A Common-sense Cure For Obesity (p 473)August 07, 2002In a Seminar in this week's issue of THE LANCET, Cara B Ebbeling and colleagues, from the USA, discuss the public-health crisis that is childhood obesity. Fat children, historically thought of as healthy, are now known to be at risk of many serious physiological and psychological complications. People who are obese are likely to die earlier than those who are not overweight. The authors discuss the complications associated with obesity, outline the extent and causes of the epidemic, and discuss strategies for prevention and treatment. Their conclusion, however, is not an optimistic one-obesity is a common problem that extracts an enormous toll in health-care costs and human suffering, and for which there is no effective cure. The message of this Seminar is clear: "The childhood obesity epidemic can be primarily attributed to adverse environmental factors for which straightforward, if politically difficult, solutions exist." The sobering truth is that no amount of research alone will solve the problem of obesity in children without comprehensive measures to address the "toxic environment". These measures should target the many factors that "promote energy intake and limit energy expenditure in children, undermining individual efforts to maintain a healthy bodyweight". Lancet |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Obesity Current Events and Obesity News Articles Carnegie Mellon researchers link health-care debate to risk of dying in US and Europe The current health care debate in the United States is complicated. Trade-offs between heath care expenditures, lifestyle choices and life expectancy have been suggested but seldom clearly demonstrated. New finding suggests prostate biopsy is not always necessary Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered that some elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in men may be caused by a hormone normally occurring in the body, and are not necessarily a predictor of the need for a prostate biopsy. Developmental delay could stem from nicotinic receptor deletion The loss of a gene through deletion of genetic material on chromosome 15 is associated with significant abnormalities in learning and behavior, said a consortium of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine (www.bcm.edu) in a report that appears online today in the journal Nature Genetics. Indiana U. at APHA: Studies about health education for people with ID, stability balls at work An Indiana University study involving adults with intellectual disabilities found that the adults increased their personal health knowledge after taking a semi-weekly class for four weeks. Physical education key to improving health in low-income adolescents School-based physical education plays a key role in curbing obesity and improving fitness among adolescents from low-income communities, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and UC Berkeley. Energy gap useful tool for successful weight loss maintenance strategy Americans continue to get heavier. Most weight control methods short of bariatric surgery are generally considered ineffective in preventing obesity or reducing weight. TV bombards children with commercials for high-fat and high-sugar foods Childhood obesity in the United States is reaching epidemic proportions. With more than one fourth of advertising on daytime and prime time television devoted to foods and beverages and continuing questions about the role television plays in obesity. New scientific study indicates that eating quickly is associated with overeating According to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), eating a meal quickly, as compared to slowly, curtails the release of hormones in the gut that induce feelings of being full. American Dietetic Association Releases Updated Position Paper Promoting and Supporting Breastfeeding The American Dietetic Association has released an updated position paper on breastfeeding that details health benefits for both infants and mothers and encourages promotion of breastfeeding whenever possible. Addressing obesity via the 'energy gap' The November issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association features a commentary by James O. Hill, an honorary ADA member, professor of pediatrics and medicine and director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado-Denver. More Obesity Current Events and Obesity News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||