Answer to Question 1
The causes of obesity in the modern world tend to be related to advances in technology. People are sedentary and prone to eat unhealthy, inexpensive food. It is also possible that genetic factors are interacting with these dietary choices.
Although most overweight individuals start with self-directed weight loss programs or commercial weight loss programs, people tend to lose only four to seven pounds, have trouble sticking with the diet, and gain weight back again over time. Professionally directed behavior modification programs have better success rates if people comply, but the results do not appear to be permanent. For the dangerously obese, the combination of diets, behavior modification, and medication can result in minimal weight loss, but surgery may eventually be the best option for this population.
A suggestion that has gained nationwide interest is the taxing of unhealthy foods and the price reduction of health foods. There has been a great deal of controversy over the Twinkie tax.. The idea is that like cigarettes, for example, the more they cost, the less likely people are to buy them while healthy foods that are reduced in price become a more health alternative.
Answer to Question 2
Research shows that some psychological treatments for insomnia may be more effective than others. For adult sleep problems, stimulus control may be recommended. People are instructed to use the bedroom only for sleeping and for sex and not for work or other anxiety-provoking activities (for example, watching the news on television). Progressive relaxation or sleep hygiene (changing daily habits that may interfere with sleep) alone may not be as effective as stimulus control alone for some people (Means & Edinger, 2006). Because sleep problems are so widespread, there is a growing interest in developing Internet-based treatments to determine if certain sufferers can help themselves with appropriate guidance. One study, for example, randomly assigned adults to a control group or an Internet-based education group (Ritterband et al., 2009). The Internet group received online instruction on the proper use of several of the psychological treatments (e.g., sleep restriction, stimulus control, sleep hygiene, cognitive restructuring, and relapse prevention). The findings were striking, suggesting that not only could the treatment be delivered over the Internet but also that sleep improved in this group even six months later. Under certain circumstances, people are able to use evidence-based instruction (education on the use of a treatment that has empirical support) to improve a variety of psychological problems. For young children, some cognitive treatments may not be possible. Instead, treatment often includes setting up bedtime routines such as a bath, followed by a parent's reading a story, to help children go to sleep at night. Graduated extinction has been used with some success for bedtime problems, as well as for waking up at night
Effects of Leptin on Obesity in Mice of the Ob Strain
Rates of Childhood Overweight and Obesity Worldwide The highest rates occur in the most affluent re
Newly Industrialized Countries
Current and future trends and impacts (IPCC)
Other countries are “Americanizing” their local culture’s diet
In medieval times - bubonic plague epidemic