Handbook of Obesity, Two-Volume Set

"The fifth edition of Volume 1 of the Handbook of Obesity written by global experts covers the broad topic areas of epidemiology, etiology, and pathophysiology of obesity. Divided into 5 sections and detailed in 66 chapters, this edition covers important advances that have occurred over the past decades. With a focus on the science of obesity, factors participating in the etiology of obesity, and the metabolic and health consequences of obesity, the topics are addressed from biological, behavioural, and environmental perspectives. Volume 1 is structured into 5 parts: Part 1 focuses on the history, definitions, and prevalence of obesity. It identifies the historical references to excess weight, obesity in art and literature, direct and surrogate measurements of adiposity and obesity related traits, and the epidemiology of obesity around the globe. Discussion of age, sex, and ethnic variation completes this part of the volume. Part 2 explores the biological determinants of obesity. It emphasizes bioenergetics, energy dissipation mechanisms, exposure to experimental overfeeding, genetic and epigenetic evidence, metabolic rates, energy expenditure and energy partitioning, and the evidence on infections and adiposity. Part 3 describes the behavioral determinants of obesity. It deals with foods, beverages, ingestive behavior, smoking, breast-feeding, sleep duration and pattern, sedentary behavior, occupational work, and leisure-time physical activity and their potential involvement in the etiology of obesity. Part 4 comprises chapters on environmental, social, and cultural determinants of obesity. The role of agriculture and the food industry in the current obesity epidemic, social and economic aspects of obesity, ethnic and cultural differences, and environmental pollutants are considered. Part 5 of this volume discusses the health consequences of obesity. The chapters address topics such as heart disease, lipoprotein metabolism, insulin resistance and diabetes, metabolic syndrome, cancer, hepatic dysfunctions, pulmonary functions, arthritis and gout, mental health and quality of life, growth and health disorders in pediatric populations, and biases and discriminations affecting persons with obesity"--