Article Documentation:
Laura M Koehly. Adolescent obesity and social networks.2009. Retrieved from; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2722403/
Briefly, State the Main Idea of this Article.
The article by Laura describes obesity as a chronic disease that is facing many people in the world. The major message that the author communicates to people reading the article is that obesity is caused by a combination of factors and specifically the interaction between biological factors and the environment one lives in. The aim of the article is to create awareness to the people on the causes of obesity so that the condition can be prevented where possible. The article argues that biological and environmental factors interact to influence whether an individual will become obese or not.
What evidence does the author give to support the main idea? List three facts.
The author argues that family background has been observed to influence whether one becomes obese or not. Studies have shown that 70 percent of the fats that children aged 10 years accumulate in their muscles depend on the genes inherited from their parents. There are genes that usually increase the amount of fats that are stored in the adipose tissues (Laura, 1).
Moving to the second argument, it has been observed that the environment in which a child is brought up from can influence whether the child becomes obese or not. The types of foods that the children eat at early ages and level of physical activity of a child will determine whether a child will become obese or not (Laura, 1). This is because the environment in most cases dictates the available food and the physical activity of children.
Finally, the author argues that social ties during adolescence also influence obesity in that people make friends after considering certain characteristics of their friends. A group of friends usually eats similar foods. In addition, a certain group of friends are ether physically active or inactive. These features can influence whether a friend in a particular group will become obese or not (Laura, 1).
What information or ideas discussed in this article are also discussed in your textbook?
The idea that the environment facilitates the condition of being obese is found in our textbook. The book explains that if an individual is brought up in an environment whereby he/she cannot play or exercise, then such an individual has higher chances of becoming obese.
List any examples of bias, faulty reasoning, or information that you found in the article
Which is contrary to other sources? Think critically.
The article consists of some faulty reasoning in that the author assumes that if an individual is obese, then his/her friends are likely to be obese. This is considering that these friends possibly consume similar foods and are physically inactive and therefore they might all be obese. This might not be the case since in the real life; there are situations whereby, one finds a friend who is obese whereas he/she is not obese. The genetic factors influence whether an individual is obese or not regardless of the type of food one eats.
List at least three new relevant terms or new concepts presented in the article and write a short definition of each.
Obesity- it is a condition whereby an individual has a weight that does not match what is expected of a person of the same height.
Gene- this is physical biological unit that determines the hereditary characteristics passed to a child.
Adipose- it is a connective tissue where fats in the body are deposited.
Works cited.
Laura M Koehly. Adolescent obesity and social networks.2009. Retrieved from; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2722403/
