Health Effects of Obesity - Essay Example

 Health Effects of Obesity Obesity is the result of a number of factors; unhealthy dietary habits and food consumption patterns remain the most important of them. People, and specially children, are attracted towards junk food and high calorie food stuff. The consumption of calorie-dense food is identified as a highly threatening factor for increased childhood obesity. Obesity has now become a worldwide issue due to its increasing rise and the risks that it poses. It is a very common condition in the Unites States with two third of the population of United States suffering either from obesity or increased weight and approximately one third of the population being obese according to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (Weight Control and Information Network 2010). In UK, the Health Survey for England in the year 2008 presented that 24.5% people above the age of 15 were suffering from obesity. Obesity is a condition which has been associated with biological and physical reasons but psychological issues also play a role in the high incidence of this disease. The causes and effects of obesity are severe and require closer attention by the people, health consultants, governments and health departments in order to get rid of its harms. Obesity is the result of a number of factors; unhealthy dietary habits and food consumption patterns remain the most important of them. People, and specially children, are attracted towards junk food and high calorie food stuff. The consumption of calorie-dense food is identified as a highly threatening factor for increased childhood obesity. The most important factor that promotes such unhealthy dietary habits among the children is the exposure of high-calorie food on the television. There is a strong relationship between unhealthy food advertisement and increasing obesity among children. Fast food is considered as the root cause of adverse eating habits as it comprises all adverse dietary factors like saturated and trans fat, high glycaemic index, high energy density, and, increasingly, large portion size. Moreover, fast food is considered to have low amounts of fibre, micronutrients, and antioxidants which help in tackling the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes (Ebbeling, Pawlak & Ludwig, 2002). Another major cause of obesity is the imbalance between energy intake and consumption. The recent developments in technology have provided easier ways to entertainment. Children now consume energy and fatty diets but fail to utilize that energy in physical activities and sports. People’s sedentary life revolves most of the times around electronic media, including television, video games, music players, and computers and so on. They have restricted their lives to their homes and specifically their personal rooms. This inactivity is posing a threat to their life and they are found to be inactive and less likely to consume the energy, fats and proteins they take per day. Technology and sedentary activities have reduced the energy consumption in children and they take exercise, sports and other physical activities as formal procedures that are limited to the school premises. The use of cars, buses and other vehicles have also made this problem difficult to control. Advertising is correlated with the consumption patterns i.e. decreased advertising leads to reduced consumption levels and vice versa (Saffer, 1996). Existence of a relationship between advertisement and consumption rates is the reduction in consumption levels on implementation of advertisement bans. The group that is badly affected by media exposure, television programs and advertising campaigns are youngsters. Many researches and surveys are conducted to understand the effects of food, alcohol, smoking and general advertisements on children and their behaviors. The food advertisements lead to a great change in children’s food choices and intake. The parental obesity leads to the same obesity trends in the children. Physically inactive parents leave an impression on the children that physical activities are either not required or not necessary for a healthier life. Children tend to accept being obese or overweight without even struggling to get rid of it. Engaging fathers in physical activities and other interventions have a positive effect on the whole family. This factor, however, is neglected by the health promotional departments and programs. In addition, the genetics of obesity in parents also have an influence on the children’s likelihood of being obese. Obesity of one or both parents has a significant effect on their offspring’s obesity risks mainly due to the genetics they share and the environmental factors that their families encounter (Whitaker, 1994). On the other hand, although genetics play a vital role on the probability of children’s obesity problem, the overall impact of genes on the increasing obesity rates is significantly lower. In addition, maternal smoking during pregnancy is also linked to higher obesity rates in their offspring. Another factor that contributes to obesity is the lack of physical activity, which ends up creating fat tissues in the human body. Rather than limiting energy intake, there is a need to increase physical activity to improve the situation of the obesity prevalent disease. There is a strong relationship between inactivity and increased obesity rates. If a erson utilizes the energy intake by exerting the energy in some physical activity or using up the excessive calories in some manner, the resultant fats which are harmful may be reduced and further eliminated. There are certain efficient interventions like behavioral interventions, diet, multifactorial interventions, and physical activity, which are of particular importance when researching the cures for obesity. Obesity carries with it potential risk for the development of other disease states. It can lead to cardiovascular diseases which include hypertension, coronary heart diseases and stroke. This is because the lipid content can get deposited in the walls of the vessels leading to narrowing of the lumen and hence atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular conditions. Also hypertension results due to the increased demand of energy of the body due to raised stored lipids which require a greater blood flow. This leads to development of higher pressure in the arterial walls and resultant raised blood pressure. It increases the risk of certain cancers which include breast, colon and prostate cancers. It can lead to insulin resistance within the cells hence leading to diabetes mellitus. And it also affects the musculoskeletal system of a person by increasing the risk of osteoarthritis due to the increased weight burden on the joints. The respiratory system can also be affected with a person having difficulty in breathing while sleeping. This is because the increased amount of fat exerts pressure on the lungs and results in breathing problems. An obese individual is also prone to develop metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by increased fat deposition in abdomen, development of resistance to insulin, hypertension and presence of inflammatory products and clotting factors in the blood. Obesity can also result in affecting the psychological condition of a person. This is because in the present society the image of being good looking is associated with being slim and smart. This leads to loss of self esteem in these individuals. Also these people face difficulties in getting into relationships and the physical presentation also leads to problems in the workplace (Stanford Hospital and Clinics. 2010). The prevention and treatment of obesity needs to cater the requirements of all age groups. For proper results it is essential that all the causative factors of obesity should be understood. This is because only focusing on physical, nutritional and pharmacological treatment cannot decrease the prevalence of the disease. This is because psychology also plays its role in the development and progress of this condition. For preventing the condition physical activity should be encouraged among children so that the habit develops in them. A proper balanced diet should also be recommended for children. For people who are very obese pharmacological treatment includes drugs like orlistat and sibutramine. This should be followed with a proper dietary plan for them as well as a physical activity schedule. Not only this, they should also be given psychological treatment to raise their self confidence and to motivate them to lose the excessive weight. The problem of obesity can only be curbed by the help of these obese individuals only and their concern for their health. Obesity is hence a condition which is not restricted to one part of the body but can affect the normal functioning of many bodily systems. It can lead to diseases which can result in reducing the life expectancy as well as dependence. This disease is related not only to biological and physical factors but it also has a psychological relation. The disease can be led to by psychological condition and the prevalence can also be associated with it. But though psychological impact has a contribution to it other major factors like nutritional imbalance, genetics and decreased physical activity also play a role. Hence while preparing treatment modalities and ways of preventing this disease, exercise, dietary plans along with a psychological therapy is essential. References: Top of Form Bottom of Form STANFORD HOSPITAL AND CLINICS. (2010). Health Effects of Obesity. Stanford University. http://stanfordhospital.org/clinicsmedServices/COE/surgicalServices/generalSurgery/bariatricsurgery/obesity/effects.html WEIGHT CONTROL INFORMATION NETWORK. (2010) Statistics Related to Overweight and Obesity. National Institute of Health. http://www.win.niddk.nih.gov/statistics/index.htm Ebbeling CB, DB Pawlak, and DS Ludwig. 2002. "Childhood obesity: public-health crisis, common sense cure". Lancet. 360 (9331): 473-82. Saffer, Henry. 1996. "Studying the Effects of Alcohol Advertising on Consumption". Alcohol Health and Research World. 20 (4): 266. Whitaker, R C, J A Wright, M S Pepe, K D Seidel, and W H Dietz. 1997. "Predicting Obesity in Young Adulthood from Childhood and Parental Obesity". The New England Journal of Medicine. 337 (13): 869. Bottom of Form Read More