It lurks in the darkness, controlling your thoughts. You crave it though you know it will only cause you harm. Slowly you lose control. You can resist no longer … you eat the doughnut.

This story may seem like nothing to “normal” people, but to obese people, this is their life. It represents the struggles they go through to try and overcome their condition. In the world and especially the U.S., obesity is a major issue. There are more than 100,000 obesity related deaths every year in the U.S. In the world, this number is much larger.

Obesity may be bad on your body, but it does not kill you. The actual killer would be the disease or diseases that affect your body due to your weight. Obesity is measured through mathematical equations that involve your height and weight. The result is you BMI (body mass index). A person with a normal BMI is one who is considered healthy. People with an abnormal BMI are obese or underweight. Both are unhealthy, but obesity is the one with the higher number of diseases.

Obesity can be caused by a number of reasons. One of the causes is unhealthy foods like sweets, deep-fried foods and ones with a very high amount of calories and/or saturated fats. Another cause that affects mainly the U.S. is the lack of physical activity.

All in all, obesity is a major problem. If you have a friend who is obese, please tell them to help themselves so that they don’t become like all the others who died prematurely. People who are obese often feel alone and unwanted — making them feel loved and welcome just may save their life.