:::: THE BIG PROBLEM website :::: Fat Free :::: What is obesity?

Do you have an apple shaped belly? If you do, you should ask your doctor about your waist to hip ratio. Everybody should know their LDL and HDL (good and bad cholesterol). Copyright The Big Problem 2008

What is obesity? Obesity means that you are fatter than the average person for your height and weight. You can be overweight but not obese. Usually what we mean when we say obese is that you are least 30% above your normal weight. So if you should weight 60 pounds and you weigh 80 pounds you would be obese. Why does that happen? Usually this is caused by your body storing too much fat. I'm sure you know that food contains calories. If you eat too many calories and you don't use them as energy (running or playing baseball), they are stored as fat. You can be overweight but not obese. How does obesity affect you? Obesity is definitely not good for your health. It increases your risk of getting many diseases, especially type 2 diabetes. Obesity often starts in childhood. At present about 12 million (17%) of kids 2-19 years are overweight. Often diseases that only adults used to get are now affecting children, like type 2 diabetes, high- blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, orthopedic problems(especially weight-bearing joints like your knees and back), and sleeping problems. Believe it or not it can make it difficult to control your anger and may affect your friendships. When you don't feel good about yourself, it can affect your learning and self esteem. You are more likely to be made fun of and bullied and this may lead to depression. Obesity can also cause attention problems especially if you cannot sleep well at night.		`We had our ThinkQuest meeting then went out to go kayaking. Kayaking is very good exercise. Tiffany is in the front, leading, and Elena is right behind her. Copyright The Big Problem.`

Unhealthy food that will likely contribute to weight gain, although it looks quite good. Portion control is the key!CopyrightThe Big Problem 2008

What can we do to prevent becoming overweight? Firstly, if you exercise more and eat the same amount you will use more calories? Why not try to watch less television and play fewer video games, being active can be fun. Eat healthier snacks like fruits and fresh vegetables. Learn about foods and help prepare meals. Study the food fact labels. Know what portion size really is. Cut down on sugar and fats. In rare cases surgery may be the only way to help someone who is very overweight. The most common surgery is bariatric, which is a branch of medicine that deals with the causes, prevention, and treatment of obesity.

Helping kids loose weight before they grow up will make it less likely that they will develop serious diseases like strokes, heart attacks and high blood pressure when they are older. Are there fat genes? Genes are traits your grandparents and parents have (for example: if your grandparents or parents are fat you might be fat) and the traits they pass on to you. Today over half of Americans are overweight, and nearly one half are obese (see what is obesity to find what is obesity). Scientists are trying to figure why people are getting fatter. Nobody has all the answers but here are a some ideas why: food is more available and people are less active. Only a few decades ago only a small number of people in America were diabetic and overweight but now it's becoming an epidemic. This is costing the world more than $100 billion a year in health related costs. Only a small amount of obesity and diabetes are caused by genetics. Which is why an only very small amount of the world was fat or had diabetes during the past several decades (ten years = decade).