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Hypertension and stroke related to obesity

People who are obese are more than likely to develop hypertension. While being obese, build ups
of plaques block the blood flow and ruptures many arteries. Another term for hypertension is
high blood pressure, the force of blood flowing against the walls of arteries. The average scale of
a normal blood pressure is in a range of 100-140 mmHg(blood pressure) systolic; when the blood
flows and a 60-90 mmHg diastolic: when the heart is relaxed ("Hypertension"). Blood clots that
are near the brain causes the person to have a stroke. Stroke occurs when the brain does not
receive enough blood to the brain. Symptoms of stroke are: severe headaches, dizziness, lack of
vision, trouble speaking or hemiplegia (Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke 1). Stroke also has another
nickname called brain attack. There are two types of strokes, one called ischemic stroke which is
caused by blood vessels that ruptures into the brain and the other is called transient ischemic
attacks(TIAs) Mini-strokes occurs when the blood flow into the brain is slightly interrupted
(Stroke).
"Stroke: MedlinePlus." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 29 Apr.
2014. Web.

Heart disease
People who are obese have a high factor of portraying heart disease. Plaques building up in the
arteries which unable the blood to flow normally in the heart. When the blood does not flow
properly and does not receive enough blood for the body to maintain normal functioning, it
eventually will lead to heart failure. Heart attack occurs when part of the heart vessels gets
blocked by blood clots. Heart muscles begins to die when the clot cuts off the blood flow. Many
people usually survive their first heart attack. Usually doctors recommend a different lifestyle
changes such as diets or exercises after a heart attack to prevent it from reoccurring (What is
cardiovascular disease). Over weight and obesity are measured by body mass index (BMI). The
(BMI) measures the relative weight based on the individuals mass and height. It is calculated by
dividing the weight kilograms by the square of height in meters(kg/m2). A BMI scale over 25
indicates that a person is overweight and a BMI over 30 indicates that a person is obese. As a
person's BMI scale increases, cardiovascular disease also increases ("Obesity").
"What Is Cardiovascular Disease?" What Is Cardiovascular Disease? N.p., 24 Oct. 2014. Web.

Sleep apnea
Many people that are obese usually acquire sleep apnea. A person who is obese or overweight
usually have enlarged neck tissues which prevents the airways from breathing out air making it
difficult to breathe. In adults, overweight or obese suffer from sleep apnea beacause of the
enlargement of the tonsils or mouth tissues maybe from a sickness or allergies making it difficult
to retrieve air (Karriem 1). There are also different conditions that are related to sleep apnea such
as high blood pressure, insulin resistance, systematic inflammation, visceral fat deposition, and
dyslipidemia (Corral 1). It is usually a repetitive process when he/she is sleeping and it can also
stop a person's breathing for certain amount of time. Some of this sleep apnea causes people to
snore or breathe heavily. Sleep apnea is also a dangerous health issue, it can lead to heart failure

due to the congestive breathing while asleep. A helpful way to improve this health issue is
weight loss. Weight loss can reduce the strictness and reduces the breathing pressure of the body
(Corral 1).
What are fast foods?
Fast foods are another name for foods that are stored or packaged that is ready to serve quickly.
There are thousands and thousands of fast food restaurants today in America, almost around
every corner of the street. Fast foods are known to be quickly served and satisfying. They can
replace home cooked meals and are convenient with many people because it saves time and
money to just go grab something at the restaurant when they are busy or on a lunch break from
work. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), fast foods are mainly cooked with oil
and butter having very mal nutrition to people with extremely high in fat, sugar and sodium
(Hellesvig-Gaskell). A typical fast food meal is really high in calories and fat. People will
eventually gain weight if they do not burn enough calories a day. People who live near fast food
restaurants have a higher rate of obesity than people who do not live close to fast food
restaurants. A research shows that according to the University of California, in 2009 noted that
living near a fast food restaurant is linked to a 5.2 percent greater risk of obesity (Lee 1). Fast
food are also an increased risk of death rates due to cardiovascular conditions. In the University
of South Australia in 2010 noted that each 10 percent increase of fast food restaurants in a
region, is linked to a 1.36 times greater risk of mortality (lee 1).

Other foods that causes obesity

Although fast foods are unhealthy, it is not the only cause of obesity. Beverages are also a high
contributor to being unhealthy due to the high amounts of sugar in them. Sugars such as high
fructose corn syrup or fructose are high sugar ingredients that are found mostly in every drink
("Fast Food Causes Obesity"). Aspartame, the artificial sweetener, it satisfies people due to its
sweetness but causes many problems for ones sugar levels and contribute to obesity. Studies
have found that soda and diet soda both are linked to obesity and high blood pressure. According
to Epidemiologist Hannah Gardener, a 48% increase in heart attack and stroke risk among daily
diet soda consumers compare to non-diet soda consumers (Boyles 1).
The effects of fast food medias
Many reasons why so many people are addicted to eat these fast foods and beverages are that the
media of these individuals are extremely convincing and entertaining. Fast food medias are
things like commercials, online articles, websites, etc. that encourages people to try them. This
fast foods media also are very affective towards young children and teenagers. In the website
American Psychological Association about the impact of food advertisement it stated "
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of obesity has more
than doubled among children ages 2 to 5 (5.0% to 12.4%) and ages 6 to 11 (6.5% to 17.0%). In
teens ages 12 to 19, prevalence rates have tripled (5.0% to 17.6%)" (The impact of food
advertising on childhood obesity 1). Children who watches food advertises seem to recall what
they have seen that interests them and may ask their parents for the food that they have seen in
the commercial. Not only this applies to children, adults are highly persuaded also. They may
buy the food and share it with their children feeding them foods that are bad in health.
What can help prevent obesity?
What will help our society preventing the cause of obesity is by eating portion meals so it will
prevent people from over eating and healthier foods instead of greasy and sugary foods. They
should also spend more time exercising and activities more than watching TVs or sitting down
and using their technologies. According to Department of Agriculture and the Department of
Health and Human Services, on an average daily basis a person is expected to do at least thirty
minutes of physical exercise and a person who is overweight is recommended to do at least
ninety minutes a day to maintain good health (Hatfield 1). By following a healthier life style by
limiting the amounts of food we consume and spend more time doing physical activities outside,
we could become more active in our surroundings and maintain a healthy living to prevent
causes of obesity. As we all know, committing is the most difficult part of a change. We can start
by receiving information from a doctor and try to get a health profession who will encourage and
support this change. Then we can either go join others or recruit people to form a group so that
everyone else can motivated one another to improve one another. Making this change will
require to be a life style situation on a daily basis or at least four to five times a week so it will
remain constant. There are also many people out there that are looking for this change, people
should ask around their neighborhood or as a friend to search for people who would want to join.

Then, by following a healthy life style, many people could change their lives form communities
to help out one another to prevent the cause of obesity in America.