothyroidism. Obesity may cause life threatening health risks such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes,†¦show more content†¦The second method is by measuring their waist circumference. A waist circumference of 35† or greater for women and 40† for men is considered unhealthy (Coalition, 2015). The health risks associated with obesity include high blood pressure, diabetes, heart failure, gall bladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and other respiratory problems, and some cancers. Obes ity affects more than one-third of adults and 17 percent of youth. 78 million adults and 12 million children are obese (Obesity Statistics in the United States, 2014). Obesity has increased by 214 percent between 1950 and 2000 (Bird, 2013). It is estimated that an obese person will live eight to ten years less than a non-obese person. Mexico has the highest obesity rate while the U.S is ranked the second in the world (Allen, 2013). Lifestyle and diet play important roles in the health of the American people. The writer for â€Å"Everyday Health†, Ingrid Strauch says: More people are eating meals in restaurants which usually serve oversized portions of high calorie foods. The portion sizes of snacks and packaged foods have become larger over the years. Fewer meals are being prepared at home because many adults have longer work hours and don’t have the time. With the invention of technology, children spend more hours watching television, playing electronic games, or using computers and less time engaging in physical activity (Strauch, 2015). The lunches offered in American schools usually lack