Research Methods for Social Epidemiology

INTRODUCTION

The human body naturally stores fat since it is vital for the health of a person . The fat which is stored in the body is essential for good health . It is a good source of energy , since the body needs energy to power life processes . It also provides the body insulation , thus maintaining the needed temperature in the body and it also protects the internal organs of the body . However , people tend to over eat and forget to maintain a balanced diet , thus they end up storing more than enough fat

in their bodies . This medical condition , which is characterized by storing excess fat in the body , is called obesity . People tend to neglect this condition without realizing that being obese has its toll Studies show that obese individuals has a higher risk of developing hypertension , coronary heart disease , diabetes mellitus , arthritis stroke and other forms of cancer (Encarta Encyclopedia 2009

It is known that some people are predisposed to obesity since their genetic make up dictates their body to store excess fat . However , it can be noted that in the past obesity was rarely seen until the 20th century where it became common (Caballero 2007 . It was until the year 1997 that obesity was took into consideration by the World Health Organization (WHO ) as a public health issue . Then they considered obesity as a global epidemic during this time . They also conducted a survey which estimated that 9 .8 of the adult population is obese and women have...