In Fighting Obesity, are Calories, Carbohydrates or Fat Grams the Research Paper

In Fighting Obesity, are Calories, Carbohydrates or Fat Grams the Enemy - Research Paper Example population (Dietz, 2009). Research studies reveal that obesity is found to be associated with numerous chronic health states counting diabetes, stroke, heart diseases, high blood pressure (Glied, 2003). The number is increasing constantly and thereby obesity does not come alone but in association with other chronic conditions, radically enhancing the cost of healthcare. In order to afford the essential therapeutic concern and management, it requires to deal with comorbid states, resulting in the financial burden on the nation as well as deficit in upcoming healthcare endowment. Besides, an augmenting demands of health care facilities is observed, hence a complicated situation is portrayed. A more wide-ranging interdisciplinary research is required to have an insight to understand the situation (Glied, 2003). As obesity has emerged as an issue that is engulfing the well-being of individuals of the present epoch and is rising as an epidemic in the United States of America. The incidenc e of obesity amongst adults has become two fold in past couple of decades intensifying the health concern and related issues of the inhabitants (Flegal, 2010). Obesity condenses eminence of life, enhances the probability of untimely death, augments the jeopardy for numerous persistent diseases, related to heart such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, other related disorders like high cholesterol levels, sleep apnea, overweight resulting in orthopaedic problems, early signs of puberty in case of obese kids, reduced life expectancy, stroke, obesity enhances the possibilities of witnessing Type 2 diabetes, elevated BMI, cancer, arthritis, metabolic disorders and other related anomalies (US Department of Health and Human Services: The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Obesity). Obesity not only brings concern about health, but it adds to the financial burden too. Obesity augments the health care costs. Estimates reveal that obesity accounts for approx imately 10% of yearly medical expenses, increasing the obesity-associated medical costs to $147 billion in 2008 (Finkelstein. 2009). Obesity has reached an alarming position in USA, and two well distinguished categories have been demonstrated namely obese and extreme obese. Findings disclose that over one-third adults of United States are found to be obese during the year 2007–2008 (Flegal, 2010). According to The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), the incidence of obesity in the United States could be estimated by means of data for height to weight ratio. The prevalence rate of obesity displays that there was a steady increase in obesity equally in both the sexes belonging to all ages from 1976 -1980 to 1988-1994. On the other hand, the trend in obesity augmentation between 1988-1994 and 1999-2000 was significant in other ages except for the males belonging to the age between 40 to 59 years. While data analysis from 2001-2002 to 2003-2004 recommended escalating trends since 1999-2000 in males and not in females (Ogden, 2006).? Obesity trends also varies between the ethnic and racial communal groups which is displayed by means of BMI, a helpful tool to measure obesity for the examination and comparison of the obesity and to procure data in a standard format across the world as BMI indicates the percentage of body fat (Bouchard, 2008). Causes of Obesity As described by Glied,