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Body Fat Decrease In Early Adulthood

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a. The simultaneous release of growth hormones, thyroid hormones, and androgens stimulates rapid acceleration in height and weight. This dramatic increase in stature is called the adolescent growth spurt.
b. At the time of peak height velocity–the time at which the adolescent is growing most rapidly–he or she is growing at the same rate as a toddler. For boys, peak height velocity averages about 4 inches per year; for girls, it’s about 3.5 inches.
c. One marker of the conclusion of puberty is the closing of the ends of the long bones in the body, a process called epiphysis, which terminates growth in height.
3.
a. In both sexes, muscular development is raid during puberty, but muscle tissue grows faster in boys than girls. In contrast, body fat increases for both sexes during puberty, but more so for females than for males, especially during the years just before puberty. The result of these sex differences is that boys finish adolescence with a muscle-to-fat ratio of about 3 to 1, but the comparable ratio for girls is approximately 5 to 4.
b. The rapid increase in body fat among females in early adolescence frequently prompts girls to become …show more content…

Current research indicates that obesity is a result of the interplay of genetic and environmental factors. Recent neuroimaging studies find that individuals at risk for obesity show relatively greater activation of the brain’s reward centers in general, heightened responses to images of food, and poorer impulse control. Much recent attention has focused on the availability of unhealthy foods and beverages in and near American schools. Manufacturers of high-calories and high-fat foods have been criticized for marketing these products to younger children, because food preferences are known to develop largely during early childhood. Although schools and advertisers undoubtedly influence what children and adolescents eat and drink, the bulk of what children and adolescents put into their mouths comes from their own

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