Causes of the Obesity Epidemic

Thirty-one percent of people in the United States are obese. Obesity has become a public health and policy issue all over the world. It is one of the most serious health concerns of the 21st century because of its increasing occurrence in adults and children. It is often overlooked that peers could change one's tolerance for being obese. Dieting attempts like artificially sweetened beverages often backfire and are a factor of obesity. Many people do not think about how difficult it is to implement exercise and healthy food choices to people with ADHD or other mental illnesses. The complex relationship among social and mental factors has caused an epidemic of obesity in western society.

Obesity spreads through environment. The people in one's environment can affect obesity. Obesity can be caused through a social network effect. There is a big association of friends at a high school age level and coincidence of obesity (Cohen-Cale,1386). One might change what they do as their friends change. If one's friends are obese, it could change ones tolerance for being obese. Having obese friends can also change one's eating habits, exercise habits, and smoking habits (1, 1383). Behavior is often changed simply by exposure to common influences.

Adding artificially sweetened beverages into a person's environment can also affect the risk of obesity. Many people drink artificially sweetened beverages when trying to lose or control weight (Fowler, 1894). Because artificially sweetened beverages have a generally low amount of calories, dieters drink it to reduce their caloric intake. Unfortunately, this plan usually backfires. The American Cancer Society found an increase in weight among artificially sweetened beverage drinkers after one year. In this study, the percent of calories from total fat in one's diet rose with artificially sweetened beverage consumption. No benefit from artificially sweetened beverages has been found (Fowler, 1898). Actually, a positive relationship between artificially sweetened beverage consumption and long-term weight gain was found (Fowler, 1899).

Artificially sweetened beverages cause increased appetite, increased food consumption, and increased hunger. Sugar causes a sense of satiety. Without sugar in these beverages, fat and protein consumption usually increase in an attempt for satiety. Artificial sweeteners like aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sacchorin, neotame, and sucralose can be up to 13,000 times sweeter than sugar. Becoming accustomed to these sugars can lead to taste distortion and cravings for intensely sweet foods (Fowler, 1899).

One mental factor that increases risk of obesity is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. There was a rate of 21%-61% of ADHD found in people looking to lose weight (Pagoto, 1). Mental disorders can cause a bigger risk for obesity and obesity-related diseases. Many children are diagnosed with ADHD. Over 50% of children hospitalized for obesity had ADHD. Children with ADHD have a 2-3 times higher risk to be obese (Pagoto, 2). Although ADHD is usually associated with children, many adults have it as well. Adult ADHD patients had significantly higher BMI's and lost less weight when dieting than adults who did not have ADHD. Having ADHD as an adult increased the odds of being overweight or obese (Pagoto, 6).

Many neurobiological factors connect ADHD and obesity. Energy-dense foods (which usually end up being high in calories and fat) activate dopamine pathways. Many people with ADHD may overeat in an attempt to self-medicate. Also, dopamine is important for appetite regulation. A hypo-dopaminergic brain function relates ADHD and obesity. This influences the pre-frontal cortex. The pre-frontal cortex is vital for sustaining and dividing attention. ADHD symptoms could impact weight regulation. These symptoms may include behavioral disinhibition, memory problems, motivation problems, and self-regulation issues. Because of this, people who have ADHD may have trouble planning meals, skip meals due to distraction, or forget their own intentions to moderate what they eat. Weight regulation is difficult enough on its own and takes a lot of behavioral inhibition, especially in the obesogenic environment. It is also more difficult to regulate emotions with ADHD. Many people eat reactively