Unhealthy environments
– Overweight and Obesity – Risk Factors
Many environmental factors can increase your risk for overweight and obesity:
- social factors such as having a low socioeconomic status or an unhealthy social or unsafe environment in the neighborhood
- built environment factors such as easy access to unhealthy fast foods, limited access to recreational facilities or parks, and few safe or easy ways to walk in your neighborhood
- exposure to chemicals known as obesogens that can change hormones and increase fatty tissue in our bodies
Family history and genetics
– Overweight and Obesity – Risk Factors
Genetic studies have found that overweight and obesity can run in families, so it is possible that our genes or DNA can cause these conditions. Research studies have found that certain DNA elements are associated with obesity.
Did you know obesity can change your DNA and the DNA you pass on to your children? Learn more about these DNA changes.
Eating too much or eating too little during your pregnancy can change your baby’s DNA and can affect how your child stores and uses fat later in life. Also, studies have shown that obese fathers have DNA changes in their sperm that can be passed on to their children.
Race or ethnicity
– Overweight and Obesity – Risk Factors
Overweight and obesity is highly prevalent in some racial and ethnic minority groups. Rates of obesity in American adults are highest in blacks, followed by Hispanics, then whites. This is true for men or women. While Asian men and women have the lowest rates of unhealthy BMIs, they may have high amounts of unhealthy fat in the abdomen. Samoans may be at risk for overweight and obesity because they may carry a DNA variant that is associated with increased BMI but not with common obesity-related complications.
Sex
– Overweight and Obesity – Risk Factors
In the United States, obesity is more common in black or Hispanic women than in black or Hispanic men. A person’s sex may also affect the way the body stores fat. For example, women tend to store less unhealthy fat in the abdomen than men do.
Overweight and obesity is also common in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This is an endocrine condition that causes large ovaries and prevents proper ovulation, which can reduce fertility.
Syndicated Content Details:
Source URL: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/subscribe/4428
Source Agency: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Captured Date: 2017-02-28 19:42:00.0