http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889 The debate over who's to blame for obesity &mdash; society or the individual &mdash; is an interesting one many of you have been involved in on this blog. It makes me think of this passage from Fed Up! Winning the War Against Childhood Obesity by Dr. Susan Okie. The first sentence is a little technical, but stick with it: The control centers for tracking energy balance and regulating body weight are located primarily in the hypothalamus, a small part of the brain that specializes in integrating messages from other parts of the body and orchestrating the organism's response to its environment...(Columbia University obesity scientist Rudy) Leibel points out that unconscious signals sent by the hypothalamus to the cerebral cortex, the &quot;thinking&quot; part of the brain, contribute to such conscious actions as ordering pizza or having a second piece of pie. &quot;Just because a behavior is involved does not mean that all aspects of the behavior are 'voluntary' in the usual sense of the word,&quot; he says. So, from what it sounds like this researcher is saying, while we do have control over our actions, sometimes there are other things going on pushing us to overeat. And considering the human body is designed to protect us from starvation and ill-equipped for times of feast, it's no wonder it's so difficult for some people to lose weight. &nbsp; &mdash; Emily Hagedorn, health reporter (661) 395-7510 ehagedorn@bakersfield.com The debate over who's to blame for obesity &mdash; society or the individual &mdash; is an interesting one many of you have been involved in on this blog. It makes me think of this passage from Fed Up! Winning the War Against Childhood Obesity by Dr. Susan Okie. The first sentence is a little technical, but stick with it: The control centers for tracking energy balance and regulating body weight are located primarily in the hypothalamus, a small part of the brain that specializes in integrating messages from other parts of the body and orchestrating the organism's response to its environment...(Columbia University obesity scientist Rudy) Leibel points out that unconscious signals sent by the hypothalamus to the cerebral cortex, the &quot;thinking&quot; part of the brain, contribute to such conscious actions as ordering pizza or having a second piece of pie. &quot;Just because a behavior is involved does not mean that all aspects of the behavior are 'voluntary' in the usual sense of the word,&quot; he says. So, from what it sounds like this researcher is saying, while we do have control over our actions, sometimes there are other things going on pushing us to overeat. And considering the human body is designed to protect us from starvation and ill-equipped for times of feast, it's no wonder it's so difficult for some people to lose weight. &nbsp; &mdash; Emily Hagedorn, health reporter (661) 395-7510 ehagedorn@bakersfield.com en-us <p>I am a firm believer in we each are captain of our own ship. There's a weight line I consider too heavy for me. I once went beyond it and immediately took steps to get below it. Which I did and I've never been back.</p> <p>I do recognize that some people have conditions which make it nearly impossible to control their own weight. I believe those are rare, but I'm not sure.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192882 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192882 <p>I am a firm believer in we each are captain of our own ship. There's a weight line I consider too heavy for me. I once went beyond it and immediately took steps to get below it. Which I did and I've never been back.</p> <p>I do recognize that some people have conditions which make it nearly impossible to control their own weight. I believe those are rare, but I'm not sure.</p> <p>True Steve, But some ships have holes in them and others have faulty rudders. All ships are not created equal.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192897 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192897 <p>True Steve, But some ships have holes in them and others have faulty rudders. All ships are not created equal.</p> <p>I believe it is very easy to control one's weight. It is eating a healthy diet of grains, meat, veggies, fruit, nuts. Avoiding transfat, fast food, high carbs, high fat.</p> <p>I eat a simple ceral w/ mike and oj for breakfast, mid morning snack of fruit, nuts. Lunch is tuna or a chicken breast, mid afternoon is more fruit or some protein from hard boiled eggs,&nbsp; or nuts. Dinner is a mix of meat 6 oz, veggies, rice or some other type of carb.</p> <p>I drink lots of water, a glass of wine most days, diet Pepsi.</p> <p>I still have a 31&quot; waist and my body fat has never been above 12%.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192900 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192900 <p>I believe it is very easy to control one's weight. It is eating a healthy diet of grains, meat, veggies, fruit, nuts. Avoiding transfat, fast food, high carbs, high fat.</p> <p>I eat a simple ceral w/ mike and oj for breakfast, mid morning snack of fruit, nuts. Lunch is tuna or a chicken breast, mid afternoon is more fruit or some protein from hard boiled eggs,&nbsp; or nuts. Dinner is a mix of meat 6 oz, veggies, rice or some other type of carb.</p> <p>I drink lots of water, a glass of wine most days, diet Pepsi.</p> <p>I still have a 31&quot; waist and my body fat has never been above 12%.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>As simplistic as it may seem, obsessive, compulsive overeating disorders which lead to obesity are controllable&nbsp;with either self or professional help or both.</p> <p>First, one must&nbsp;recognize and admit&nbsp;the problem,&nbsp;have the desire to be healthy and the self discipline to adopt a sensible dietary regimen.</p> <p>The recognition part&nbsp;is&nbsp;simple enough when you realize that you are&nbsp;outgrowing your clothes.</p> <p>The treatment part may not be so easy, but weight and fat gain are certainly manageable.</p> <p>Treatment extremes include self induced bulimic activity&nbsp;and gastric bypass surgery.</p> <p>The bottom line is, sans rare systemic causes,&nbsp;weight gain for the vast majority of over eaters is directly proportionate to caloric intake (the more you eat, the bigger you get) and personal choice.</p> <p>Proper dietary discipline may be a tough choice, but it is a personal choice nonetheless.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192995 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/weigheddown/20889/#c_192995 <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>As simplistic as it may seem, obsessive, compulsive overeating disorders which lead to obesity are controllable&nbsp;with either self or professional help or both.</p> <p>First, one must&nbsp;recognize and admit&nbsp;the problem,&nbsp;have the desire to be healthy and the self discipline to adopt a sensible dietary regimen.</p> <p>The recognition part&nbsp;is&nbsp;simple enough when you realize that you are&nbsp;outgrowing your clothes.</p> <p>The treatment part may not be so easy, but weight and fat gain are certainly manageable.</p> <p>Treatment extremes include self induced bulimic activity&nbsp;and gastric bypass surgery.</p> <p>The bottom line is, sans rare systemic causes,&nbsp;weight gain for the vast majority of over eaters is directly proportionate to caloric intake (the more you eat, the bigger you get) and personal choice.</p> <p>Proper dietary discipline may be a tough choice, but it is a personal choice nonetheless.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>