Scientific studies and media coverage are rife with warnings on how sugar, carbohydrates, saturated fat and lack of exercise contribute to obesity. And tens of millions of Americans are still overweight or obese in large part because of the classic Western diet and lifestyle. As an educator, researcher and professor of medicine, I have spent […]
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There is a growing global body positivity movement to combat the stigma and prejudice that overweight and obese individuals face. Some of this stigma arises from the perception that obese individuals are unhealthy. However, weight is only one of the metrics that medical professionals use to assess overall health. In fact, some studies have demonstrated […]
There continues to be a belief within our popular culture that obesity is the simple result of eating too much and exercising too little (if at all). Sadly, many people still point the finger at obese folks for their circumstances without realizing the true facts about obesity. From experiencing verbal abuse from strangers on the […]
Just how taxing is loneliness? A new study explores that question and finds it can be just as dangerous as obesity. The study, which was carried out by a research team under Brigham Young University professor Julianne Holt-Lunstad, found that consistently feeling lonely can have a negative impact on health. Overall, researchers found that chronic […]
The world is facing a serious obesity crisis and we’re not doing enough to confront it — that’s the finding of the health experts behind a new six-part report published in The Lancet. The report finds that, in the past four years, only about one in four nations around the world have done anything to […]
Should obesity be considered a type of disability? The European Court of Justice thinks so, issuing a binding ruling that could have huge implications for employment law across the 28-nation European Union. The ruling was made in the case of Danish childcare worker Karsten Kaltoft, whose employer claimed his services were no longer necessary because […]
The health cost of being obese is becoming clearer. A new report finds that men dealing with severe obesity can expect to live eight fewer years than people who have a healthy weight. The report, which comes from Montreal, Quebec’s McGill University and has been published in the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, said obesity can […]
The main treatment for obesity is a combination of healthy diet and physical activity. And although fad diets, weight loss pills, and cleanses may produce a short-term weight loss; maintaining a healthy weight can only be achieved with regular exercise and a healthy, low calorie diet as part of a regular lifestyle. Healthy, long-term weight […]
Regardless if obesity is an imbalance of body fat versus muscle fat or between the calories one consumes and the energy one burns, it is a North American epidemic that doesn’t just affect adults–it affects children as well. Evidence points to a multitude of factors that can cause or lead to ever-growing obesity rates, including: […]
Obesity, or an obese individual, is defined as someone with an excess amount of body fat. However, scientists point to caloric intake exceeding the amount of energy a person burns as the main indicator of obesity. Nearly 72 million adults in the United States are obese. Medical professionals use several indexes to measure obesity or […]