Obesity In Infants Causes and Affects Research Paper

Obesity In Infants Causes and Affects - Research Paper Example In a journal published by the American Academy of Pediatrics researchers established that "childhood obesity may be caused factors that operate at the earliest stages of life," (Bagley, 2009). Fast foods and lack of physical activity may be the cause of obesity in many people, but it does not explain why "obesity in infants under 6 months has risen 73 percent since 1980", (Bagley, 2009). Babies certainly are not eating extra buttered popcorn at the movies, Big-Macs at MC Donald's or Sonic's milkshakes. Babies less than 6 months of age are drinking specially formulated baby formula or breast milk, and are just being introduced to baby foods at 6 months. So, what causes obesity in infants? Scientists believe that a number of factors may lead to obesity in infants. Not breast feeding, hormones inherited from parents, hormones that mother and child may have been exposed to through foods that were ingested during pregnancy, or exposure to toxins in commonly used household items like plast ic spoons and plates. Further, some items used to feed babies like their bottles may contain some small traces of toxins, which are ingested during feedings. Retha Newbold (Bagley, 2009), of The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) in North Carolina believed that emerging evidence shows being overweight is not just the result of making poor food choices, or lack of activity, but that exposure to environmental chemicals during development maybe contributing to the obesity epidemic in America. There is no doubt that while a woman is pregnant exposure to harmful chemicals can cause serious illnesses that become more apparent years and even decades later. It is not far-fetched to believe that fetuses and infants can be predisposed to obesity through hormones and chemicals. In a study conducted by Newbold, lab mice were injected with normal or the same levels of estrogen as people are generally exposed to in the environment. The study showed that in six months the mice that were exposed to the estrogen was 20 percent heavier and had 36 percent more body fats than mice that were not exposed to the estrogen. Newbold was made sure that both the exposed and the controlled mice in the study were fed the same amounts of food and were exposed to the same amount of activity. These implications are huge, and this study shows that there is a direct correlation between some hormones and obesity in infants. Bruce Blumberg (Bagley, 2009), a scientist at the University of California, Irvine said "there is a correlation between obesity and a lot of things, and that finding a link between hormones/ chemicals didn't mean much (Born To Be Big, 2009)." However, later Blumberg conducted his on study to find out if any links exist between harmful chemicals and obesity in infants. In his research study Blumberg specifically tested a chemical called tributyltin, which is commonly found in pesticides, fungicides, marine paints and some plastic products. " In 2006 he fed pregnant mice tributyltin, and found that their offspring were born with more fat already stored, more fat cells, and became 5 to 20 percent fatter by adulthood," (Bagley, 2009). All these studies highlight that obesity is not just eating more calorific food or more energy intake but is also influenced by various environmental as well as genetic factors. It is of the foremost apprehension