Obesity is a problem in America. That is not news; it is an obvious observation. According to CalorieLab and other such entities that measure the fattitude of the U.S., the “fattest” state in the country for three years running is Mississippi. In a bold attempt to replace the Magnolia State for the fat crown, West “By God, there better be extra crispy fries with that fried squirrel” Virginia passed Alabama as the second fattest state in 2006 and appears to have its sights set on the coveted fat crown for 2009. Well, we all need a goal…Perhaps our Alabama State Motto should be changed from “Thank God for Mississippi” to “We May Be A Tad Overweight but We Ain’t Mississippi or West Virginia”.
In injury cases, medical records are obtained and reviewed. Far too many records contain descriptions of the patient as “exceedingly obese”, “grossly obese”, and “morbidly obese”. Rare is the entry: “patient is an in-shape, muscular…”
I am certain that depending on what you read and where you read it, there are incalculable opinions on why so many individuals are obese. I would imagine that there as many articles/opinions stating that obesity is actually healthy to articles stating that obesity was the next plague Job was going to experience but not even God Almighty would allow such a terrible fate to befall Job. Whatever your opinion is, it is obvious that obesity is wide spread (no pun intended) and there appears to be recurring health issues as a result of carrying excess weight.
The health problems from obesity are more than ones we typically hear about (heart disease and diabetes). According to medical experts being overweight can also affect ones sleep, breathing, joints, mood and energy levels.
Unfortunately, obesity is not a problem limited to adults. According to the latest studies, one third of all kids between the ages of 2 and 19 are overweight or obese. The result is that younger people are now developing health problems that used to affect only adults: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes, to name a few.
Thankfully, there are some rather uncomplicated solutions such as eating a little less and exercising a little more each week.
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