This can be calculated if you know your height and weight. Tables are available which can calculate this for you. Cultural Influences On Eating And Activity Patterns Social and cultural pressures have certainly played a major role in the current epidemic. It is no surprise that our increasingly sedentary society is the single most important factor in overeating and lack of exercise. For instance, one study has found that the annual distance walked by children has fallen by nearly 30 per cent since 1972, partially because more parents are driving their children to school.
Excessive television watching, however, plays a major role in obesity in children.
According to another study, many girls enter a period of reduced physical activity in the two to three years leading up to puberty, which appears to be a particularly crucial period in determining the development of continuing obesity. Metabolic and Behavioural Regulation by the Brain Weight is determined by pathways that occur in both the brain and gastrointestinal tract. Eating patterns are regulated by feeding and satiety centres located in the hypothalamus and pituitary glands of the brain that respond to signals indicating high fat stores and hunger. Genetic Factors Genetic factors influence fat metabolism and regulate certain hormones and proteins that affect appetite and may play some part in 70 per cent of obesity cases Other Causes of Obesity A number of medical conditions may contribute to being overweight, although rarely are they a primary cause of obesity. Conditions include patients with an underactive thyroid, Cushing's disease, polycystic ovarian syndrome and certain genetic disorders.