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Ward-Smith, Peggy. "Obesity -- America's Health Crisis." Urologic Nursing 30.4 (2010): 242-245. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. The article reports on obesity as an ongoing health crisis in the U.S. Defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that annual medical costs associated with the disease have increased. It is noted that obese people are subjected to bias, prejudice and discrimination. Treatment options for obesity are discussed, which include pharmacological intervention and bariatric surgery.

Boyle, Jennifer, Nicole Larose. "The Personal Beliefs, The Environment and College Students' Exercise and Eating Behaviors." American Journal of Health Studies 23.4 (2008) 195-200. Ebsocohost. Web. 22 Nov. 2010. College students are at risk for overweight/obesity. It was hypothesized that better nutrition and physical activity would be related to healthy environmental perceptions and personal beliefs.Sixty-five percent of American adults are overweight. The greatest increases in overweight and obesity occur in persons between 18-29 years of age.Eating habits are also a problem in both the general population as well as among college students. Only 28% of persons over the age of two are meeting daily recommendations for fruit intake and even fewer 3% are meeting daily recommendations for vegetable intake. College students often exceed the recommended daily limit for saturated fat intake. A study by Racette found that more than half the students in their sample reported eating high-fat fried or fast foods at least three times per week.

Juan Zhang. Middlestadt, Susan E.Cheng-Ye Ji."Psychosocial factors underlying physical activity." International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition & Physical Activity; 2007, Vol. 4, p38-10, 10p, 8 Charts. Academic Search Complete. Web. November 18, 2010. The increase in obesity in China. Trying to prevent this by encouraging middle schooler in China the importance of being physicaly fit and excersising.

Earlier studies associated the first year of college with a dramatic increase in body weight, termed the "freshman 15". However, recent studies showed that weight gain might be smaller. The purpose of this review was to evaluate the extent of observed weight/body composition changes, including factors associated with them, among students entering university. Searches were conducted for studies examining weight/body composition changes during freshman semesters. Most studies were not comprehensive in assessing numerous potential causative factors for weight gain. Methods for assessing diet, physical activity, and behavioral factors varied among studies. Weight changes were often not quantified by measures of body composition (lean/fat) to ascertain that changes were limited just to gains in fat mass. Overall, weight changes ranged from 0.7-3.1 kg, but among individuals who gained weight, the range was narrower, 3.1-3.4 kg. There may be specific groups of students with a greater predisposition for weight gain and future research should focus on identifying those groups.

Objective: The aims of the study were to assess whether women during the first year of college experience (1) significant weight gain; (2) a prospective relation between dietary restraint and weight gain; (3) an increase in disordered eating; and (4) a prospective relation between dietary restraint or concern about the Freshmen 15 (i.e., weight gain of 15 lbs during the freshman year of college) and disordered eating.\n\nMethod\nParticipants were 336 female students in their first year of college who completed questionnaire measures of Body Mass Index (BMI), eating disorder pathology, dietary restraint, body image, and self-esteem.\n\nResults\nParticipants' mean weight gain was approximately 3 lbs (1.5 kg), and among those who gained weight, the mean gain was 7.32 lbs (3.3 kg). Dietary restraint in September did not predict weight change in April, but participants who lost weight reported significantly greater dietary restraint than those participants who gained weight. Eating disorder symptoms increased significantly from September to April. Dietary restraint, concern about the "Freshman 15", and self-esteem in September uniquely predicted EDE-Q Weight and Shape Concern subscale scores in April.\n\nDiscussion\nFemale students in their first year of college gain a small but significant amount of weight, and weight gain was mostly unrelated to dietary restraint. Disordered eating increases during the first year of college and, is predicted by prospective dietary restraint and concerns about weight gain.