What causes morbid obesity?
The causes of morbid obesity are multiple and complex. Despite conventional wisdom, it is not simply a result of overeating. Research has shown that, in many cases, significant, underlying causes of morbid obesity are genetic, environmental, and social. Studies have demonstrated that, once the problem is established, efforts such as dieting and exercise programs have a limited ability to provide effective long-term relief.
Many factors seem to be involved. In obese persons, the “set-point” of stored energy is too high. This altered set-point may result from a low metabolism with low energy expenditure, excessive caloric intake, or a combination of both disorders. There is some scientific data that suggests obesity maybe be an inherited characteristic. Severe obesity is most likely a result of genetic, psychological, environmental, social, and cultural influences that interact — resulting in the complex disorder of both appetite regulation and energy metabolism. Severe obesity is not simply a lack of self-control or willpower by the patient.
