Across New Jersey, the number of overweight and obese individuals is rapidly increasing. In fact, almost 59% of the population of the Garden State is overweight or obese. Our kids are gaining weight, too: 14% of children in New Jersey are obese, and the rate is rising year by year. We have reached the point where obesity is a state-wide health crisis.

Obesity kills. It brings, misery, heartache, and promotes serious illnesses, such as sleep apnea, arthritis, heart conditions, diabetes and hypertension.

It is a threat to our state that must be faced.

Getting Fit

Obesity is a disease – and one that’s difficult to treat. Weight loss itself is no problem: when the body’s daily caloric intake falls below the amount of calories needed to stay alive, the body begins to burn fat, resulting in weight loss. The difficulty comes in restricting caloric intake – and overriding the primal urge to eat either to stave off hunger, or stave off uncomfortable emotions, like fear, anger and grief.

Aye, there’s the rub: Many obesity sufferers use eating as a substitute for unmet psychological needs. Others are food addicts, plagued by a maddening urge to constantly eat. Many non-obese people see these behaviors as being signs of personal weakness on the part of the obese.

They’re not. Obesity is a disease, not a character flaw. Fad diets and the like can cause a person to lose weight, but seldom permanently. Those who try such gimmicks often suffer damage to their health. Obesity can be successfully treated only by a complete change in the patient’s lifestyle and eating habits. For some, support groups and willpower are enough to accomplish this. For others, surgical intervention may be the treatment of last resort – and the one that saves their life.

About Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery is performed with the patient under general anesthesia, and usually with a laparoscope. There are three basic bariatric surgical procedures—malabsorptive, restrictive, and combination. Each poses differing risks and benefits, but all work by the same principle: by surgically altering the patient’s stomach or digestive tract, the procedure limits the amount of food the patient can eat. These alterations cause the patient to take in fewer calories each day than he or she burns, resulting in the loss of excess weight.

The surgery only works as part of a total medical treatment plan, however. Patients who fail to follow the plan may regain any weight lost. The decision to have weight loss surgery is also almost always irrevocable, since most procedures cannot be reversed.

Let’s Do It!

New Jersey is a tough state. By treating obesity as a disease rather than a weakness, we can beat this health crisis, and promise the residents of our state a brighter future.

New Mexico is the Land of Enchantment. Our state’s quality of life, its natural wonders, and its unique culture draw the ever-increasing interest of people around the United States.

Unfortunately, New Mexico’s fame isn’t the only thing growing: New Mexicans are, as well. The number of overweight and obese individuals in New Mexico is rapidly increasing; in fact, almost 59% of the population of our great state is overweight or obese. The New Mexico Department of Health rates obesity as one of five health status priorities to be addressed by the state’s Comprehensive Strategic Health Plan.

Obesity kills – both directly and by life-threatening illnesses, called co-morbidities, such as diabetes and heart disease. It’s a threat to our state that we’ve got to meet head-on.

Fit or Fat?

Obesity is not a character flaw, and it is not a moral failing on the part of the sufferer. It is a disease, and being fat is only one of its symptoms. After all, losing weight is easy – just drop the body’s daily caloric intake below the amount of calories needed to stay alive. Presto: instant weight loss. This is why fad diets and the like can cause a person to lose weight. However, those who do lose by these means seldom do so permanently – and such gimmicks often further damage their health.

We all know, it’s not really that simple.

Most obese people are not gluttons. Some suffer from unmet psychological or emotional needs, and eat to excess as a form of cheap therapy. Others are physiologically “hooked on food”, as addicted to eating as a junkie is to shooting up. Despite these facts, however, many non-obese individuals see “fat people” as contemptible victims of their own lack of self control – which of course just makes matters worse for the obese.

The truth is that obesity is a disease. It is not a character flaw. Obesity is a medical condition that requires medical treatment – treatment based upon a complete change in the patient’s eating habits and overall lifestyle. For some, tools like support groups, willpower, and so forth are enough to accomplish this change. But, for many people who have struggled with their weight for years on end, weight loss surgery is the only way out.

About Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery – which is usually a laparoscopic procedure — is performed with the patient under general anesthesia. Of the three basic types of weight loss procedure – malabsorptive, restrictive and combination – each has unique risks and benefits. But, all work by the same principle: surgically altering the patient’s stomach or digestive tract will limit how much they can eat. These alterations force the patient to take in fewer calories each day than his or her body burns, resulting in the loss of excess weight.

The surgery only works as part of a total medical treatment plan, however. Patients who fail to change their lifestyle and eating habits after surgery may regain any weight lost. Anyone considering surgical treatment for obesity should discuss possible outcomes – and possible risks – with their family doctor or a qualified bariatric surgeon before making a decision.

An Enchanting Future

New Mexico can beat obesity. By treating this health crisis with proper medical care and ongoing support, we can make our state healthier, happier, and more a Land of Enchantment than ever before.

Obesity is a health crisis in Illinois. Across our state, the number of overweight and obese individuals is rapidly increasing. In fact, more than 61% of the population of Illinois is overweight or obese. Not only is obesity the second most common cause of preventable death in the United States, but it can also foster comorbidities—that is, life-threatening illnesses related to obesity—such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and Type 2 Diabetes.

Unsurprisingly, Illinois also spends a fortune each year – some $3.5 billion – on expenses attributable to the obesity epidemic.

It’s obvious that something must be done to stop the epidemic of obesity in our state.

Getting Fit

Weight loss itself is a no great problem: by cutting a person’s daily caloric intake below the number of calories their body needs to maintain life, weight loss can be easily effected. The difficulty comes in conquering the primal urge to eat when hungry.

Obesity is not simply a matter of weight, nor is it a character flaw. It is a disease caused by a disordered relationship with food. For some, the pleasure of eating is a substitute for emotional satisfaction. Others are food addicts, who battle an overwhelming urge to eat even when they aren’t hungry. Sadly, the pain of obesity often leads those with the disease to attempt self-treatment, including fad diets, exercise programs, or gimmicks like so-called weight-loss pills. These efforts lead some to lose significant weight, but most quickly regain it. Many people suffer damage to their health as a result of such quickie “cures”.

No miracle cure for obesity exists. The only way to successfully treat the disease of obesity is through medical care, based upon a complete change in the patient’s lifestyle and eating habits. To beat obesity we must change the way we relate to food, making better food choices and eating less of it. Most of us can accomplish this through education and willpower, in some cases combined with counseling and support. For the rest, weight loss surgery is the only way to combat the disease.

About Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery works by surgically altering the patient’s stomach and/or digestive tract in order to physically limit the amount of food the patient can eat at a given time. This may be done by removing part of the stomach, or by re-routing the flow of ingested food around the areas where the calories are absorbed. In Lap-band surgery — the most widespread procedure — the stomach and bowel are not cut; only a few small incisions in the abdomen are made to allow the surgeon access to the stomach. An inflatable band is then placed around the stomach, creating a small pouch. If successful, these alterations will cause the patient to take in fewer calories each day than he or she burns, resulting in steady, safe weight loss.

But losing weight is only half the battle. Only a complete change in a patient’s lifestyle can win the war on obesity. Patients who fail to change their activity level and dietary habits may regain any weight lost via surgery.

Summing It Up

Weight loss surgery is a powerful weapon in Illinois’ fight against obesity, but it is only one weapon. To win the fight, we must be willing to change the way we live – eating better food, and less of it, and living an active lifestyle. Only by combining these weapons with our will to win can we conquer obesity and live longer, healthier lives.

Across America, the number of overweight and obese individuals is rapidly increasing. In fact, among people of all ethnic groups, obesity is the second leading cause of preventable death in the United States. It may also lead to other life-threatening illnesses, called co-morbidities, such as Type II Diabetes, cancer, heart conditions, and hypertension. 

In the Grand Canyon State alone more than 58% of the population is overweight or obese. It is epidemic among Arizona’s large Native American population, which has some of the highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the world. 

Obesity is the condition of being significantly above one’s healthy weight, which is determined by a person’s individual body mass index (BMI). Those with a BMI of at least 25 are considered overweight; those with a BMI of 30 or above are considered obese. BMI is calculated by the following formula: BMI = weight in pounds x 703 / (height in inches)2

Treatment Options

Obesity is a disease, not a character flaw. However, many of our fellow Arizonans who suffer from this disease attempt to self-treat their obesity by means of willpower alone, as if maintaining a healthy weight were merely a matter of making a New Years’ resolution. Others with obesity turn to trendy diets, Spartan exercise programs, or the use of “miracle medicines” that promise rapid, safe weight loss. But, the few who do manage to lose significant weight by these means almost always quickly regain it. And others simply choose to ignore it – until it’s too late.

Fortunately, another option exists: weight loss surgery. Surgical weight loss – also known as bariatric surgery — has been proven to help ease (and in some cases completely resolve) obesity-related health problems for individuals with a BMI of 35 or higher. It can also help those who are obese but have no co-morbidities to reach their ideal weight and lessen their chances of developing weight-related health problems in the future.

About Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery procedures, such as the gastric bypass, gastric banding or gastric sleeve procedure, are generally performed laparoscopically. Some procedures, however, may need to be performed through open surgery, depending on the patient’s weight and other risk factors. In Arizona, more and more patients are choosing gastric banding, or Lap-band surgery, during which an inflatable silicone prosthetic band is placed around the top portion of the patient’s stomach using a laparoscope. This band is inflated with saline to create a small pouch above the band and restrict food intake. This enables patients to feel hunger less often and feel full more quickly, and thereby lose weight.

Common weight loss surgery procedures are generally safe and effective when performed at the advice of and under the care of a licensed practitioner of bariatric medicine. As with all surgical procedures, however, weight loss surgery of any type exposes the patient to the possibility of major postoperative complications, including the possibility of unforeseen death.

Considering Surgical Weight Loss

Weight loss surgery can be a true lifesaver, but it is not a magic bullet against obesity. Patients who fail to alter their dietary and lifestyle habits subsequent to the surgery may regain any weight lost.

Those considering bariatric surgery as an option for the management of obesity should carefully weigh the risks and possible outcomes of these procedures in consultation with their physician prior to making any decision.

Obesity — the condition of being significantly above one’s healthy weight — is a health crisis in Delaware. Across our state, the number of overweight and obese individuals is rapidly increasing. In fact, almost 64% of the population of the First State is overweight or obese. Unsurprisingly, Delaware’s obesity rate tracks closely with its rate of physical inactivity: 59% of adults in Delaware say they do not exercise or engage in any type of regular physical activity.

Obesity is the second most common cause of preventable death in the United States, and may lead to life-threatening illnesses—such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension—which are called co-morbidities. (In fact, 27.7% of all residents of Delaware suffer from high blood pressure.)

Getting Fit

Obesity can be one of the most difficult diseases to treat. Weight loss itself is a simple matter: once a person’s daily caloric intake falls below the number of calories needed to maintain life, the body begins to burn fat to stay alive, resulting in weight loss. The difficulty comes in restricting caloric intake – the primal urge to eat when hungry is almost irresistible.

Many obesity sufferers use eating as a substitute for emotional satisfaction. Others are food addicts and will continue to eat long after they have met their caloric needs. In essence, their “fullness meter” is broken. Sadly, many people who do not suffer from obesity see these behaviors as indicators of personal weakness on the part of the obese.

The truth, however, is that obesity is a disease, not a character flaw. Gimmicks, fad diets, or so-called weight-loss pills can cause a person to lose significant weight, but most that do quickly regain it – and often suffer damage to their health as a result of such quickie “cures”. The only way to successfully treat the disease of obesity is by a complete change in the patient’s lifestyle and eating habits. To beat obesity we must change the way we relate to food, enabling us to eat better food and less of it. For some, education and willpower are enough to accomplish this. For the rest, another option exists: weight loss surgery.

About Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery is performed under general anesthesia, usually laparoscopically. Three main types of surgical procedure are performed in the U.S.—malabsorptive, restrictive, and combination—each with different risks and benefits. In each, however, the principle is the same: to surgically alter the patient’s stomach and/or digestive tract in order to physically limit the amount of food the patient can eat at a given time. If successful, the surgical alterations will cause the patient to take in fewer calories each day than he or she burns, resulting in steady, safe loss of excess weight.

However, excess weight is only a symptom of obesity, and, while treating it is a giant step toward recovery, only a complete change in the patient’s lifestyle and relationship to food can cure the disease. Patients who fail to follow postoperative instructions may regain any weight lost. The surgical alterations are a powerful tool, but they can only be part of a comprehensive program of weight loss treatment, including counseling, medical and peer support, activity level changes, and (if necessary) psychiatric care.

Delaware can beat obesity. By educating ourselves, supporting one another, and using weight loss surgery when necessary, we can make our state healthier, happier, and a better place in which to live.