THE COMPLEXITY
OF ADOLESCENT OBESITY
Causes, Correlates, and Consequences

Obesity has become an epidemic, a fact frequently discussed in the media,

with many references to both childhood obesity and adult. These discus-
sions overlook an important demographic: the adolescent who is obese or

overweight. The road from childhood obesity into adolescent obesity and
from there into adult obesity is now a well-travelled path for individuals
around the world. To omit adolescent obesity from our discussions is to
miss many of the vital factors that contribute to the obesity epidemic.