This relates to the biological perspective by keeping your willpower, motivation and the mentality of feeling better. Also the fact of having the ability to feel like you have more energy than you did before. In these studies of heredity and genetics there is an indication of behavioral traits that are influenced by the interaction of complexity between heredity and environment. From these articles I learned that weight control is mostly control in the brain. It is mostly controlled  through hormones such as leptin and adiponectin. Also neurochemicals makes eating feel good which leads to the wanting more stage. Maintaining a well balanced metabolism is a huge factor in weight control. Exercising and watching how many calories you eat a day help to build a well balanced metabolism. Keeping the mentality to stay healthy is also very important. You need to have the willpower to say no to certain eating temptations. I also learned that there are two different types of hungers and the difference between the two. Brain hunger is what motivates individuals to eat for pleasure and comfort. Stomach hunger is the demand and need for food. The collision of brain and stomach hunger makes people feel like it is impossible to shed a few pounds. Weight Control is a big factor all over the world today.

The Learning Aspect

"Weight Control in a Behavioral Outlook"

 

 

 

    Obesity, due to the severe consequences of remaining obese and the resistance to treatment, presents a major challenge to medical and psychological communities. Weight problems, like obesity, are extremely hard to treat. The list of disorders that are associated with poor weight management is extensive ranging from Hypertension to Diabetes. Behavior therapy treatments are the most widely used treatment dealing with obesity. The behavioral approach to treatments consist of continual evaluation of preceding circumstances and consequences that influence one’s eating behavior. Treatments consist of an integrated group of rules applied to one’s eating habits, and the leading strategies associated with the behavioral aspect of obesity treatments include stimulus control procedures, modification of eating behaviors and contingency (fulfillment of a condition) management. ^[3]

 

    The act of modifying environmental cues so that appropriate eating will occur more often than the undesirable response of inappropriate eating is used in stimulus control techniques. Also used is eliminating visual food cues, so there are fewer cues associated with eating. Another factor included is learning to distinguish environmental cued eating and substituting in non-eating behaviors. For example, instead of associating anxiety with eating, associate anxiety with going for a walk, or making phone calls.

    A fraction of those with the disability to control their weight have a morbid fear of obesity and therefore are never satisfied with their weight. According to Psychology: Themes and Variations put together by Weiten. People go to extreme lengths just to “fit in” and reconstruct their behaviors by taking unhealthy routes to controlling their weight, whether through restriction or purging.  Eating disorders are severe disturbances in eating behavior, an eventually lead to a cascade of medical problems. ^[4]Since 1967, controlled research has gone underway dealing with behavior treatments alone on the subject of weight control. Within western societies alone, weight control issues have been escalating throughout the recent decades. Although the numbers range from 1 to 3 percent tops, the number of women with weight control issues still range in the millions.

 

    Looking at behavior on it’s own is an important aspect of weight control and its treatments. Through reinforcements, positive and negative, the chances of someone’s behavior improving are more likely creating efficient treatments to help fight the large list of disorders currently presenting itself to the medical and psychological communities.

 

The Cognitive Aspect

                                                         

The Social Aspect

"Overweight America"

    Obesity in America has quickly climbed to the top of list of health problems. All areas of psychology have

 reasoning for this epidemic, but looking thru the social perspective is a little different. Family values and the

 thought process of an average American are two huge contributors to the extreme obesity problem this

 country now faces.

 

    This country has went thru major family problems in the past 30 years. With divorce rates at an even 50

 percent of marriages ending, this leaves half the country with single parent homes and the experience of the

 American family traditions not as prevalent as it once was. This can have a enormous affect on a persons

 diet, especially children and teenagers. A parent leaving the children to decide what to eat for breakfast

 because they need to go to work with no time to make food, or not sitting down for a healthy dinner every

 night and possibly picking up fast food on the way home from work for the family lead to poor eating habits.

 On the other side of the spectrum, a single older American, which are more prevalent in contemporary

 America, may not have the urge to sit down and eat a nutritious home cooked dinner, and instead substitute

 it with take out, or may even skip out on a breakfast. These up and down eating habits are torturous on the

 body and can lead to extreme weight gain. It’s not that people don’t want to sit down with their family and

 eat healthy food, it’s what is more time efficient and budget friendly.

 

    The ethics of this country are also a factor in the overweight problem in America. “Over-weight seems to

 be the new ‘norm’ in America, whereas the concept of healthy fit is becoming more uncommon. In fact, the

 importance of maintaining physical appearance has decreased for both men and women since 2001.” stated

 in an article in “Consumer’s Medical Journal”.^[5]  This social stigma is pinned directly on America, and for good

 reason. Common acts like treating children to McDonalds as a reward, a giant outdoor party with hot dogs,

 chips, and meat cooked with a fatty spices and sauces, and eating a Thanksgiving dinner until “you can’t

 move” is not only a thread of the fabric of American life, but it’s praised. Over sizing everything is the

 American way, but when it comes to health, it‘s a terrible road. All-you-can-eat buffets are a normal American

 restaurant, but anywhere else in the world they barely, if at all, exist. Paul Rozin and Andrew B. Geier, two

 psychologists, did a study on American serving sizes and compared them to other countries. They found that

 the portion sizes in America are much larger in everything Americans eat. “Even McDonald’s in Paris serves

 less, with the same menu items containing fewer calories -- for instance, there are fewer fries in a serving

 and fewer ounces in a large soda.”^[6] This shows the mindset of Americans and eating habits, that more is

 always better. This obviously is a huge factor that leads to over eating and the creation of extremely

 terrible, fat foods. This has a staggering negative impact on the thought process of Americans and eating,

 because it’s how the country is portrayed and sadly, it has become true.

 

    Obesity is rising at an alarming rate as the worst health risk America is facing. Americans are seemingly

 putting nutrition and health on the backburner, and the consequences are starting to surface, and it shows

 no signs of stopping.