Overweight and Obesity: An Anthropological Paramount

Contents: Introduction. 1. Common wealth policies, programmes and initiatives for obesity. 2. Diagnosing overweight and associated problems of obesity. 3. Traditional Indian medicinal system for overweight and obesity management. 4. Methodology. 5. Study area. 6. Observation and analysis. 7. Recommendation and conclusion. Bibliography.

A very common phrase ‘the longer the belt, the shorter the life span’ means excess weight is dangerous. It involves inconvenience and also decreases the efficiency of the person, besides subjecting the heart to undue stress. The recent rates of obesity worldwide have resulted in the subsequent enculturation of ‘obesity’. Obesity and overweight is closely related to each other's where overweight indicated as a health hazard since statistical data shows that obese persons risk a number of diseases such as coronary atherosclerosis, hypertension and psychological disorders. Towards overweight and obesity, experiences are greatly varied per country, community and individual where it is culturally entrenched and any hopes of dealing with the health consequences should begin with cultural patterns and perceptions, including how obesity is internalized by society. With above thought Anthropology with its holistic nature and ability to merge multiple paradigms is paramount for the study of overweight, its impact on multiple levels and its historical and global causes. The objective of the book is to illustrate the overweight trend among tribal population of India and its associated disease as well as responsible factors of overweight and obesity among tribal population. This book is not for experts and specialised in this subject. It is not meant that it can't be used as a standard reference for obesity. Some major and minor aspects were included to illustrate overweight and obesity for an individual calls for attention. Some of these include age, BMI, food habit, socio-cultural and economic background, mental and emotional state nature of work. Individuals like and dislike towards foods climatic/ environmental condition, genetic factors with special reference to tribe of Bastar.