Don't LauFat U.S.!

By Cameron Ross

Obesity is not an epidemic but some dietitians think of it as the modern form of the plague. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) roughly 30 per cent of Americans are obese.
That portion equates to nearly 50 million people. Roughly 60 per cent of Americans are overweight. The next “fattest” country is Great Britain with 24 per cent of the population clinically obese.
Being obese or overweight is not always a product of bad health habits but thyroid problems can only account for so much excess fat. The main cause of being overweight is bad discipline.
Statistics from scientifically published reports from organizations such as the CDC, World Health Organization (WHO), and American Public Health Association (APHA) reveal that 95 per cent of cases of significant weight loss through non-surgical programs is regained within 3 to 5 years.
The last few years, bariatric surgeries have proven to be the most effective method of permanent weight loss. This surgery is also known as a gastric bypass.
Gastric bypasses are gaining popularity as a form of weight loss because reports show encouraging results and are proving to be less risky as the medical field makes advances.
Some obesity can be attributed to risk factors such as smoking. There are many assumptions about smoking, one that suggests it distracts from eating by minimizing appetite because of nicotine cravings.
One little-known fact is that going long periods of time without eating can slow down metabolism, leaving fat to be stored rather than metabolized.
Another dimension of obesity that is frequently neglected is diet. Walking into a café and ordering a 20 oz. vanilla latte is not the same as indulging in a cup of coffee. The objective of drinking coffee is to get caffeine for energy.
In American culture, such fads become saturated, much like the fat in a typical American diet. A flavored latte made with whole milk will have well over 300 calories. A plain (20 oz.) cup of coffee contains approximately 25 calories.
Before the mass production of drinks like the ones served at popular coffee franchises, people drank plain cups of coffee. This is one of many facts that can explain why obesity grows more every year.
Walking down the condiments aisle at a supermarket is like going to Disneyland for a lipids addict. Whether the choice is dressing, barbeque sauce, mustard, ketchup, or Alfredo sauce, the ingredients in the condiments are very concentrated.
The nutrition facts on the bottles or jar may not appear so bad until one realizes that the serving size is something miniscule such as one tablespoon or two teaspoons.
Devouring copious amounts of calories is not always a bad thing. If one were to ingest more calories than the standard 2,000 they would be maintaining his or her health if they exercised vigorously as some people do daily.
Burning calories by cardiovascular exercise helps build muscle out of the calories ingested and distributes the good vitamins and minerals while excreting the bad ones.
A balanced diet is still necessary, however, as this gives the body all the components necessary to perform such functions.
The statistics of increasing obesity are staggering and disturbing. Countless diet plans and nutritional theories flood the bookstores, Internet, and magazines all claiming to be the ideal.
Obvious truth to the matter is that different diets work for different people. DNA is the determining factor of health because it is hereditary nature of the body.
Obesity is the haunting result of a culture where luxuries are taken for granted. Proteins and fats are much more affordable than in the past when the country was not plagued with obesity.
It appears that weight will be a problem for the near future because health is a neglected discipline in American lifestyle that hasn’t improved in decades even with constant attention.