Monday 23 April 2012

5 Reasons why people are obese

It is obvious that many people are obese these days. Do you know why?

Here are 5 main reasons why lots of people are obese in the world.

1. Fast food is the number one reason


Consumption of fast food has dramatically increased in the past few decades. Many people eat these junk foods as their regular meals. But they don't know that fast food is bad for their health.

These convenient foods have lots of fat and calories. Because of high-calorie intake people gain more weight. A recent study found that people who live near a fast-food restaurant are at increased risk of being overweight.


2. People eat more sugar.


Eating foods that contain large amounts of added sugar is considered to be a leading cause of obesity. Sugar contain lots of calories. Excess calories that people consumed are stored as fat.

In addition, sugary foods make you feel more hungry. The reason behind that is, when you eat foods that contain refined sugar, your body secretes lots of insulin hormone. The sugar will quickly be absorbed by the digestive system. However, the action of insulin will last for long. That lowers the glucose levels in the blood. Then you will feel hungry.

Want to know more? Read this article on does sugar make you fat?

3. People are obese because they are lazy.


The balance between energy intake and energy expenditure determines your body weight. If you burn fewer calories than your intake, you will gain weight. For example, you eat 2500 calories a day, and your body burns only 2000 calories a day. Then there are 500 extra calories in your body. That energy will be stored in the body as fat.

The majority of people do very limited amounts of exercise because they are lazy. They spend much time in front of the computer or television. They don't go for a walk. They don't do gardening in the backyard.

4. Too much stress in life


Stress is a part of our everyday life. Everybody has it in varying degrees. However, some people have excess amounts of stress that they can't cope with.

Too much stress makes your body secrete lots of glucocorticosteroid hormones. These hormones increase the fat storage in the body.

5. People have bad genes


Obesity and overweight have a strong genetic link. If both parents are obese, there is more chance that their children become obese.

Many people think that over-eating is the only cause of weight gain. But researchers found genes play important roles in the development of obesity.