Project topics and materials
Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »
OBESITY DEFINED
Obesity is defined in terms of excess body fat. Because precise assessment of body fat is cumbersome and expensive, body weight is often used as an estimate of obesity. The term overweight has traditionally referred to weight in excess of some ideal, usually stipulated by actuarial height and weight tables. Unfortunately, the definition of “ideal” weight varies over time and across cultures, thus making it difficult for example, to compare the prevalence of obesity in two nations. In recent years, investigators have begun to use the Body Mass Index (BMI) as a measure of overweight because it does not rely on comparison with an ideal weight. The World Health Organization has defined overweight as a BMI of 25.0 to 29.9, while obesity is a BMI of 30 or greater (World Health Organization, 1997). South Africa is on its way to overtaking America as the world’s fattest nation. Almost half of South Africans over the age of 15 are overweight or obese, and medical researchers warn that the government may soon have to step in to manage the epidemic (Health 24, 2002).
Obesity has long been thought to be a behavioural disorder that resulted from simply eating too much and or exercising too little. There is no question that these factors are associated with weight gain. Changes in our national lifestyle, including the increased consumption of high fat foods, as well as our increasingly sedentary work and leisure habits, undoubtedly contributed to the marked rise in obesity. Recent studies, however, have suggested that body weight is under substantial genetic control, accounting for approximately one third of the variation in BMI (Bouchard, 1997).
Genetic influences appear to contribute to differences among individuals in resting metabolic rate (Rice et al., 1996), as well as body fat distribution (Bouchard et al., 1998) and weight gain in response to overfeeding (Bouchard et al., 1990). Some people appear to come into the world with a predisposition to obesity, which is readily nourished by our high-fat, low-activity lifestyle. Society is unforgiving of overweight individuals. Stunkard (1995) have called the disparagement of obese individuals “the last socially acceptable form of prejudice”.
Historically, the public has believed that weight-loss is a matter of willpower. Obese individuals have been considered weak-willed and unmotivated, a view that is compounded by the claims of easy weight-loss promised by many books on diet. Unfortunately, many obese persons seem to have accepted this view of themselves. Practitioners are not immune to these beliefs. In one study obese patients were described in such negative terms as “weak-willed”, “ugly” and “awkward” (Maddox & Leiderman, 1969). Obese women also have been found to delay or avoid medical care because of weight concerns (Olson et al., 1994). Attitudes, towards obesity appear to be changing with the recognition that obesity is a complex, multidetermined disorder with a genetic component (Bouchard, 1997). Findings suggest that physiological and genetic factors may limit the amount of weight that an individual can lose and maintain (Keesey, 1996). These findings have led to new empathy for overweight individuals, as well as to a change in the goals of obesity treatment.
CHAPTER 1 : THE PROBLEM
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Obesity Defined
1.3 Electrical Muscle Stimulation Defined
1.5 Statement of the Problem
1.6 Motivation for the Study
1.7 Purpose and Aim of the Study
1.8 Hypotheses
1.9 Delimitation
CHAPTER 2 : LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Definition of Obesity
2.2 Epidemiology of Obesity .
2.2.1 Obesity, economics and the industrial food system
2.3 Prevalence of Obesity
2.4 Consequences of Obesity
2.5 Etiology of Obesity
2.6 Pathophysiological Factors Underlying Obesit
2.7 Bio-energetics of Metabolism
2.8 Cellular Basis of Obesity
2.9 Basal or Resting Metabolic Rate
2.10 Thermogenesis
2.11 Weight Control – Caloric Balance Equation
2.12 Body Weight Regulation
2.13 Metabolic Adaptation
2.14 Regional Fat Distribution
2.15 Prevention of Overweight and Obesity
2.16 Obesity Treatment Strategies
2.17 Physical Activity and the Obesity Epidemic
2.18 Behaviour Modification for Weight-Loss
2.20 Surgery in Weight Contro
2.21 Alternative Treatments for Weight Loss
CHAPTER 3 : METHODS AND PROCEDURES
3.1 Subjects
3.2 Study Desig
3.3 Dependent Variables (Measurements)
3.4 Independent Variables (Intervention Programme)
3.5 Statistical Analysis
CHAPTER 4 : RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Anthropometry
4.2 Morphology
4.3 Ultrasound Sonography
4.4 Respiratory Quotient
4.5 Pulmonary Function
4.6 Haematology
4.7 Cardiovascular Responses
4.8 Musculoskeletal Function
CHAPTER 5 : SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
REFERENCES
