“Bigger isn't always better”

Obesity has become an epidemic in the United States, according to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), In 2010 more then 1/3 (35.7%) of American adults were considered obese and almost 17% of the American youth population. Obesity has several effects on humans, not only does it effect our self esteem and social life, it can take a toll on the human body physiologically.

A Body Mass Index(BMI) of 25-30 is considered over weight while anything exceeding 30 is obese. Along with obesity comes an extensive list of health risks. These risks include but are not limited to Coronary Heart Disease(CHD), Type 2 Diabetes, Hypertension(the increase in Blood Pressure causing you heart to work too hard, resulting in heart failure), Stroke, Cancers, Liver and Gullbladder diseases and Sleep Apnea. Higher Cholesterol and Sodium levels are often found in the obese population. This increases the probability for angina and “sudden death heart attacks” along with putting you at a higher risk for strokes, which is the top 5 causes of deaths. This can be caused by the narrowing of an artery which restricts the blood flow to the brain or a blood clot. These health risks have been linked to high vholesterol and the absense of exercise, which is commonly seen in the obese. Not only can high cholesterol levels be linked to heart attacks and strokes, it can cause gullstones which are formed from the excess cholesterol the body doesnt need. “The New England Journal of Medicine published a study that concluded that virtually all forms of cancer are more prevalent in people with higher body mass.” Researchers also found that the exposure of fat cells to estrogen increase the production of leptin, which in turn increases the number of cancer cells and growth of a tumor putting