Obesity and the environment aims to look at the different environmental factors that researchers worldwide have determined cause and perpetuate obesity. Obesity is a condition in which a person's weight is higher than what is considered healthy for their height, and is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide. Obesity can result from several factors such as poor nutritional choices, overeating, genetics, culture, and metabolism. Many diseases and health complications are associated with obesity (e.g., Type-II diabetes, heart disease, cancer, stroke). Worldwide, the rates of obesity have nearly tripled since 1975, leading health professionals to label the condition as a modern epidemic in most parts of the world. As of 2022, worldwide population estimates of obese adults are near 13%; overweight adults total approximately 39%.
Environmental obesogens Studies have shown that obesity has become increasingly prevalent in both people and animals (pets and laboratory animals). Proper diet and exercise is not linked to lower obesity rates or the trending toward obesity despite these being the assumed cure and preventative for obesity. According to Professor Robert H. Lustig from the University of California, San Francisco, "[E]ven those at the lower end of the body mass index (BMI) curve are gaining weight. Whatever is happening is happening to everyone, suggesting an environmental trigger." The theory of environmental obesogens proposes a different causal facet to obesity – that lifetime exposure to xenobiotic chemical obesogens, molecules that do not properly regulate lipid metabolism in the body and may cause obesity, changes the body's metabolic system. Data is scarce, but some in-vitro studies have found this model could be an accurate predictor of future obesity. A study suggested that smoking before and during pregnancy, for example, increases the risk of obesity twofold in children of school age. Many chemicals in common-use products are known or suspected to be obesogens and act as endocrine disruptors in the body. In a University at Albany, State University of New York study, organotin compounds, toxic chemicals derived from tin and hydrocarbon substituents, were found in a designer handbag, vinyl blinds, wallpaper, tile, and vacuum cleaner dust collected from 20 houses. The study linked obesity to phthalates, present in many PVC items, in addition to scented items like fresheners, laundry products, and personal care products. Also linked is Bisphenol A (BPA), a known environmental obesogen that reduces the body's overall number of fat cells but which makes remaining fat cells larger. Additionally, glucose intolerance and more abdominal fat were found to be the results of obesogens in animals and the long-term effects of low-birth weight babies. The study strongly indicates that obesogens change an individual's metabolic set points for gaining weight. Research on obesogens indicate some endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) belong to this class of compounds. Bruce Blumberg, a professor of developmental and cell biology at UC Irvine, has found compelling evidence that exposure to the chemical Tributyltin (TBT), a compound used in pesticides, can trigger fat cell creation. As several cases have confirmed, farm workers in America have unwillingly or unknowingly worked in fields that had been recently sprayed with TBT and other dangerous chemicals. Among a wide variety of health risks, farm workers may bear a disproportionate risk of exposure to such obesogens. While legislation has been enacted to require a minimum amount of time to pass before workers enter sprayed fields, the lack of legal and political power of many farm workers combined with the fact that enforcing such laws can be difficult, makes exposure to obesogens a possible threat to the livelihood of many farm workers.
Location
Obesity by country The country to country rates of obese adults in a total population vary due to different environments, lifestyles, and diets. While there is no direct correlation between obesity rates and economic status, wealthier countries have more resources to utilize for health and fitness awareness. According to World Population Review, in 2022 all of the top ten countries with the highest percentage of obese adults are found in the South Pacific. Several theories attempt to explain this fact, including the popularity of unhealthy fast food, the use of frying as a means to prepare food, and possible genetic predispositions. In contrast, the country with the lowest percentage of total obese adults is Vietnam, with only 2.1%, attributed to chronic food insecurity and child malnutrition.
In the United States, the prevalence of obese adults in the mid-1990's was substantially lower than current figures. In 1994, the prevalence of obesity in every state was less than 22%, but by 2000, 11 states (Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia) had surpassed that figure. Six states had a population percentage of obese adults of more than 30%; the remaining states ranged between 20% and 30%. By 2015, no state had a prevalence of obesity under 18%; almost all states exceeded 22%, and six states exceeded 26%. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2016 the number of obese people in the United States reached an all-time high of about 93 million, up 33% from 2008. By 2020, the U.S, obesity prevalence was 41.9%, an increase from 30.5% in 2017 to 41.9% in 2020. During the same time, the prevalence of severe obesity increased from 4.7% to 9.2%.
Race
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
