Among these illnesses are diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, gallbladder disease, and cancer. This list is by no means complete, but does include some of the major medical problems that are associated with obesity. Although they are not caused exclusively by being overweight, they may be exacerbated by it, or they may be accelerated in their development. Thus, the impact of obesity becomes clearer, not only in terms of health and well-being, but also in economic terms. The causes of obesity are not fully known or understood at the present time.
Obesity is most likely a multi-causal problem, with contributions from several areas.
There is certainly a genetic factor, since we know that obesity is frequently familial. Certain endocrine diseases may also be associated with obesity. In our program, patients are screened for them as part of their work-up. Extensive research is ongoing to discover the underlying cause of obesity beyond what is already known. Some chemicals naturally produced by the body are among the prime candidates in these investigations.