What Are The Causes Of Obesity... Why Are We So Fat ?

Part One

I bet you think I'm going to say that the main causes of obesity are poor diet and lack of exercise..right?
These are definitely contributing factors, but just as important is a growing body of evidence that indicates that the chemicals in our food supply and in our environment are keeping us fat!

The fact that we crave and binge on high fat foods, that we gain weight quickly, that we feel sick and unwell, that we can't lose weight ...may NOT be our fault.

We live in a chemical soup and the people we rely on most: our doctors, our government and our food manufacturers have been 'blind' to the toxic assault our bodies have been under.

Traditional solutions involving diet and exercise, have not been working. Understanding the causes of obesity means understanding, and reducing, our toxic chemical exposure.

What are obesogens?

Thanks to a handful of determined researchers, we are only just beginning to understand the connection between the toxic chemicals in our food, and in our environment, and how they may cause obesity.

These toxic chemicals include toxins in our plastic bottles and containers, pesticides and additives in our food supply such as aspartame, MSG and high fructose corn syrup(HFC).

Obesogens are literally everywhere. Antibiotic and hormones in animal products and toxic chemicals in air fresheners and body care products also contain obesogens. There are potentially thousands to be discovered.

Obesogens are huge hormone disruptors, they mimic the hormone estrogen and actually throw our endocrine system out of balance. You have probably heard about the endocrine system, this is the delicate system that regulates our hormones and ,yes, sets our metabolism. The internal furnace we are always trying to stoke in order to burn more calories.

What is the media saying?

The next few years are going to be exciting as we get to the heart of the problem and discover the true causes of obesity and consequent obesity epidemic in North America.

Television shows such as Dr. Oz and David Suzuki are now reporting on what has been termed 'The Obesogen Effect'. Here is a video clip from CBC "The Nature of Things" Jan 12th entitled 'Programmed To Be Fat':

Final thoughts:

Having managed a weight loss clinic for the last 4 years, I could never understand why there were some clients who had a difficult time losing weight. I though that perhaps they were not following the food plan properly, not exercising enough, or even worse, cheating.

The research on obesogens has definitely presented a 'lightbulb' moment for me. It all makes common sense, what if we reduce our exposure to obesogens ...will losing weight become easier? Will we be able to control our appetites and cravings? Will we be able to reduce our internal toxic load and lead healthier lives? There is evidence that this certainly could be true.

Join me on this fascinating journey as we uncover the toxic fat causing chemicals we need to avoid and, more importantly, how to avoid them.


Part 2: Common Obesogens and Where They Lurk

Part 3: How to Avoid Toxic Foods

References:

Dr Paula Baillie-Hamilton MD PhD is author of the book The Body Restoration Plan: Eliminate Chemical Calories and Repair Your Natural Slimming System (Avery, Penguin; 2003). She is a specialist in Environmental Medicine.

Bruce Blumberg,obesogen researcher for the Green Science Institute, professor of Biology at Carnegie Mellon University in California:

Module 2: The Evidence for Obesogens
Module 3: The Obesogen Hypothesis
Bruce Blumberg: Obesogens, Stems and the Maternal
Programming of Obesity

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