Update on Obesity

Sarah Fudin currently works in community relations for the George Washington University's online MPH degree, which provides prospective students the ability to earn an online Masters degree in Public Health. Outside of work Sarah enjoys running, reading and all things education.

Americans have been increasingly concerned about weight gain in recent years, and with good reason. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three Americans is obese, making it common to speak of obesity as an epidemic a widespread problem that affects the society as a whole rather than an affliction of individuals who make poor eating decisions.

Who is Obese?

The obesity rate has fallen slightly in recent years and appears to have stabilized among children, but obesity does not affect all portions of the population equally. Obesity disproportionately affects those who with less money and education, as well as women. And obesity affects earning power and other forms of opportunity in turn: The obese earn as much as 18 percent less than those of "normal weight," according to a recent Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development report. In light of these considerations, taxing unhealthy food an approach adopted by Denmark, Hungary, France and Finland is problematic because it puts the economic burden of obesity on those most directly disadvantaged by it.

Healthy Eating Begins in Childhood

According to Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the trick to reducing obesity is to change the way that children eat. Wootan says that by serving healthier lunches in schools and removing vending machines, we can habituate children to healthier eating. She also suggests that part of the problem is that 80 percent of food marketing aimed at children advertises unhealthy food an argument that recalls the controversy around cigarettes being marketed to children. Children who learn to eat healthfully are likely to remain healthy throughout their lives, while those who don't will face an uphill battle.

Preventing the development of obesity in children has been a common goal of many anti-obesity strategies. While such strategies may not produce the quick results that many of us would like to see, they could produce much healthier generations of adults in the years to come.

A Strategy for Prevention

The Institute of Medicine recently released a new strategy for preventing obesity in the United States. The strategy addresses the obesity epidemic from multiple angles, including restrictions on marketing unhealthy food to children, increasing the amount of physical exercise mandated in schools, making healthier food available to children in restaurants and using doctors to disseminate information and advice about healthy eating.

While obesity is a deep-rooted problem that isn't likely to disappear overnight, we can take steps to prevent it from spreading and to eventually reverse the trend. It seems clear that no easy answer or single strategy will solve the problem of obesity in our society, just as drastic dietary changes tend to produce temporary results for individuals. But approaching the problem from several different angles at once does seem more likely to produce results.

Maternal Obesity Can Hamper The Development Of Child's Brain

Obesity is normally associated with many common diseases like heart attacks and diabetics. But very few people know that imbalanced and fat rich diet taken by women before and during pregnancy can give birth to mentally retarded children especially males. The most important abnormality observed in such children is the appearance of anxiety during adulthood.

Extra Weigh and Pregnant Women:

Fatness can be extremely deleterious for pregnant women and doctors constantly warn such women not to increase their weight before and during pregnancy. The disproportional diet of the mother and any physical or mental trauma suffered by her can cause many different diseases in new born baby like mental disorders, obesity and diabetes in later stages of life.

Mental Disorders Suffered by Children:

According to a recent study there are many other mental problems children of obese mothers have to face apart from anxiety.

• Maternal obesity can cause anxiety for a life time
• It can have adverse effects on emotional stability, intelligence and unwanted effects on brain development
• Such children can suffer from acute inattention problems
• Such children often shows the symptoms of memory loss and social behavior disorders

Reasons:

Many different theories are put forward as reasons for this abnormal mental behavior exhibited by the children of fat mothers. Some important factors are discussed below.

• Maternal obesity effects on the development of neurotransmitters of the brain which are responsible for controlling mood swing. As a result these children suffer from depression and anxiety
• Extra maternal fats can produce more proteins called cytokines in the fetal brain. These proteins are responsible for shrinkage of those brain parts that regulate memory and learning
• These proteins also cause inflammation in the brain and more the inflammation in the brain, less developed will be the brain of the baby
• Various glands of such children do not function properly. For example, pituitary glands fail to produce enough testosterones and low testosterone symptoms start to appear. Anxiety is also one of the important symptoms of low testosterone levels.

This is a very alarming situation because obesity rate of women of children bearing age is constantly rising. As a result, there is every possibility that our next generations will be mentally deformed by birth. Measures need to be taken to encourage young women to control their weight so that they can give birth to healthy offspring which are a benefit for society not a burden.

By Ali Ahmed

Fat men die of prostate cancer

Adipose tissue surrounding the prostate gland of men with obesity, creates favorable conditions for the progression of prostate cancer.

What is the prostate gland
The prostate gland - is musculo-glandular organ located below the bladder and surrounding the initial portion of the urethra. The main function of the prostate is to produce secretions, which is part of semen. Ducts of the prostate glands open into the urethra.

Prostate cancer
In the early stages of prostate cancer does not manifest itself. Complaints are associated with tumor spread and metastasis. At the stage the only manifestation of the lack of symptoms, allowing the disease to suspect, is to increase blood levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA). As prevention of prostate cancer for all men should conduct an annual PSA test beginning at age 45.

By increasing the size of the tumor shows the following symptoms:

• Frequent urination
• Difficulty urinating
• Urinary incontinence
• urge to urinate.

The essence of the study

Scientists have received samples of adipose tissue surrounding the prostate gland in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostate cancer and prostate cancer. Regardless of prostate disease in men with obesity , there is increased activity of genes in fat cells. These genes encode proteins involved in the immune response, inflammation, growth, reproduction, and cell death.

Increase in the activity of genes leads to inhibition of the immune response and stimulates the formation of new blood vessels, which creates favorable conditions for the progression of prostate cancer. The study's authors hope that the findings will more carefully selected treatments for patients with obesity.

How Losing Weight Is As Easy As 1,2,3

Obesity in America has skyrocketed. According to the American Heart Association, 149.3 million Americans over the age of 20 are overweight or obese. Despite this overwhelming number, losing weight is not nearly as hard as many people think. Losing weight is as easy as 1, 2, 3:
1. Exercise more
2. Eat less
3. Sleep

Although those three steps might seem like a drastic change to your lifestyle, they're really not. When many people think of losing weight, they often think of words such as: "hunger", "deprivation", "agony", and the worst of all, "DIETING".
Despite what many people believe about losing weight, each of the above three lifestyle changes can be implemented into your daily life for success without you even noticing! What do I mean by this? Well, the changes that need to be made to your daily lifestyle in order to lose weight are very miniscule, and for most everyone after about 30 days each of these things becomes a habit! Let me explain below.

Step 1. Exercise More

In order to lose weight, you need to take in less calories than your body needs. As a matter of fact, this is really ALL you need to do in order to lose weight. Having said this, many people find it difficult trying to lose weight if they don't exercise, because they have to drop their calories down very low. This is why you here all of the horror stories about being hungry and deprived when trying to lose weight. The solution? Exercise! Doing anywhere from 20-45 minutes of daily cardio will not only help reduce the risk of heart disease, but can also help burn additional calories that aid in the fat burning process. This means that you will be able to add a bit more to your daily calorie requirements and still lose weight.

Step 2. Eat Less

As stated above, all you really need to do in order to lose weight is to take in less calories than your body needs. This is also why you here many people talk about how they "Lost 100lbs with the twinkie diet." Sure you can lose weight with this type of diet, but you will be losing muscle too! That's right, since your muscles are malnourished, your body has no choice but to catabolize (break down) your muscle tissue. Although you will be losing body fat as well, you will most likely be losing just as much lean muscle mass. In order to stop this from happening, we have a couple of options. We could eat VERY healthy, and eat nothing but whole grains, lean proteins, healthy fats, fruits, and vegetables. And I actually recommend this type of diet for anyone who has very good self control. The problem is, most people (myself included) don't and will end up binging on this type of diet in the first couple of weeks as they feel deprived. Another option is the substitution method. This is personally my favorite for losing weight and has worked well with me in the past. The name basically explains itself, and literally means substituting 1-3 junk foods with healthy foods every day. For example, instead of eating french fries, eat mashed potatoes. Another example would be to drink water instead of soda or to eat oatmeal instead of sugary cereal. Pretty simple eh? This will allow you to enjoy everything in moderation while still getting vital vitamins and nutrients that your body needs for proper functioning and muscle maintenance.

Calorie Calculation
Is calorie calculating necessary for fat loss? Yes! Many people underestimate calorie calculating, and feel that as long as they eat a healthy diet, they will lose 10 dress sizes in 5 days. Remember, weight loss occurs because of a caloric deficit, not because of a certain food you ate. What I recommend is finding out the number of calories you take in daily to maintain your weight, and subtract 500-1000 calories from that number. Taking in 500 calories less then what your body needs will allow you to lose 1 pound a week. Similarly, taking in 1000 calories less then what your body needs will allow you to lose 2 pounds per week. Unless you are very obese, I strongly suggest not going 1000 calories below maintenance, as the risk for muscle loss increases drastically. As you drop in weight, it is very important to adjust the amount of calories you are consuming in order to avoid a weight loss plateau. Weight loss plateaus occur because just like muscle mass, fat burns additional calories as well and the more fat you lose, the less calories your body is going to burn.


Let's talk about something else that many people seem to be confused about. That is, how many meals to eat per day. Conventional nutrition tells us that 3 square meals a day is fine. However, for those trying to lose weight, I recommend eating 5-6 small meals per day. This will allow your body to stay fuller longer, since your body is receiving a steady stream of nutrients. Only eating 3 square meals a day will work just as well, but I recommend trying both to see which one works best for you.

Step 3. Sleep

Many people underestimate the importance of sleep when it comes to losing weight. Several studies have shown that when someone is in a caloric deficit and does not get enough sleep, they end up burning off muscle instead of fat. Also, people who fail to get enough sleep at night tend to eat more during the day, due to the hormone leptin that is increased. Leptin has often been named "the hunger hormone", due to the fact that it makes people crave food (especially carbohydrates) much more frequently and in much larger quantities during the day. So how much sleep is enough? Well, there is no single answer as to how much sleep a person needs, due to the fact that we are all individually different. What I recommend is throwing that old alarm clock in the trash, going to sleep at the same time every night, and letting your body wake up on its own. Allowing your body to wake up every morning without any distractions will ensure that your body is fully rested and you will not have to worry about any of the sleep deprived side effects that can occur.

To Sum It Up
Follow these three simple steps to losing weight and you will be guaranteed success. Losing weight is only difficult if you make it more complicated than it needs to be. Good luck!

By Drew Stegman

Genetic risk of obesity Sugary drinks

For people who are genetically predisposed to obesity, drinking a lot of sugary beverages could make their weight problem worse by heightening the effects of their obesity genes, a new study suggests.

"Almost everyone carries some genetic risk of obesity," says Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health and an author on the study.

"People who carry a lot of obesity genes have a higher risk. People who drink a lot of soda also have a higher risk of obesity. For people who have both, their risk of obesity is much greater than either factor alone," he says.

To come to these conclusions, researchers examined data on 6,934 women from the Nurses' Health Study; 4,423 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study; and 21,740 women from the Women's Genome Health Study. Participants in all three studies were of European ancestry; genetic profiles were available on all of them, which allowed scientists to look at the 32 genes associated with obesity.

All participants completed questionnaires on their food and beverage intake over time. Sugar-sweetened beverages included sugary soft drinks, fruit drinks and lemonade. Not included: 100% fruit juice, iced coffee or iced tea.

The participants were divided into categories: those who consumed less than one serving a month of sugar- sweetened beverages; one to four servings a month; between two and six servings a week; one or more servings a day. Researchers made calculations that accounted for participants' overall dietary quality, physical activity, smoking and alcohol consumption. The dietary quality score includes dietary fats, meat intake, fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains.

Findings: The risk of becoming obese as a result of carrying a high dose of obesity genes was more than twice as great in the group with the highest intake of sugary beverages as it was for the lowest intake group, says lead author Lu Qi, assistant professor in the nutrition department at the Harvard School of Public Health. This means that regular consumption of sugary beverages magnified the genetic risk of becoming too heavy, he says.

The study is being published online Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine, and Qi is presenting it Friday at the annual meeting of Obesity Society in San Antonio.

"This study indicates that unhealthy diet choices, such as drinking a lot of sugary beverages, can affect how the genes are expressed," Hu says. "Although genetic makeup influences obesity risk, the trigger of the genetic effects may lie in our environment."

Other genetic experts offer a word of caution on interpreting the results. It's hard to know if it's just the sugary beverages that are to blame for the increased genetic susceptibility or if it was influenced by other unhealthy lifestyle factors, says Ruth Loos, director of the Genetics of Obesity and Related Metabolic Traits Program at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. People who drink sugary beverages "tend to be less physically active, have a higher caloric intake and a poorer diet in general," she says. This is illustrated in the new study, she says.

Still, Loos says, there's no reason for people to get discouraged and blame their genes for their weight woes. She has done research that shows that being physical active lowers your risk of obesity, even more so in people with a high genetic susceptibility. Her study and this new one "show that your genetic susceptibility to obesity can be reduced by living a healthy lifestyle," she says.

By Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY