Obesity is a major health problem in the United States. Currently over half of the total population in the United States is said to be obese or overweight. Occurence rate of obesity continue to increase in males and females. Of all U.S. women twenty years and older, more than 64 million are overweight and about 34 million are will fall in to the catagory of obese women.

Obesity is linked to marked health risks and higher death rates. Obese individuals are more prone to develop heart disease, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, stroke and a veriety of other medical conditions. It is very important that we all eat healhy food and maintain a program of exercise througout life. To lose weight and keep it off over time, try to make long-term changes in your eating and physical activity habits and active exercise.

Measuring the exact amount of someone's body fat is not an easy task. The most accurate measures of body fat are weighing a person underwater or in a chamber that uses air displacement to measure body volume, or to use an X-ray test called Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry. Body fat mesaurements need not be so complicated. There are a number of simpler methods to estimate body fat. One is to measure the thickness of the layer of fat located below the skin in several parts of the body. Another involves sending a harmless amount of electric current through a person's body. Results from these methods, however, can be inaccurate if done by an inexperienced person or on someperson with extreme obesity.

Because directly measuring body fat is difficult, health care professionals usually rely on other means to diagnose obesity. These include weight for height charts, and body mass index. These are good estimates of a person's body fat status nevertheless less accurate and reliable than direct measurements.

Posted by: Diana

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