Nutrition and Food Chemistry

Obesity and Weight Managemen

The right number of calories to eat each day is based on age and physical activity level and whether trying to gain, lose or maintain your weight. Fat oxidation and metabolism are not dependent on the fat content of the meal; fatty meals lead to fat accumulation and obesity. Obesity is one of the components of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors that increases an individual’s risk for chronic diseases and diabetes. This session deals with the epidemiology of obesity by age, race, and geographic location and includes data on the direct costs associated with obesity.