Obesity in America

Obesity in America

ABS200: Introduction to Applied Behavioral Sciences
(COB1310B)

April 8, 2013

Obesity in America
Controversy over obesity increases as rapidly as the increase of the number of obese in America. At the rate of obesity health related issues surging through the country also comes along with the price to handle the growing cases. The debate of whether obesity is a disease or not is a major debate that effects not only the obese but those individuals in proximity. My question is obesity a disease because it is caused by genetics, biological factors, and illness that cause weight gain; opposing that it is not a disease because of the environment, eating habits, or lifestyle an individual may be accustomed to living. Conferring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2010), one-third of American adults suffer from obesity, a chronic condition characterized by excess body fat. This paper will discuss obesity and what it is. Also focusing on the causes of obesity and the health issues linked with obesity. As well as incorporating who is responsible for obesity and identifying how obesity can be treated or prevented.
What is Obesity? According to the Centers for Disease Control, obesity is defined as "the condition of an excessively high amount of body fat or adipose tissue in relation to lean body mass." A more commonly-known definition of obesity is that of an individual 's weight being 30% or more above what is considered normal as defined by a standardly-accepted height/weight chart. (CDC, 2012)
Obesity is a difficult problem that scientists are still battling to understand. In some cases, heredities seem accountable; in others, various groupings of hormonal, metabolic, and behavioral factors appear to be a factor. But in most cases, it 's hard to determine the exact cause of obesity.
Many friends of mine consider themselves fat or are always discussing dieting never taking into account of their BMI (Body Mass Index) to find out if they are actually suffering from obesity or overweight. Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to adult men and women; it helps guide your body weight. Many people think they are overweight and are actually obese. In order to calculate to see whether or not an individual is obese one must complete the following:
BMI Categories:
•Underweight = <18.5
•Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
•Overweight = 25–29.9
•Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater (Calculate Your Body Mass Index, 2013)
After measuring your BMI you can discover whether you are at a healthy weight and if not decided what needs to take place to get to that point of a healthy weight or narrow down the cause of the morbid weight gain. Just looking at this scale and your measurements determines if you are obese. Obesity can be caused by a vast amount of factors; however, it is to my belief that changes in the nature of work, leisure time activity. Obesity can have different factors leading to its epidemic genetics, biological factors, and illness. Science shows that genetics plays a role in obesity. Genes can directly cause obesity in disorders such as Bardet-Biedl syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome (Guyenet & Schwartz, 2012).
Nevertheless, inheritable factor do not always predict how your future stand as for as health, one’s behavior may also play a role in a person’s overweightness. In some cases multiple genes may increase one’s vulnerability for obesity and require outside factors; such as a plentiful food resource or little to no physical activity. Changes in what and how much we eat are the most significant contributing factors to the explosion of obesity in America. Poor eating habits, changes in lifestyles, environment and stress can be other evolving causes of obesity. As an easy fix to needing to eat or feeding our families dinner on the go, because of our busy lifestyle we may choose to dine in a fast food restaurant or pickup something quick and convenient, not necessarily healthy for our families, an instant gratification. As Americans we have access to eating facilities on every corner. The convenience foods may save time, but they are unhealthy choices that can lead to obesity. When you consume more calories than you burn, your body stores the excess fat on your body. Overall, a constant continuance of eating unhealthy foods that are high in calories, overtime can result in weight gain leading or becoming obese. (Ireland, 2011) Another factor of obese is stress, there are two reasons factoring physiological and behavioral. I often hear my co-workers say I am stressed because I can’t control my eating, they are often times when they are none stop, eating continuously. Firsthand I noticed him eating different items such as sweets and craving things high in calories. Behaviorally, stressed-out people will often eat even when they’re not hungry – this is known as stress eating or emotional eating, and the food choices made are usually not the wisest (Wayne, 2009).
Physiologically, there’s a few factors that lead to obesity. One factor is cortisol and cortisol-induced insulin. Cortisol helps the body handle stress; so, when stress goes up, cortisol also goes up. Cortisol stimulates fat and carbohydrate metabolism during stressful situations. This leads to increased blood sugar levels required for fast energy. In turn, this stimulates insulin release which can lead to an increase in appetite. Adrenaline increases alertness and metabolism by helping fat cells release energy; however, when the cortisol is released indirectly it causes fat cells to grow causing health risk and complications striking your body.
Obesity does not just affect your weight, it also attacks the health and cause complications. Some of the health risk are metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, and diabetes. Propelling the upsurge in cases of diabetes and hypertension is the growing prevalence of overweight and obesity -- which have, during the past decade, joined underweight, malnutrition, and infectious diseases as major health problems threatening the developing world. Today, more than 1.1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and 312 million of them are obese. In addition, at least 155 million children worldwide are overweight or obese, according to the International Obesity Task Force. ((Parvez Hossain, M.D., Bisher Kawar, M.D., and Meguid El Nahas, M.D., Ph.D, 2007))
In order to fight this epidemic you must first identify, knowing and understanding the factors that can lead to other health problems and complications. For instance one health issue can lead to other complications such as the Metabolic syndrome which is a combination of high blood sugar, high blood pressure, high triglycerides and high cholesterol this conditions is factored with type 2 diabetes and strokes. It is unfortunate here in the United States many people are already diagnosed with the metabolic syndrome, and more will continue to follow as this epidemic spreads. So far, there are about 50 million people that have metabolic syndrome (Ireland, 2011)
Sleep apnea is another health concern associated with obesity. Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts, requiring individuals whom are diagnosed to sleep with a CPAP machine prescribed by a physician in order to regulate breathing while sleeping until weight is managed.
Type 2 diabetes has swarmed America and continues to affect individuals and their families on a daily which is also linked with having a high BMI and being obese. I remember when I was around 15years of age my grandmother stayed in and out of the hospital, she was diagnosed with congested heart failure, varicose veins, and diabetes. The diabetes was causing her to be tired falling asleep anywhere, even in the car in 100 degree weather in Louisiana. Not knowing what was happening to her body she began to lose her eyesight. After being admitted into the hospital several times for the illness related to being obese, prescribed insulin along with other drugs she began to lose the weight needed for her to not only be withdrawn from the insulin but she no longer take any medication for those illnesses. For over twenty years, she has being exercising to maintain her weight and has been successful thus far. This just goes to show how knowledge and understanding your body can help prolong your life.
Some people don’t understand the quality of life is decreased when you are lacking mobility. Quite simply, extra weight makes movement more difficult and, often, uncomfortable. People who are obese often experience pain in the knees and back due to increased pressure on the joints and vertebrae which in the long run if you are severely obese you become pretty much bedridden. I have noticed with at my age, according to my BMI I am almost 20lbs over and I feel my knees and back causing pain so this I can relate and if I don’t get a start on it now it can lead to mobility issues in the future.
The goal to treat and manage the onset of overweight/obesity is to reach and stay at a healthy weight. In some cases, a team of a team of health professionals, including a dietitian, therapist or an obesity specialist, to help you understand how to adjust your lifestyle, making the needed changes in you’re eating and activity habits. Once the changes have been implemented, you can start feeling better and seeing improvements in your well-being by just introducing healthier eating habits and physical activity. The initial goal is a modest weight loss — 5 to 10 percent of your total weight. That means that if you weigh 200 pounds (91 kg) and are obese by BMI standards, you would need to lose only about 10 to 20 pounds (4.5 to 9.1 kg) to start seeing benefits ;l(Hill & Wyatt, 2005).
All weight-loss programs require changes in your eating habits and increased physical activity. The treatment methods that are right for you depend on your level of obesity, your overall health and your willingness to participate in your weight-loss plan. Obesity is can be prevented by educating people on healthy eating habits and emphasizing the need of doing physical exercises. Today most people in the states live in "built environments", mostly urban, and this means that they are inclined by this environment to live a sedentary life. To prevent obesity, they should accomplish methods of promoting anti-obesity behaviors by developing ways to burn calories when doing their daily work it can be something as simple as taking 15 minutes of your lunch to walk around the building, another example would be, if you work in a building with an elevator opt to taking stairs instead of using the elevator.
Most people try to take the easy way out by using drugs that may not work and even weight loss surgery. Weight loss surgery (Bariatric Surgery) is only recommended for people who are severely obese, with a BMI of 35 and higher suffering from health related issue, joint pain, sleep apnea that would improve with weight loss. These individuals body would also not respond to diet, weight management programs, exercise and drugs such as diet pills. There are other methods of weight loss surgery, and they all come along with complications, obedience and are costly.
Obesity has emerged as one of the leading medical challenges of the 21st century. The resistance of this disorder to effective, long-term treatment can be traced to the fact that body fat stores are subject to homeostatic regulation in obese individuals, just as in lean individuals. Because the growing obesity epidemic is linked to a substantial increase in daily energy intake, a key priority is to delineate how mechanisms governing food intake and body fat content are altered in an obesogenic environment. (Guyenet & Schwartz, 2012)
As the responsibility of obesity is thrown toward fast foods and we are exposed on a daily basis to hundreds of advertisements, many promoting specific foods that are supposed to be fitting and wholesome. The food production, amazingly, has run away taking the brunt of the blame for years, using fast food as a scapegoat. Fast food, though a key provider, is not the principal source of the obesity widespread here in America. Numerous studies have confirmed that an individual’s personal food choice, unwillingness to exercise, and genetic disposition all play a role in a person’s weight; however, there are other origins that impact our weight. In particular, food manufacturers that resource the high calorie, marginally nutritious, and highly processed foods that dominate our market must be examined.
I look at my sister and mother whom are both obese with severe health conditions that are mentioned above (diabetes, congested heart failure, knee and joint pain) are raising my nephews to eat unhealthy even though they know the primary reason for their health conditions are bad eating habits, environmental, and lifestyles. One of my nephews are active in sports, yet the other is autistic and only eat certain foods all of them being the wrong type of food including fast food and no exercise, sitting around playing video games. In cases like these I blame the parent, this can be avoided, I don’t see this as being a genetic disposition, and I see it more or less being behavioral just as they have the same uncontrolled management.
Case Study: A 56-year-old woman with obesity and a 15 year history of type 2 diabetes presents with complaints of fatigue, difficulty losing weight, and no motivation, shortness of breath, sleep apnea, joint pain and blurred vision along with occasional vaginal infections.
She notes a marked decrease in her energy level, particularly in the afternoons and after meals. She is tearful and states that she was diagnosed with depression and prescribed an antidepressant that she chose not to take fearful of the side effects. She states that she has gained an enormous amount of weight since being placed on insulin 12 years ago. Her weight has continued to increase over the past 13 years, and she is presently at the highest weight she has ever been. She states that every time she tries to cut down on her eating she has symptoms of hypoglycemia, shaking, deep sweats, and increased hunger. She does not follow any specific diet and has been so fearful of hypoglycemia that she often eats extra snacks.
Her health care practitioners have repeatedly advised weight loss and exercise to improve her health status. She complains that the pain in her knees and ankles, and shortness of breath makes it difficult to do any exercise.
Micro: the 56 year old female seems to be alone and frighten with no support, she is also as stated depressed and crying a lot due to her current condition. She obviously has a behavior of overeating, and no goals set in place to manage her obesity even though the physician has discussed her options. I don’t see any strengths yet her weaknesses are eating.
Mezzo: as stated above she has no support system to help motivate her.
Macro: it seems as if the only one person that may have been involved is her physician.
Diversity: it seems as if she factors the insulin she takes for diabetes as means for her increasing weight gain.
At this point the 56 year old female does not have any strengths, her weakness is her state of depression, health, eating habits and unwillingness to exercise; even trying to follow the doctors’ orders. Her stressor is the excessive weight gain, she is not exactly dealing with the situation only making it worse, she has adapted by doing nothing making excuses for her situation not to improve her physical activity, change her lifestyle an eating habits. As a social worker assigned to this case I would first use some treatment groups to help guide her through, allowing her to get the sense she is not alone. According to our text, a treatment group “provides treatment internally and directly to clients”. (Kirst-Ashman, 2011) One Step Ahead (OSA) Program is a prevention and management program that teaches adults how to build up healthy lifestyle habits. One way this program works is by identifying culturally suitable for families to help eat healthy along with a self-help group such as 12 Step program which can provide support and a philosophy of recovery. The secondary treatment used is behavioral modification which helps individuals cope with the emotional stress caused from being obese and boost their confidence. In conclusion, obesity is a critical health issue that is widely spread in the US. It has had adverse effects on the Americans ' health and their economy and therefore it needs to be seriously addressed. More people are being affected by the epidemic of obesity whether it is a simple case or an extreme. The cause of obesity is caused by oneself, and can be prevented with good health choices, changes being implemented to lifestyle, medical checkups and becoming more active. American people are also much aware about it, and most of them are trying their best to prevent it, however, I believe the first step is awareness, education and the willingness to act on the epidemic at hand.

* References
Calculate Your Body Mass Index. (2013, March 19). Retrieved from United States Department of Health and Human Services: http://nhlbisupport.com/bmi/
CDC. (2012). Overweight and Obesity. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
CDC. National diabetes fact sheet: national estimates and general information on diabetes and prediabetes in the United States, 2011 Adobe PDF file [pdf 2.7M]. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Guyenet, S. J., & Schwartz, M. W. (2012). Regulation of Food Intake, Energy Balance, and Body Fat Mass: Implications for the Pathogenesis and Treatment of Obesity. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 97(3): 745–755.
Hill, J. O., & Wyatt, H. R. (2005). Role of physical activity in preventing and treating obesity. Journal of Applied Physiology, 99(2), 765-770. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/222161213?accountid=32521
Hossain, P., Kawar, B., & El Nahas, M. (2007). Obesity and diabetes in the developing world - A growing challenge. The New England Journal of Medicine, 356(3), 213-5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/223917677?accountid=32521
Ireland, J. (2011, January 5). Why Obesity Is a Problem in America. Retrieved from LiveStrong: http://www.livestrong.com/article/350157-why-obesity-is-a-problem-in-america
Wayne, D. M. (2009). Stress: A Major Cause of Obesity. Retrieved March 30, 2013, from http://www.lowdensitylifestyle.com/stress-a-major-cause-of-obesity
Wilding, J., & Frayling, T. (2012). Are the causes of obesity primarily environmental? British Medical Journal, 345(7875), 24. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1112225592?accountid=32521

Source: Propelling the upsurge in cases of diabetes and hypertension is the growing prevalence of overweight and obesity -- which have, during the past decade, joined underweight, malnutrition, and infectious diseases as major health problems threatening the developing world.1 Today, more than 1.1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and 312 million of them are obese. In addition, at least 155 million children worldwide are overweight or obese, according to the International Obesity Task Force. (Hossain, P., Kawar, B., & El Nahas, M., 2007)
Source: There is an inverse relationship between physical activity and weight gain. However, additional research is needed to quantify the amount of physical activity required to prevent weight gain in different populations, improve the way we convey physical activity recommendations to the public, and help the individuals increase their physical activity. Although physical activity does not appear to contribute significantly to weight loss, it is critical for maintenance of weight loss. (Hill, J. O., & Wyatt, H. R., 2005).

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References: Calculate Your Body Mass Index. (2013, March 19). Retrieved from United States Department of Health and Human Services: http://nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ CDC CDC. National diabetes fact sheet: national estimates and general information on diabetes and prediabetes in the United States, 2011 Adobe PDF file [pdf 2.7M]. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Guyenet, S. J., &amp; Schwartz, M. W. (2012). Regulation of Food Intake, Energy Balance, and Body Fat Mass: Implications for the Pathogenesis and Treatment of Obesity. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 97(3): 745–755. Ireland, J. (2011, January 5). Why Obesity Is a Problem in America. Retrieved from LiveStrong: http://www.livestrong.com/article/350157-why-obesity-is-a-problem-in-america Wayne, D