The population of the United States is increasingly gaining weight each year.Americans are heavier than they have ever been. African American women are at the forefront of this pandemic. This study addresses the higher prevalence of overweight and obesity among African American women in comparison to White women. Behavioral, psychological, and social known contributors to overweight and obesity using the National Health Interview Survey, 2001 dataset were examined in this study. The research concluded that even when controlling for vigorous exercise, education, income, depression, emotional support, smoking, health coverage, and age, race is the most important predictor of body mass index. Consistent with previous studies, strong race effects still remained.

The assessment of ventilatory efficiency (VE/VCO2 slope) is increasingly being utilized to complement traditional cardiorespiratory fitness testing during graded exercise. The purpose of this study was to compare cardiorespiratory responses and ventilatory efficiency in obese children during a progressive exercise test to volitional fatigue performed on a treadmill and a cycle ergometer. Fifteen obese male (N=3) and female (N=12) adolescents aged 10 to 18 years were recruited in the study and completed both the treadmill and cycle ergometer trials. Mean age and BMI of the sample was 13.3 years and 38.0 kg/m2, respectively. Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) and ventilatory efficiency were determined during both exercise trials. Subsequently, overall VE/VCO2 slope and the slope below and above AT for ventilatory efficiency were compared between the two exercise modes. VO2max was significantly (p<0.05) greater during the treadmill trial (26.09±5.11 ml/kg/min) compared to the cycle ergometer trial (20.71± 4.31 ml/kg/min). The VO2 at anaerobic threshold (AT) was significantly (p<0.05) higher during the treadmill trial, however, the percentage of VO2max at AT was not significantly different between the two modes (treadmill-63.41± 6.29% and cycle ergometer (67.25± 6.99%). While there was no significant difference in the overall VE/VCO2 slope or the VE/VCO2 slope above anaerobic threshold obtained from the two modes, the VE/VCO2 slope below anaerobic threshold was significantly (p<0.05) higher in the treadmill trial (25.06±2.10) compared to the cycle ergometer trial (23.34± 2.12). In our small sample of obese adolescents, we observed a greater VE response for a given VCO2 during treadmill exercise below the anaerobic threshold. The differences observed may be related to a greater activation of muscle afferents during weight bearing exercise in obese adolescents.

Bakgrund: Minskade testosteronnivåer hos äldre överviktiga män är ett fenomen som varit omtalat i många år. Allvarliga sjukdomar som kan leda till för tidig bortgång kan förekomma vid för låga testosteronnivåer hos män. I många år har äldre överviktiga män använt sig av medicinska ingrepp för att öka sina hormonnivåer med syftet att återfå sin ungdomliga hälsa och undvika sjukdomar. Syftet med denna studie är att göra en sammanfattning av sökt och hittad litteratur om träningseffekter på testosteronnivåer hos äldre överviktiga män med 29+ i BMI. Metoden som författaren valt är en systematisk litteraturstudie. Resultat utgår från hittade studier från databaserna PubMed och Discovery. Med hjälp av sökord och andra begränsningar hittades relevanta vetenskapliga artiklar som analyserades, evidensvärderades och diskuterades av författaren. Resultaten framfördes från sju hittade artiklar där fyra av de visade att testosteronnivåerna kan ökas genom träning för äldre överviktiga män. Träningsformen som visade bäst resultat var aerob träning och denna träningsform användes i fem av samtliga artiklar. Testosteronnivåökning och andra förbättrade hälsotillstånd resulterades av aerob träning i olika former och tidsperioder. Slutsats: Vid utövandet av aerob träning av olika former under olika tidsperioder kan testosteronnivåer öka hos äldre överviktiga män med 29+ i BMI. Kostmodifiering i kombination med aerob träning visar sig öka chansen för att öka testosteronnivåerna hos drabbade.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-04T18:27:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LUCILENE DE ALENCAR SILVA.pdf: 625676 bytes, checksum: c640b60e0986517d1fb79ad08edb7f41 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2002-12-10 / The objective of this work was to evaluate the effectiveness of a Program of Modification of the Alimentary Behavior, besides of identifying and understanding the alimentary behavior of obese seniors. At the first phase of the current researches, sixty seven subjects, and eight subjects were selected for the sample who were sixty years old or older, literate and with Index of Body Mass (BM) more or equals to 30,0 and less or equals to 39,9, therefore according to the standards of obesity I and obesity II. The program was made up by seven intervention sessions and three evaluation stages, the pre-test, post-test and follow-up. Several instruments were used, such as automonitoring records, interviews, Historical of the Obesity and instrument for the subjects evaluate the proposed program. The results showed that to lose weight requires several professionals participation, such as a nutritionist and a physical education teacher, besides a psychologist. The subject in a general way maintained the same alimentary behaviors before and after the intervention, no changes were noticed. We got to the hypothesis that it is essential that the senior and obese subject presents immediate needs and that is something that bothers him/her nowadays for his/her adhesion to the program. We've got to the conclusion that the proposed program showed itself ineffective for significant weight losses to at statistical level. However, the study seemed valid in the understanding of the obese senior's alimentary behavior. / O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a efic?cia de um Programa de Modifica??o do Comportamento Alimentar, al?m de identificar e compreender o comportamento alimentar de idosos obesos. Participaram da presente pesquisa, na fase A sessenta e sete sujeitos, sendo que foram selecionados oito sujeitos para a amostra que apresentavam sessenta anos ou mais, alfabetizados e com ?ndice de Massa Corporal (IMC) maior ou igual a 30,0 e menor ou igual a 39,9, portanto dentro das faixa de obesidade I e obesidade II. O programa constituiu-se de sete sess?es de interven??o e tr?s etapas de avalia??o, o pr?-teste, p?s-teste e seguimento. Foram utilizados v?rios instrumentos, tais como fichas de automonitoramento, entrevistas. Hist?rico da Obesidade e um instrumento para os sujeitos avaliarem o programa proposto. Os resultados mostraram que para perder peso toma-se necess?rio a participa??o de v?rios profissionais, como nutricionista e professor de educa??o f?sica. al?m do psic?logo. Os sujeitos de maneira geral mantiveram os mesmos comportamentos alimentares antes e ap?s a interven??o, n?o ocorrendo mudan?as. Levantou-se a hip?tese de que seja essencial que o sujeito idoso e obeso apresente necessidades imediatas e que seja um problema que o incomode atualmente para sua ades?o ao programa. Conclui-se que o programa proposto mostrou-se ineficaz para perdas de peso significativas ? n?vel estat?stico. No entanto, o estudo mostrou-se v?lido na compreens?o do comportamento alimentar do idoso obeso.

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Normal birth, defined as birth without induction of labour, anaesthetic, instruments or caesarean section conveys significant maternal and neonatal benefits. Currently one-fifth of women in the United Kingdom are obese. There is increasing evidence of the detrimental effects obesity has on intrapartum outcomes. There is a lack of research on how to minimise the associated risks of obesity through non-medicalised interventions and how to support obese women to maximise their opportunity for normal birth. This thesis aims to provide evidence to address this gap and develop an evidence-based intervention to promote normal birth. Using a methodological approach aligned with pragmatism, this research was conducted in four parts and underpinned by the Medical Research Council framework for the development of complex interventions. Part one was a national survey involving 24 maternity units. Part two was a qualitative study of the experiences of 24 health professionals and part three involved 8 obese women. The final part was a multi-disciplinary workshop that used consensus decision-making to design the intervention. Collectively, the findings suggest that intrapartum care of obese women is medicalised. Health professionals face challenges when caring for obese women but many strive to optimise the potential for normal birth by challenging practice and utilising ‘interventions’ to promote normality. The findings also demonstrate that obese women have an intrinsic fear of pregnancy and birth, have a desire for normal birth and ‘obese pregnancy’ presents a window of opportunity for change. The intervention consists of three component parts; an educational aspect (e-learning package), a clinical aspect (intrapartum care pathway) and a leadership aspect (ward champions). Whilst acknowledging the importance of safety, increasing intervention during labour for obese women may further increase the risk of complications, with detrimental effects. Addressing intrapartum management of obese women through non-medicalised interventions is of paramount importance in order to promote normality, maximise the opportunity for normal birth and reduce the associated morbidities.

Approximately 34% of adolescents are overweight or obese which can be accompanied by physical, psychosocial, and economic consequences. Increasingly, pediatric overweight/obesity research has focused on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) as a health outcome. This study examined differences in HRQoL across weight categories in adolescents, specifically, the sensitivity of using a general versus condition-specific measure. Further, the influence of gender was explored. Data were extracted from Wave 2 of Team Up for Healthy Living, a school-based obesity prevention program targeting adolescents in Southern Appalachia. Participants (N = 918; 50% Female; 93% Caucasian; 90% 9th graders) completed the Pediatric Quality of Life (PedsQL) Inventory (general) and PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale (condition-specific) measures as part of a larger survey. Body mass index-for-age and -sex percentiles were calculated using actual height and weight, and students were classified as underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or obese according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria. Two 4 (weight category: underweight vs. healthy weight vs. overweight vs. obese) x 2 (gender: male vs. female) factorial analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were calculated to compare mean scores of total HRQoL (both generic and condition-specific). Additionally, 7 factorial multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs) were conducted with each measure’s subdomains. Fisher’s Least Significant Difference post hoc analyses were run to assess differences between groups, at a significance level of p<0.05. The current study revealed no interaction effect between total HRQoL (assessed via the generic or condition-specific measure) and weight category and gender; however, main effects were found for both weight category (assessed via a generic measure only) and gender (assessed via both generic and condition-specific measures). Additional research is needed to examine the impact of utilizing different measures and the potential role of gender as well as other factors that may influence HRQoL across weight categories. These issues are important as researchers to date utilize a variety of HRQoL measures making interpretation of findings difficult and often do not consider other variables such as gender that may influence findings.

Background: Hypertension is defined as an elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP ≥ 140 mmHg), or an elevated diastolic blood pressure (DBP ≥ 90 mmHg). The prevalence of hypertension is high in obese population. The potential effects of inadequate calcium intake on hypertension are receiving growing attention. The aim of the study was to examine the association between calcium intake and hypertension among obese adults. Methods: A total of 14,856 obese adults aged 20 years or older were obtained from the 1999-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Analysis of variance was used to examine if there was a relationship between calcium intake and blood pressure, SBP or DBP. Multiple logistic regressions were used to examine the association between calcium intake and hypertension after adjusting for potential confounders (energy intake, age, race, education level, alcohol use, smoking, and diabetes). Results: Prevalence of hypertension decreased with an increasing quartile of calcium intake (p < 0.0001). Multiple logistic regression showed that lowest quartile of calcium intake was associated with an increased risk of elevated SBP and elevated DBP (Odds Ratio (OR) =1.332, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.084-1.636; OR=1.700, 95% CI: 1.234-2.342, respectively). Compared with adults in the highest quartile of calcium intake, those in lowest quartile had 1.4 times increased risk of hypertension (OR=1.400, 95% CI: 1.157-1.694). Conclusion: Our study provides support of research perspective that inadequate calcium intake may increase the risk of hypertension, high SBP, or high BDP among obese adults. Further studies are needed to understand physiological mechanism. Increasing the calcium intake in obese adults can be considered as a strategy to prevent hypertension.

Thesis (MPH.) --University of Limpopo, 2018 / Background: Obesity and physical inactivity have been reported as the major contributing factors to non-communicable diseases and a public health problem worldwide. According to World health organization the global prevalence of obesity has increased more than doubled between 1980 and 2014. Many healthcare professionals fail to achieve sufficient levels of physical activity and most of them display poor dietary habits. The study conducted in South Africa among health care professionals in urban hospital in Gauteng province confirmed that 20% of them developed at least one NCD of which the contributing factors are obesity and physical inactivity. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of obesity and level of physical activity among health care professional in rural hospitals in Sekhukhune district, Limpopo province, South Africa. Methods: A quantitative descriptive study was conducted on 400 HCPs. The global questionnaire was closed ended. GPAQ was used for physical activity and anthropometric measurements were taken for BMI. A stratified random sampling method was used to sample HCPs. Data was analysed using SPSS version 23.0. Results: Most participants were females (71%), majority were between 30-39 years of age (46.3%), the highest category were nurses (77.8%), most of them their job title were assistants (44.5) and blacks (99.3%). The results revealed that 40.8% of HCPs were obese and 30.3% were overweight. Majority of (79.3%) were not engaging on work vigorous PA, however were engaging on work moderate PA. Also (60.5%) were not engaging on leisure vigorous PA, though 55.5% were engaging on leisure moderate PA. Majority (88.3%) had high sedentary (sitting) time. (35.50%) engaged in high activity of walking from one place to the other. In conclusion: There is a need for regular health promotion programmes among health care professionals with regard to obesity and importance of physical activity. The hospitals need to be equipped with onsite fitness centre that will be accessible to all HCPs. Physical activities support groups need to be established such as aerobics classes and fun run. Policies that guide participation in physical activities need to be drawn and be implemented accordingly in health sector, so as to promote healthy living habits. Key words: Obesity, Overweight, Level of physical activity, Health care professionals

Objectives: This study examined the relation of multiple aspects of the home food environment to dietary intake and body weight among overweight and obese children in southern Appalachia. Methods: The study used baseline data from a cluster-randomized controlled trial, Parent-Led Activity and Nutrition for Healthy Living, evaluating a parent-mediated approach to treating child overweight and obesity in the primary care setting in southern Appalachia. Sixty-seven children ages 5 to 11 years were recruited from four primary care clinics. Multiple linear regression was used to estimate the relation between multiple aspects of the home food environment to dietary intake (fruit and vegetable intake, fat and sweets intake), and standardized body mass index (zBMI), adjusted for baseline family characteristics (education, smoking status during the past month, BMI) and child characteristics (sex, age, Medicaid/TennCare). Results: Findings showed greater parental restriction and pressure in feeding were associated with greater fruit and vegetable intake in children (β = 0.33, β = 0.30, respectively; both P < 0.05). The availability of chips and sweets in a child’s home and parental inappropriate modeling of eating were associated with an increased risk for consumption of fats and sweets by children (β = 0.47, β = 0.54, respectively; both P < 0.01). Parental monitoring of the child’s eating was associated with a reduced risk for fat and sweets intake (β = −0.24; P < 0.01). Finally, parental responsibility for feeding the child was associated with lower zBMI (β = −0.20; P < 0.05). Conclusions: The home food environment, including food availability and parenting behaviors, was associated with overweight and obese children’s dietary intake and weight. This study adds to evidence suggesting that programs aimed at improving overweight and obese children’s eating patterns may target both aspects of the physical home environment and parental behaviors surrounding eating.