In order for the body weight to stay the same, people must be balancing their amount of calories they consume with the amount of calories the body uses or they burn off. This can happen when a good eating pattern is achieved and exercise is regular but not intense. Factors why so many people are obese in today’s society Obesity results from consuming more calories than the body uses. The number of calories needed varies from person to person, depending on age, sex, physical activity, and the person’s metabolic rate the rate at which the body burns calories or it is inherited in the genes.
There is a growing epidemic of obesity in Britain. ‘In addition to the 21% of women and 17% of men in England regarded as obese, another 32% of women and 46% of men are overweight. Also a report by the Department of Health says that in four years 19% of boys and 22% of girls will be obese, and that Britain is now the second-fattest nation in the developed world’. Here are some of the factors that I think cause many people to be obese in today’s society: Inherited factors Obesity tends to run in families, suggesting that it may have an inherited cause.
However, family members share not only genes, but also diet and lifestyle habits that may contribute to obesity. Separating these lifestyle factors from inherited factors is difficult because it is very common for obesity to run families. Several genes influence weight. One gene that has been identified the ob gene controls the production of Leptin. Leptin is a protein made by fat cells. Leptin travels to the brain and acts on receptors in the hypothalamus (the part of the brain that helps regulate appetite).
The message carried by leptin is to decrease food intake and increase the amount of calories (energy) burned. Inactivity Physical inactivity is one of the main reasons for the increase in obesity among people in wealthy societies. It is also a common cause of obesity as people age. Inactive people need fewer calories. When physical activity increases, food intake usually increases. However, when physical activity decreases, food intake does not always decrease accordingly, and for some people, it even increases.
The lack of exercise (inactivity) is caused from lifestyle pressures such as after work people are two tired to exercise or they have many inactive leisure activities (watching TV, computer games) Binge drinking Drinking alcohol can contribute to obesity. Alcohol tends to increase the number of calories taken in because it is usually consumed in addition to food. A single shot has 80 to 90 calories. A pint of beer (which is about 5-8% alcohol) has 150 calories. As soon as alcohol is consumed, it is used as energy, causing the calories from food to be stored as fat.
Furthermore, alcohol tends to stimulate the appetite and reduce self-control. Foods high in fat In wealthy societies, the diet has become higher in fats because of fast food and foods high in sugar. One problem with a high-fat diet is that fats do not trigger the stop-eating (satiety) response as quickly as carbohydrates or proteins. So when a diet is high in fat, more food tends to be eaten also, fats have twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates and proteins. Pregnancy Gaining weight during pregnancy is normal and necessary.
However, for a few women, pregnancy is the beginning of weight problems: They gain a large amount of weight and do not lose it afterward due to child or work responsibilities. Schools Schools have a lack approach to PE (physical education) most PE departments are out dated and low budgeted and single minded about what activities/sports should be carried out. Most school PE kits are out dated and ugly for boys it is not a huge issue but for girls it is a totally different matter. Girls are quite image conscious there’s pressure on the way they look, and they don’t want to feel they are making fools of themselves.
Boys are different. They just muck in and enjoy sport. Large numbers of girls dislike doing physical education at school because they hate wearing old-fashioned gym kits also playing old fashion sports such as hockey and netball. I feel if more modern kit and activates/sports were offered such as wide range of dance(square dancing, HipHop Jazz- und Modern-Dance Musical Dirty DancingMusical Dirty Dancing Musical Dirty DancingHipHop, Jazz, and Modern-Dance etc) and yoga it may inject some enthusiasm and get more girls doing PE. HipHop Jazz- und Modern-Dance.