Obesity and The Diet Industry
Obesity results from the long-term imbalance of energy intake and energy expenditure, where more calories are consumed than used in the body. The rising rates of obesity in North America is of great concern. In the United States, 1 out of 3 adults are obese, whereas in Canada 1 out of 4 adults are obese. Obesity is associated with many negative health implications such as higher risks of type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, hypertension, cancer, and premature death. As obesity has physical and psychological implications, it also affects the economy with the financial burden of this disease. The economic burden of obesity in Canada has been estimated to range from $4.6 billion to $7.1 billion annually, due to direct medical costs such as preventive, diagnostic, and treatment services related to obesity, and indirect costs value of income lost from decreased productivity, restricted activity, absenteeism, and bed days. Many of those who struggle with their weight often look for a quick fix diet solution. With all of the diet pills, books, and programs that exist these days, it's often hard to determine which programs actually work and which ones are detrimental to one's health. In a 2004 survey conducted by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, it found that 40% of the ads for weight loss products or plans made at least one representation that was almost certainly false, and 55% made at least one representation that was very likely to be false
Read more about this topic: Crash Diet
Famous quotes containing the words diet and/or industry:
“Newsmen believe that news is a tacitly acknowledged fourth branch of the federal system. This is why most news about government sounds as if it were federally mandated—serious, bulky and blandly worthwhile, like a high-fiber diet set in type.”
—P.J. (Patrick Jake)
“I have never yet spoken from a public platform about women in industry that someone has not said, “But things are far better than they used to be.” I confess to impatience with persons who are satisfied with a dangerously slow tempo of progress for half of society in an age which requires a much faster tempo than in the days that “used to be.” Let us use what might be instead of what has been as our yardstick!”
—Mary Barnett Gilson (1877–?)