Causes of Obesity and Strategies for Change
Introduction
Generally, obesity is the accumulation of fatty deposits build up inside a person’s body. This occurs when the tissues become excessive fat. Worse, obesity may interfere with and injure organs and eventually cause serious health problems. Being overweight is associated with a higher risk if you have a medical problem such as diabetes and heart disease. Apart from limiting the physical and social activities, life expectancy was much shorter in the patient. The problem of obesity is becoming more prevalent among students. Obesity is the second most common disease in Malaysia after heart disease. Studies show that 15% of children aged 12 to 19 years have a problem of overweight and fatness. This problem is higher among children who come from poor families because of a lack of awareness of the importance of having the ideal body weight as compared to richer households. In this assignment, students are required to tell the causes of obesity and the ways to overcome it.
Main body
What causes obesity in teenagers? Among them are neither balanced diet. Balanced means that the calories and energy that must be earned at a rate equal to the amount of energy released or calories to be obtained through the diet and can only be removed through activities, exercises and so on. Teens often take advantage of snacks such as crackers, instant noodles and soft drinks as well as foods that are high in fat. They did not know that actually these foods contain high calories. Increases a person’s weight when they eat more than what can be burned by the body and excessive calories are stored as fat. Weight gain and obesity and obesity resulting from excess intake of calories will not occur in a certain number or a week, but the fat in the body will be collected and stored for several months and years. To ensure that weight is always on a normal BMI or ideal weight, one must ensure that the energy in the body is at a normal, balanced diet.
In addition, the duration of sleep can also contribute to obesity. If a person in bed, the individual is likely to have the disease of obesity. If a lack of sleep, the same problem will be faced, namely the risk of weight gain. Hormone released by the body during sleep will control the rate of appetite and energy levels in the body. For example, the hormone insulin to control sugar levels in the body when a person is sleeping. Therefore, if a person lacks sleep, the energy content of sugar in the body similar to diabetics. If teens do not have to sleep on an ongoing basis, they will have high hormone in the body called ghrelin. Ghrelin is a hormone that is responsible for increasing the rate of an appetite. At the same time, when a lack of sleep, the individual will also have low leptin content in the body. Leptin is responsible to suppress appetite.
The main causes of this obesity is genetics. A gene of a person have a strong influence on a person’s weight. It is like, if a person has obesity, the person maybe inherited it from the parents. Obesity also tend to run in their families, or few of a family member has obesity since young. The chances of being obesity are greater if any one of their parents are obese or both mother and father are being obese. The genes in a person’s body could affect the amount of fat which is in your body. Even a child could adopt the habits of or from their parents, which is something like eating habits. Eating not in a very proper and controlled way will lead a person to obesity too.
A person’s lifestyle choices are one the causes of being obesity. Overeating also can contributes to obesity. Nobody is following the food pyramid and control their eating habits according to the food pyramid. Some of them are in diet, but are they following the proper diet? These peoples thinks that they are in a correct way and following a good lifestyle. But they are eating a diet which is very high percentage in calories come from sugary, high in fat, refined foods promotes weight gain. In children lifestyle, there is no activity, outdoor activity which involves physically. These children are very inactive in physical activity. They are more interested in inactivity such as playing games, watching television, listening to music and so on. Lack of exercise contributes obesity to adults and it also makes them difficult to maintain weight loss.
Age of a person is also playing an important role of being obese. As a person get or grew older, the person will tend to loss muscle if the person is less active. Muscle loss of a person can slow down the rate which it burns calories of a person’s body. If a person does not reduce the calorie intake as he grew older, the person might gain weight and being obese. Menopause is another cause of being obese. Many women gain their weight during menopause and gain more fat around their waist.
Pregnancy is another factor for a woman being obese. Women gain weight when they are pregnant to support their babies gowth and development. But after giving birth, some women can easily lose their weight and for some women it is very hard to lose their weight. They even gain more weight. This may lead them to obesity.
Lack of sleep can increase the risk of obesity. People who sleeps fewer hours are like people who likes eating food that is higher in calories and carbohydrates, which also brings them to overeating, gain weight and obesity. Getting a good sleep helps us maintain a healthy balance of the hormones which can makes us feel hungry or full. Lack of sleep results in a higher sugar level, which may increase our risk for getting diabetes.
To prevent obesity caused by this problem, we should eat more vegetables, fruits and other protein sources such as fish. We also need to reduce the use of oil to fry food and cooking by steaming, baking or boiling.
In addition, laziness and dislike of exercise is also a cause of obesity. When we pamper the body by not doing any exercise movement, the fat will continue to accumulate in our body. Finally, a chubby little body, plump, and fat. Therefore, we must exercise at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes. Among the exercises that can be done by those who are lazy or difficult to perform the movement was brisk walk, swim, or play badminton. This exercise can prevent injuries.
In addition, the increase in fast food restaurants and food sold in packages or cans also be a cause of obesity. Fast food restaurants such as KFC, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut favorites, especially those who work because they no longer need to bother to cook a meal after a hard day’s work. Although the food is provided by fast food restaurants are tempting, people should be aware that food intake should be reduced because the food is not nutritious and contain levels of salt, sugar, and fat.
Among the steps that can be taken to prevent ourselves from this problem is to adopt a well-balanced diet. We must take into account the need of carbohydrates, fat and nutrition in accordance with age. Therefore, we must make the food pyramid as a guide in the selection menu or foods for a healthier life. In addition, we must eat on time regularly, especially the three main meals of breakfast, lunch and dinner. Furthermore, the Ministry of Health (MOH) was the slogan “healthy eating, healthy life” to ensure that people eat a healthy diet. This is because we are not only healthier but happier and more secure life without diseases if we are wise in choosing healthy foods and a balanced diet every day.
Aside from the diet and doing regular exercise, we should not be fooled by slimming products rising galore in the market. Various slimming products sold and advertised that can obscure the user’s eyes. Users should be careful because often ingredients in slimming products can be harmful to health, but, most of the product is not a guarantee of safety from the Ministry of Health. Therefore, use of this product is not safe and can cause a variety of negative effects that can affect health. Use of these products is not able to lose weight otherwise detrimental to health. Therefore, we must seek the advice and insights of a qualified physician before using any slimming products available in the market.