What Is Obesity? Obesity is an excess proportion of total body
fat. A person is considered obese when his or her weight is 20%
or more above normal weight. The most common measure of obesity
is the body mass index, or BMI. A person is considered
overweight if his or her BMI is between 25 and 29.9; a person is
considered obese if his or her BMI is over 30. "Morbid obesity"
means that a person is either 50%-100% over normal weight, more
than 100 pounds over normal weight, has a BMI of 40 or higher,
or is sufficiently overweight to severely interfere with health
or normal function. What Causes Obesity? Obesity occurs when a
person consumes more calories than he or she burns. For many
people, this boils down to eating too much and exercising too
little. But there are other factors that also play a role in
obesity. These may include: - Age. As you get older, your body's
ability to metabolize food slows down and you do not require as
many calories to maintain your weight. This is why people note
that they eat the s