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Obesity and Chronic Disease

Impact of Weight Reduction

  • Chapter
Primary and Secondary Preventive Nutrition

Part of the book series: Nutrition and Health ((NH))

Abstract

Diet and poor eating habits continue to play a significant role in the health of individu­als. Improvements in public health, low-cost food production, transportation, and food processing have eliminated most nutrient deficiencies in this country and replaced them with diseases of excess calories. The Surgeon General’s Report on Nutrition and Health (1988) ranked the 10 leading causes of death in the United States (1). Several were strongly related to dietary excess, including coronary heart disease (CHD), cancer, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and atherosclerosis. Despite the recommendations in the Surgeon General’s Report (1) to maintain a desirable weight and a caloric intake pattern in keeping with energy expenditure, Americans have experienced a substantial increase in body wt and obesity related morbidity and mortality. In fact, the prevalence of overweight and obesity is currently estimated at 54% of the adult population (2). The greatest increase is in those classified as obese and morbidly obese. These are represented by the heaviest individuals (now estimated at 22%) with a body mass index (BMI) of >30 and >40 kg/m2, respectively (3; Fig. 1). Of greatest concern is the increased incidence of obesity in children. Evidence suggests that they will be the next generation of obese adults, with the accompanying disease risks. This incidence is currently estimated at 14%, using the 95th percentile of weight (4; Fig. 2).

“Opinion is a flitting thing but truth outlasts the sun”

—Emily Dickinson

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Authors
  1. Henry I. Frier
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  2. Harry L. Greene
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. SmithKline Beecham Consumer Healthcare, Parsippany, NJ, USA

    Adrianne Bendich PhD

  2. Institute of Human Nutrition, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Richard J. Deckelbaum MD

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Frier, H.I., Greene, H.L. (2001). Obesity and Chronic Disease. In: Bendich, A., Deckelbaum, R.J. (eds) Primary and Secondary Preventive Nutrition. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-039-1_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-039-1_12

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

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