What are the Main Causes of Obesity?

Although there are behavioral, hormonal, and genetic influences on body weight, generally obesity happens when you are consuming more calories than you are burning off through normal daily activities and exercise. These excess calories are stored by your body as fat. In some cases, obesity can be linked to a medical condition like Cushing’s syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, and other conditions.

Factors that May Increase the Chances of Obesity

While the causes of obesity vary by individual, below are some of the most common causes of being obese.

Unhealthy Diets

What is thought of as the average Western diet—large, frequent meals loaded with refined grains, unhealthy fats, red meat and sugary drinks—plays a huge role in obesity.  Foods that are not usually the prominent component in the Western diet include vegetables, whole grains, nuts, fruits and others that seem to help prevent chronic disease, help with weight loss, and control weight.

Genetics

If one or both of your parents are obese, chances are you have an increased likelihood of developing obesity. The hormones that are involved in fat regulation are also affected by genetics. For instance, leptin deficiency is just one genetic cause of obesity. This is a hormone generated in the placenta and fat cells. It signals the brain to eat less when there is too much body fat stored, which helps to control weight. If the body is unable to produce enough leptin for some reason, or leptin is unable to signal the brain to eat less, there is a loss of control and obesity is the result. Currently, leptin replacement is being explored today for the treatment of obesity. You can visit your local weight loss clinic to speak with a doctor about it.

An Inactive Lifestyle

There are a lot of people who are not that physically active. This is due to things like being glued to the television set and working at an office job, contributing to a sedentary lifestyle. Even a couple hours a day watching the television set can lead to becoming overweight.

Toxic Environment

The unavoidable and perpetual marketing of sugary drinks and unhealthy foods is leading to a toxic environment and jeopardizing maintaining a healthy weight. The junk food being sold at work, school, and the corner store contribute to it. The inadequacy when it comes to safe areas for exercising and more all add up to a toxic environment. It can be difficult for people to make those healthy choices needed to maintain a healthy weight and live a quality life.

In many ways, obesity and its causes have become a huge part of our society. Many people are seeing a Long Island laparoscopic doctor to talk about their weight loss treatment options. In order to combat this growing problem, it will take an all-around approach that will not just provide the right skills to people to make those healthy choices but to also set infrastructure and policy in place that will support those choices.