Obesity: The Health Epidemic Essay

Lack of sleeping is another thing that can make you overweight and maybe obese. Lack of sleep can make you hungry by increasing the calories you eat and reduces energy expenditure which means more calories in and fewer calories out. When people stay awake all night they eat snacks that gives them high calorie. Professor Wright said: “Just getting less sleep by itself is not going to lead to weight gain. But when people get insufficient sleep it leads them to eat more than they actually need” (Wright, 2013).

How would you feel if I told you that there is no one state with an obesity rate lower than 20%? Take this information and compare it to twenty years ago when every state had an obesity rate lower than 15%. Obesity has become not only the number one cause in death, but according to David Zinczenko, editor-in-chief of Men’s Health and author of “Don’t Blame the Eater”, it is the number one cost in health care with numbers rising well over 100 billion dollars a year (196). There are many people we could blame, such as the food industry or the government, but before we start pointing fingers elsewhere, individuals need to stand up and take personal responsibility for their own actions and health. Either way it is evident a

A very large study has found a surprisingly strong link between the amount of shut-eye people get and their risk of becoming obese. Those who got less than four hours of sleep a night were 73 percent more likely to be obese than those who got the recommended seven to nine hours of rest, scientists discovered. Those who averaged five hours of sleep had 50 percent greater risk, and those who got six hours had 23 percent more.

E.) Sleep is important for your physical self as well; sleep deficiency can place a person at risk for obesity. Obesity can additionally place a person at risk for other illnesses such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and stroke.

Obstructive sleep apnea has become an increasingly big problem in the United States. It is also apparent that obesity is also one of the biggest epidemics in our country as well. There is no question that both obesity and having obstructive sleep apnea go hand in hand for several reasons. I will go into some detail as to why these two go hand in hand, how young kids are now having issues with these two things, and what we as a society can do about it.

Another integral part of a healthy lifestyle is getting enough sleep. There is evidence that lack of sleep correlates with higher blood glucose levels, a precursor of diabetes. This is likely because sleep deprivation impairs the ability of fat cells to respond to insulin. In addition, people who get less sleep tend to be heavier than those who sleep well, studies show. This excess body weight is a common risk factor for the development of diabetes. Finally, a lack of sleep causes one to become tired. When one receives less sleep, one’s body tries to compensate by eating more food, often those high in sugar because of the quick boost of energy they provide. This causes one’s blood sugar to become abnormal, and this can even lead to more trouble getting an adequate amount of sleep. Sleeping well can reduce one’s chances of developing diabetes.

My first point confronts adolescents who do not get the proper amount of sleep and end up with health issues. These students have a higher chance of obesity, which is due to hormones that control appetite. These hormones may become off balance from sleep deprivation. Also, teens will be less motivated to exercise because of how tired they are.

Obesity rates are soaring throughout North America (What Is Obesity?, 2013). With obesity reaching almost epidemic proportions in the United States, and the threat of a global epidemic, we must watch this alarming increase carefully ( Health Risks of Obesity, 2013). Obesity is defined as: "…an excess of adipose tissue…" (A Report of the Surgeon General, 2014). The two most common measures of obesity are Body Mass Index (BMI is a ratio of weight to height) and relative weight index, such as percent desirable weight (Body Mass Index , 2013). BMI is the most frequently used measure of obesity as it has a strong correlation with more direct measures of adiposity, such as underwater weighing (A Report of the Surgeon General, 2013). Some

The statistics surrounding obesity and sleep apnea tell a very scary tale. According to SleepFoundation.Org, 65% of all Americans are either overweight or obese. Dr. Richard Simon, a sleep specialist in Walla Walla, has even linked this epidemic to a lack of sleep, stating that a decrease in exercise, an increase in caloric intake, and a major decline in sleep has thrown the body's natural rhythms out of

Obesity has become increasingly more prominent in American society. The Unites States has even been termed an overweight nation. Some twenty to thirty percent of American adults are now considered obese (Hwang 1999 and Hirsch et al 1997). With this in mind, Americans constantly look around themselves determining their weight status as well as that of those around them. While some Americans do fit the healthy category, others enter the underweight, overweight, and even obese categories, all of which can be unhealthy.

According to Alexandra Sifferlin, the author of the article “When School and Sleep Don’t Mix”, “Data suggests that anything under 8.5 to 9 hours of sleep on school days can contribute to health problems like obesity, mood changes and diabetes”(Sifferlin). The reason that not sleeping leads to obesity is because a hormone is released that makes you more hungry when you don’t get enough sleep. According to to the article "How Sleep Loss Leads to Significant Weight Gain”, “Studies have shown that when people don’t get enough sleep have increased levels of a hunger hormone called ghrelin and decreased levels of the satiety/fullness hormone called leptin, which could lead to overeating and weight gain.”(Hellmich) They did studies and the results showed that the participants gained weight over time. It can also lead to other things as well, according to Sifferlin, “Other data has linked poor sleep to a higher reliance on substances like caffeine, tobacco and alcohol. Not getting enough sleep can also take a toll on academic performance”(Sifferlin). Not getting enough sleep at night can lead to those things, possibly because teens think it could help them feel less sleepy. The National Sleep Foundation says that “More than half of teens surveyed reported that they have driven a car while drowsy over the past year and 15% said they drove drowsy at least once a week. Young people under the age of 25 are far

Sleep timing, duration, and quality can influence the release of growth hormone, cortisol, leptin, and ghrelin. The sleep wake cycle also influences insulin secretion. Reduced sleep can have adverse effects on metabolism and endocrine function. Disruptions in circadian rhythm and the sleep wake cycle regulate the release of hypothalamic activating and inactivating factors that influence the release of pituitary hormones and sympathetic and parasympathic activity. With reduced sleep, a study found increased evening cortisol levels, decreased glucose tolerance and glucose sensitivity, and a slight elevation of GH while awake (Leproult & Van Cauter, 2009). Because the student sleeps less than 8 hours a night, this will reduce the leptin level and elevate ghrelin, so the appetite of the student will probably increase, thus increasing the BMI as well. Ghrelin works to stimulate the appetite. (Taheri, Lin,

As the body becomes larger in size the body must work harder to not become short of breath while doing daily activities. A simple task turns into a difficult one. Sleep apnea is a common disorder when one is obese. While laying down the body fat pushed up causing it to be more difficult to breathe. This can cause one to stop breathing for short periods of time while asleep.

I. Attention Gainer: “Even though we burn more calories when we stay awake, losing sleep is not a good way to lose weight. The light sleepers ended up eating far more than those who get nine hours of sleep.” According to author Tara Parker-Pope of The New York Times published on March 18, 2013.

Sleep is an essential part of any person’s health, however few people seem to realize that not receiving enough sleep can double the risk of becoming obese.“The ‘epidemic’ of obesity is paralleled by a ‘silent epidemic’ of reduced sleep duration with short sleep duration linked to the increased risk of obesity both in adults and in children”(Professor Cappuio). Someone who has developed a sleeping disorder such as, sleep apnea, may not have the motivation to diet or exercise, due to daytime sleepiness. Scientists at the University of Chicago conucted a study in 1999, which restricted eleven healthy young adults to four hours of sleep for six nights. The scientist discovered that restricting individuals to this amount of sleep impaired metabolism functions and disrupted hormone levels. It was also found that the subject’s abilities to process glucose in the blood had declined, in some cases to the level of diabities. ” Not only does obesity contribute to sleep problems such as sleep apnea, but sleep problems can also contribute to obesity.”(National Sleep Foundation)