More and more people nowadays choose as their main goal – to lose extra weight. However, anyone who has ever tried to lose weight will tell you that it is not as easy as it seems. New weight loss products and “magical” solutions appear on the market every day. We torture ourselves with new fad diets that promise us stunning results in no time, buy expensive home exercise machines, sign up for the gym, read books on healthy eating and pop diet pills. Some of us go as far as ordering weight loss pants that you put on before going to bed and “comfortably” sleep all night long, while our extra pounds just magically “melt away” with absolutely no effort on our part.

In the U.S. alone $33 billion are annually spent on various weight-loss products and services. And yet the number of overweight and obese people is steadily increasing every day. Research conducted by the International Obesity task force report that 58 million Americans are overweight, 40 million are obese and more than 3 million morbidly obese. It means that practically 8 out of 10 Americans over the age of 25 are classified as overweight or obese.

Losing weight is not easy. If it was, we would all be slim and fit by now. And it is not due to our weak motivation, because the majority of people are ready to pay any price to lose extra weight and keep it off. It is not due to a lack of desire to change eating habits; otherwise the diets would not be so popular. Genetics plays only a minor role in excessive weight gain, as our DNA has not undergone any noticeable change in the last 30 years.

There can be only one explanation – such drastic growth rate of overweight and obesity is caused by environmental factors that most of us are unaware about.

1. Technological innovations. While technological changes certainly make our life easier, they are one of the main factors contributing to weight gain. Tasks that required expenditure of energy just a few decades ago nowadays require very little effort or no effort at all. When we want to change a TV channel, lower the volume of the stereo system, turn on the air conditioner, or open the garage doors, we do not need to get up any more. All we have to do is press a button on the remote control. If we invite friends for a party, we do not have to worry about cooking or washing dishes. We have microwaves and dishwashers to save us time and effort. Shopping has gotten easier than ever. You do not even have to leave your house any more. You can order anything from groceries to clothes and the latest gadgets online and your purchase will be delivered right to your door. No wonder that according to the latest research groups, the population that has had the greatest ability to take advantage of technological innovations has had the biggest increases in weight.
2. Processed food. Technological innovations have made it possible for food to be mass produced. Even though it takes just 5-10 minutes to prepare a meal, most of the pre-made food that we buy and consume is “empty calorie” food. It means that while it contains the same amount of energy (calories) as fresh food it lacks such micronutrients as minerals, vitamins, amino acids and fiber that are responsible for healthy body functioning. Generally “empty calories” are converted to fat and lead to weight gain.
3. Oversized meals. The portions that are served by fast food and other restaurants are far larger than the recommended portion size for most foods. Wherever you go you are offered “all-you-can-eat” platters, get a bigger size portion for just a few extra bucks, or add a desert for 0.99 cents. Such “deals” make us feel as we are getting more value for our money and we rarely say “no”. As a result we are becoming accustomed to oversized portions that we start to think of them as “normal”. In reality, however, a regular meal served to you in a restaurant usually contains more than 1000 calories.
4. Variety of food. Over the past few decades buffets have become very popular. Even though the concept of a buffet sounds appealing, research has shown that when we are given more choices we tend to eat more. Even if you decide to merely “taste” everything, this nibbling leads most of us to consume much more food than we would normally eat at a typical meal. Not to mention that eating lots of different products in one serving, weakens the digestive system and leads to such problems as indigestion, heartburn, stomach cramps and acid reflux.
5. Not having enough physical activity. If we gain weight, we either consume more calories than we need or expend fewer calories than we consume. With the number of hours we spend in front of the computer, TV or in our car, we expend very little physical energy. This is why it is really important not only to pay attention to what and how much you eat, but to incorporate more exercise into your daily activities. For example, to “burn” 150 calories (three Oreo cookies or one can of Pepsi) a regular person would have to walk for a mile and a half, otherwise those unneeded calories will be transformed to fat.
6. Snacks between meals. With our hectic lifestyle at times it can be difficult to find time for a proper lunch break. Most of us are either `eating on the move’ or skip lunch all together and substitute it with snacks. Snacking has become a part of our daily routine. We munch on popcorn while watching a movie at a movie theater, order a basket of chips or chicken wings whenever we go out to have a drink with friends, snack on chocolate while at work or eat some cookies while watching our favorite reality show on TV. Most of the snacks and pastries contain high amounts of refined sugars, trans fats, white flour, salt and numerous food additives, while having very little nutritional value. All of these little snacks add up to an excessive amount of calories over the weeks and months. On average, about 3,500 calories equal one pound. So if you are trying to eat healthy, but still gaining weight, pay close attention to snacks that you eat between meals.
7. Fad diets and “magical solutions”. Most of the fad diets are popular, because they promise that you will lose extra weight fast. There is a problem, however. Our bodies were designed to help us survive. When you start eating less food, your body enters “starvation mode” and tries to save energy by slowing down its metabolic rate. In this case the body gets rid of lean muscle mass and water. As soon as you start eating normally, your body will immediately store any incoming fat in fat cells to make sure that there is an energy reserve, in case you decide to go on starvation diet again. Therefore, the faster you lose weight, the faster you will gain it all back. And you will probably weight more than before you started a diet.

Tags: extra weight factors, weight loss, weight loss problem, why we are overweight