Obesity is a chronic disorder that affects tens of millions of Americans. Caused by a complex variety of factors, obesity is a major risk factor for serious health problems, including coronary heart disease (CHD), high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and certain forms of cancer. Obese people are also at high risk for depression and job discrimination and other social problems owing to our fat-phobic society. Most worrisome is research indicating that obese people have a shortened life expectancy.

According to the American Obesity Association, a nonprofit educational and advocacy group, obesity causes some 300,000 premature deaths each year and accounts for an estimated $100 billion in annual health care costs.

After cigarette smoking, obesity is the second-leading cause of preventable deaths in the US.Obesity is generally evaluated using the body mass index (BMI). To determine your BMI, your weight in kilograms is divided by your height in meters, squared. If your BMI is 25 to 29.9, you are overweight but not to the point of being obese. If your BMI is 30 or greater, you are considered obese. Obesity would most likely be diagnosed in the following cases:

A 6-foot-tall individual who weighs 221 pounds


A 5-foot, 5-inch-tall person who weighs 180 pounds
Anyone whose BMI is 40 or above or is 100 pounds overweight is considered severely (morbidly) obese. For example, severe obesity would be diagnosed in the following cases:

A 5-foot, 3-inch-tall person who weighs 226 pounds


A 6-foot, 1-inch person who weighs 303 pounds
Another measure used to assess obesity is waist circumference
Distinguishing between being overweight and being severely obese is important when determining a patient's risk factors for disease and the best treatment approach

What Causes Obesity?

1.Genes
2.Fatty foods
3.Lifestyle
4.Metabolic rate
5.Psychology (STRESS OR DEPRESSION)

TREATMENT.
1. DRUG THERAPY.
I will not advise this, as it comes with lot of side affects.
2. Weight loss programme.
The Institute of Medicine offers the following tips for evaluating a weight-loss program:

a)Match the program with the consumer. Programs should give information on who should enroll. See a doctor before undertaking a "do-it-yourself" or non-clinical program. Discuss the specific program or product with your doctor.

b)Find out if the program is safe and sound. Medically supervised (clinical) programs should monitor the physical and psychological health of patients, while non-clinical and do-it-yourself programs should encourage a visit to a health care provider. If you choose a non-clinical program, you have a greater responsibility for monitoring your own health. Information about qualifications and training of the program designers and staff should be available.

c)Look for hard evidence that the program works and is worth the effort and cost. All programs should be judged on their success in achieving long-term weight loss -- at least a 5 percent reduction in body weight for one year or longer. Make sure not only that evidence of success does exist, but that the source claiming that the program works is not someone who is making money from the program. Independent evaluations from people who do not make money from the program are the most reliable.

REMEMBER DO NOT FALL IN LOVE, ALWAYS RISE IN LOVE!!!

STAY HEALTHY!!!
HAPPY DATING...

Feedback and queries are appreciated.

I agree with you in that the use of chemical agents as medication should be avoided, Modern medicine is designed from a historic system of fighting infectious disease, and obesity is not (at least directly) contagious. So the main issue that is most implentable and affordable is modicfication of lifestyle. I thnk that a good diet that prevents malnutrition is the best option. It may be said that such a small measure has to have the backing of politics and curbing big food industries taht produce unnutritious food, but if people start be conscientious about what they eat and it's nutrition content, the food industry will have to adjust, and political need will be felt.

I will say intelligence is the main reason people are fat, because since they are too comfortable in our society (comfortable enough to get fat), they can`t be very smart to begin with. You see skinny people, they are usually the most intelligent. The more you dislike society, the more fit and alert you stay basically.