Why you are not to blame for being fat

Americans believe obesity is the biggest health threat in the nation today -bigger 
even than cancer.But though research shows that diet and exercise are insufficient 
solutions, a majority say fat people should be able to summon the willpower to lose 
weight on their own.

The findings are from a nationally representative survey of 1,509 adults released 
on Tuesday by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, 
an independent research institute.The study , funded by the American Society for 
Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery , found that concerns about obesity have risen. 
Just a few years ago, in a more limited survey , cancer was seen as the most serious 
health threat.

Researchers say obesity , which affects one-third of Americans, is caused by interactions

between the environment and genetics and has little to do with sloth or gluttony .

There are hundreds of genes that can predispose to obesity in an environment where 
food is cheap and portions are abundant. Yet three-quarters of survey participants 
said obesity resulted from a lack of willpower. The best treatment, they said, is to take 
responsibility for yourself, go on a diet and exercise. Obesity specialists said the 
findings went against evidence about the science behind the disease.

“It's frustrating to see doctors and the general public stigmatise patients with obesity 
and blame these patients, ascribing attributes of laziness or lack of willpower,“ said 
Dr Donna Ryan, professor emerita at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in 
Baton Rouge, Lousiana, who was not involved with the study . Among the survey 
participants, 94% had tried to lose weight with diet or exercise, to no avail. A quarter 
of those people said they had tried five to nine times, and 15% said they had tried 
more than 20 times.

“Trying 20 times and not succeeding -is that lack of willpower, or a problem that 
can't be treated with willpower?“ asked Dr Louis Aronne, the director of the 
Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-
Presbyterian, who was not involved with the study . Dr Raul J Rosenthal, the president 
of the bariatric surgery society that funded the study , found this persistent belief in the 
power of diet and exercise hard to understand.

“If you think a disease is a potential killer, as serious as cancer, why would you 
take on its treatment and cure by yourself ?“ he asked.

Source: The Times of India: 02.11.2016