Various medical researches have proven that obesity is a leading health problem confronting the America people. Can you believe that about 2/3 adults in America are today suffering from one form of obesity or another? In fact, researches also discovered that about 1 American out of 3 people is critically obese or overweight!
What is obesity? It is the situation when the body fat in a human being is developing at a much higher rate than normal. This is measure if you have fat in excess of twenty percent to thirty percent above the natural limit for your age, sex and height.
Aside from being a major cosmetic concern, obesity is a great risk factor for serious medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney troubles, prostate enlargement, female infertility, uterine fibroids, pregnancy disorders, gallstones, cardiovascular diseases, stroke and cancer. Excessive body weight also puts great stress on joints increasing the chances of arthritis.
Everyone's metabolism (the rate at which the body burns calories) is different and is influenced by many factors, including genetics. Regularly eating even a few more calories than your body needs can lead to weight gain. By consuming only 100 extra calories a day, for example, you'll gain a pound in approximately a month (a pound of body fat equals 3,500 calories).
Some experts think a sedentary lifestyle influences weight gain even more than eating too many calories. Exercise burns calories and builds muscle. And the more muscle mass you have, the greater number of calories your body burns at rest.
