Healthy People 2020: Causes or Risk Factors of Obesity

Healthy People 2020
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Healthy People 2020
Healthy People 2020 LHIs (Leading Health Indicators) are a selection of 26 topics among the Healthy People 2020 topics selected towards communicating high-priority healthy problems (Perrin, 2014). One among the LHIs is obesity among adults. Obesity among adults has become a global concern since it is linked with diverse health problems such as chronic diseases. Accordingly, this paper will focus on the health disparities linked with obesity among adults.
Health Problem Definition
Obesity occurs when one weighs at least 20 percent more than the ideal weight for his/her height (Healy, 2017). Obesity makes one be in a great danger of having conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and so on. Majority of foods in different places as well as different technology developed for numerous reasons are making people notice their waistline increasing. Individuals link their weight gain on their busy schedules. According to Healy (2017), 66% of U.S. adults have obesity.
Causes or Risk Factors of Obesity
Obesity normally results from an incorporation of causes plus contributing factors. Obesity is mainly caused by consuming too much as well as moving too little (Healy, 2017). Whenever an individual consumes large amounts of sugars and calories and does not exercise, a lot of the excess energy ends up being stored as fats within the body. Another cause of obesity is food addiction. Fast foods causes’ powerful simulation of reward centers within our brains. These foods are high in calories, and the fact is fast foods may cause full-brown addiction among susceptible individuals. Individuals are unable to control their eating behavior, consequently increasing their caloric intake.
Another cause of obesity is the absence of physical activity. Most individuals work in offices which demand them to sit at a desk for many hours. Also, they heavily depend on their vehicles, rather than cycling or else walking. For leisure, many individuals tend to spend their free time watching television, or play video games, and rarely perform regular exercise. If one is inactive, one does not utilize the energy generated by the food consumed, and the excess energy consumed is stored in the form of fat in the body (Fryar, Carroll, & Ogden, 2012). Genetic is another cause of obesity. Some persons claim there is no need to try to lose excess weight since it runs in their family. A person’s genes might impact the amount of fats to be stored in the body, and where the fat is to be distributed. Likewise, genetics play a vital role in how effectively one’s body transforms food into energy as well as how one’s body burns fats during exercise. Another contributing factor is certain medicines. Some medicines may result in weight gain whenever a person does not compensate via physical activity and diet. These medicines include diabetes medications, antidepressants, beta blockers, anti-seizure medications, and steroids (Fryar, Carroll, & Ogden, 2012).
Health Disparities of Obesity
Healthy People 2020 refer to health disparity as a form of health difference which is linked to social, environmental, and e...