Why Americans Are Overweight and What to Do About It ?

 A recent development is both serious and life-threatening! Statistics show that 

60% of Americans are overweight. But discomfort about one’s appearance is not 

the only downside. Obese individuals have a higher rate of many chronic and 

deadly conditions, including cancer and heart disease. The Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention predicts obesity will soon be America’s number one 

killer.  What steps do we need to take now to become a slimmer, healthier nation?

”Yummy, yummy, yummy, see my obese tummy!” should perhaps be America’s new 

national anthem. 

How Overweight Is America? 

How serious is obesity in America? According to Kathleen Donnelly for MSN Health 

& Fitness, statistics show that “…60 percent of adult Americans weigh too much, 

and 17 percent of American children and teens are overweight.”

  

And the problem continues to escalate. In the past thirty years, children in the 

USA are increasingly tipping the scales. The rise of obesity among children 

between the ages of 6 and 11 has gone from 4% to 13 % in three decades. Obesity 

in US children ages 12 to 19 has gone from 5% to 14%.   And if a child is obese 

at the age of 6, it has a 50/50 chance of being obese for life. Obese thirteen 

year olds have a 75% likelihood of being obese for the rest of their lives.  

This problem is even more severe among blacks and Hispanics.  

To remedy their plight, 103,000 morbidly obese Americans living in the United 

States had gastric bypass surgery in 2003. The complication rate was 7%. 

What causes obesity?   

Several causes for obesity have been suggested, including heredity, 

social-economic conditions, diet, and exercise. Since we can’t control 

who our parents are, let’s focus on social-economic conditions, diet, 

and exercise.

 

Obesity & Social-economic conditions

Numerous studies have concluded that there is a direct cause and effect 

relationship between a person’s level of education and their odds of 

being overweight. The greater their level of learning is, the slimmer 

their odds of obesity are. 

Dysfunctional Diets, Inadequate Exercise, and Bulging Belt-lines

Of course, two obvious causes of obesity are dysfunctional diets 

and a lack of proper exercise. Americans are exercising less and less 

while simultaneously consuming too much junk food. The average US 

woman is now consuming 335 more calories per day than the average 

woman in 1971. Calorie intake among men has increased to an 

additional 168 calories per day.  Is it any wonder that America 

is increasingly becoming an obese nation? 

 Health Risks Associated with Obesity

Discomfort about one’s appearance, however, is not the only downside 

to obesity. There are numerous health risks associated with being 

overweight. Obese individuals have a higher-than-normal rate of 

hypertension, type 2 diabetes, high lipids, gallbladder disease, 

osteoarthritis, strokes, respiratory disease, some types of cancers, 

heart disease, and other chronic and deadly conditions.  The Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention predicts obesity will soon be 

America’s number one killer. In 2000, tobacco was linked to 435,000 

deaths while obesity was close behind at 400,000 deaths.  

What to Do About Obesity

There are primarily three things that most experts recommend to help 

maintain a healthy weight level: 1) Getting the proper amount of 

exercise, 2) eating a healthy, well-balanced diet, and 3) 

supplementing one’s diet with nutritional products. 

The Value of Exercise 

If you’re considering going on a diet to lose weight, remember 

that the important thing is not just to lose weight, but to keep 

it off. In order to lose weight and keep it off, there is no 

substitute for exercise. One study reported by The National Weight 

Control Registry shows that out of 3,000 individuals who lost a 

minimum of 30 pounds and kept it off for more than a year, only 

9 percent lost weight without exercising.

How much exercise should an individual get?

The proper amount of exercise that an individual should get of 

course varies from individual to individual. To make certain 

you are getting the proper amount of exercise, consult your 

family physician.

Melissa Tennen, HealthAtoZ writer, says: “Get at least 30 minutes 

of activity on most days. To prevent weight gain, 60 minutes a 

day may be necessary.” 

What is a Healthy Diet?

The short answer to the question, “What is a healthy diet?” 

is to eat a well-balanced diet that is as close as possible 

to the way nature intended. Fast foods and highly-processed 

foodless foods have been proven to have ill-effects on one’s

 health. Many are high in calories and low in nutritional 

value. 

Yet not everyone has the time, the money, or the ability to eat “The 

Perfect Diet.” So what’s the solution?

The Importance of Supplementing Your Diet

No doubt, in a perfect world, we would not need vitamin pills, diet 

pills, and other nutritional supplements. We’d simply get everything our 

body needs from our food. But let’s get a reality check: This is not Eden. 

And getting everything your body needs from your diet alone is almost 

impossible. Plus, if you are overweight, you need extra help.

What to look for in a Weight-Loss Pill 

If you’re looking for “The Perfect Weight Loss Pill,” there are a number of 

things to consider. Here are just a few:

Does the product’s formula utilize nutrients in the most absorbable and 

potent form available? 

Most companies compromise on their nutrients. They use poorly absorbed forms 

or synthetically derived fractions of nutrients.

Does the product use ephedra stimulants or dangerous fat blockers?

For accelerated fat-loss support and increased performance, you need help 

with reducing hunger, utilizing fat, enhancing metabolism, and increasing 

true energy levels. Insist on a weight loss product that delivers all 

natural support for healthy weight loss, without using ephedra stimulants.

Also, avoid dangerous fat blockers. The perfect solution is to find a weight 

loss pill that works by helping support healthy digestion of stored fat 

and a healthy metabolism. Lipase is the enzyme responsible for breaking 

down fat, making it available for utilization as energy. Without lipase, 

fat is stored as excess body fat.

Does the product contain Citrin K™ and CLA?

Research shows Citrin K™ and CLA as two powerful ingredients in helping 

maintain healthy fat burning. Also important are Guggul lipids and 

chelated minerals. They help maintain a healthy thyroid and will 

reduce cravings. Weight loss pills containing these ingredients 

make for a healthier, safer and more effective body fat reduction 

formula.

Don’t forget the importance of fiber

Special types of fiber will expand in your stomach and will reduce 

your hunger without stimulation and drug-like effects. This, in 

turn, will help to nutritionally support healthy body fat levels. 

Your body needs energy to burn fat

Finally, the most needed factor in losing body fat is keeping 

your energy levels up so you have the energy burn more fat.

Are there really any nutrients available today that help promote

 healthy and safe fat reduction? YES! Although there are many 

supplements today containing herbs like Guarana, MaHuang and 

Ephedra that can have potentially harmful side effects, there 

are still many that safely help the body reduce its fat stores.

Here are just a few of the most powerful nutrients which have 

been well-documented:

CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid)

A study published in The Journal of Nutrition (December 2000, V12) 

established that the natural dietary supplement conjugated 

Linoleic Acid (CLA) reduces body fat. Jan Wadstein, MD, PhD, 

associate professor at Lund University in Sweden states, "CLA may 

be a valuable weight management supplement to any diet regimen. 

Keeping lean body mass and speeding up fat loss are the keys to 

a successful weight program." 

Garcinia Cambogia 

Another supplement essential for weight loss is natural organic 

acid extract from the rind of the Malabar tamarind called Garcinia 

Cambogia. This compound has been associated with gradual decrease 

in body fat, nutritionally supporting healthy cholesterol levels, 

and suppressing hunger cravings frequently. A study performed by 

Katts, et al, concluded the administration of Garcinia Cambogia 

reduced deposition of body fat and promoted increased weight loss 

in human subjects.  Citrin K is a proprietary formula proven to 

suppress appetite. The best and most researched form of Garcinia 

Cambogia can be found in our proprietary blend called Citrin K. 

Citrin K also supplies potassium, which plays a major role in 

maintaining the body's fluid balance. There are other forms of 

Garcinia Cambogia on the market, but they don't have the potency 

guarantee that Citrin K does. 

Other micronutrients needed to support body fat metabolism include 

vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C and Zinc and Chromium. Look for a 

weight-loss supplement that will supply you with the highest quality 

of whole food vitamins and amino acid chelated minerals. This 

will help to nutritionally support a healthy metabolism, further

 enhancing your results. 

Theobromine

Theobromine is an extraordinary nutrient found in chocolate. It 

helps maintain healthy levels of stress, giving you a confident 

and powerful feeling of health. This is a vital component to 

look for in a weight control product because it nutritiously 

supports the body in appetite suppression and provides an 

energetic, euphoric effect. This is very important, as many 

people scrap weight loss programs because of irritability and 

their inability to curb cravings.

So if you want to lose weight and keep it off, get the proper 

amount of exercise, eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, and 

supplement your diet with a weigh loss pill that meets the 

aforementioned criteria. The final word on diet pills is this: 

“The Perfect Weight Loss Pill” should contain the most powerful 

and safest nutrients available to help you nutritionally support 

healthy fat burning metabolism without harmful stimulants.  

NOTES:

1. OBESITY in America. http://health.msn.com/reports/obesity/articlepage.

aspx?cp-documentid=100133520 .  

  

2. National Center for Health Statistics. National Health and Nutrition 

Examination Survey (NHANES). Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Department of Health 

and Human Services. 1999.

  

3. Moran R. Evaluation and treatment of childhood obesity. Am Fam 

Physician. 1999;59:758, 761-762.

  

4. Hedley AA, Ogden CL, Johnson CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, Flegal KF.

 Prevalence of overweight and obesity among US children, adolescents, 

and adults, 1999-2002. JAMA. 2004;291:2847-2850.

  

5. Newman C. Why Are We So Fat? National Geographic. August 2004.

  

6. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General's 

call to action to prevent and decrease overweight and obesity: what you can do; 2001.

  

7. Newman C. Why Are We So Fat? National Geographic. August 2004.

  

8. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General's 

call to action to prevent and decrease overweight and obesity: what 

you can do; 2001.

  

9. Obesity Swallowing America http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz

/dc/caz/nutr/obes/alert08032004.jsp 

  

10. The Journal of Nutrition. Vol 130, No 12, Dec 2000.

  

11. Kaats GR. Reduction of body fat as a function of taking a dietary 

supplement containing garcinia cambogia extract, chromium picolinate 

and L-carnitine: A randomized double blind placebo controlled study. 

3rd International Conference on Anti-aging Medicine and Bio-medical 

Technology. Las Vegas, NV., Dec. 7-11, 1995.