John R. B. Lighton
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195310610
- eISBN:
- 9780199871414
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195310610.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology, Biotechnology
The measurement of metabolic rates is important in many areas of science. Examples range from ecology through a broad spectrum of physiological disciplines to biomedical fields such as genetic ...
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The measurement of metabolic rates is important in many areas of science. Examples range from ecology through a broad spectrum of physiological disciplines to biomedical fields such as genetic screening, obesity, and trauma research. The organisms being measured range in size from bacteria through insects to whales, and many different measurement methodologies have developed over the years, most of which are famously difficult for the novice to master. This book covers a wide range of metabolic measurement techniques, giving background and applications information for each, with enough practical detail to allow for accurate and informed measurements with minimal trial-and-error. Much tribal wisdom, passed down from professors to students and between scientific peers, is included. A broad range of techniques is covered, including Gilson and Warburg respirometry and their modern derivatives; direct calorimetry; stable isotope work; coulometric respirometry; aquatic respirometry; and practically every variation of field and laboratory flow-through respirometry, including complex, computer-driven multi-animal systems. Characteristics of the different varieties of gas analyzers, flow measurement systems, and so on are evaluated in detail. The book brings to the task over two decades of experience in practically every type of respirometry, from laboratory settings to the jungles of Panama and the deserts of Namibia.Less
The measurement of metabolic rates is important in many areas of science. Examples range from ecology through a broad spectrum of physiological disciplines to biomedical fields such as genetic screening, obesity, and trauma research. The organisms being measured range in size from bacteria through insects to whales, and many different measurement methodologies have developed over the years, most of which are famously difficult for the novice to master. This book covers a wide range of metabolic measurement techniques, giving background and applications information for each, with enough practical detail to allow for accurate and informed measurements with minimal trial-and-error. Much tribal wisdom, passed down from professors to students and between scientific peers, is included. A broad range of techniques is covered, including Gilson and Warburg respirometry and their modern derivatives; direct calorimetry; stable isotope work; coulometric respirometry; aquatic respirometry; and practically every variation of field and laboratory flow-through respirometry, including complex, computer-driven multi-animal systems. Characteristics of the different varieties of gas analyzers, flow measurement systems, and so on are evaluated in detail. The book brings to the task over two decades of experience in practically every type of respirometry, from laboratory settings to the jungles of Panama and the deserts of Namibia.
David Crawford, Kylie Ball, Robert W. Jeffery, and Johannes Brug
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199571512
- eISBN:
- 9780191595097
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199571512.003.0026
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health, Epidemiology
The case for a preventative approach to the obesity epidemic is compelling. Obesity poses what is arguably one of the most significant threats to population health that is currently faced. The data ...
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The case for a preventative approach to the obesity epidemic is compelling. Obesity poses what is arguably one of the most significant threats to population health that is currently faced. The data presented in this book highlight just how common obesity has become in children and in adults across the globe, and how it impacts disproportionately on the poor. This chapter presents a summary of the discussions in the preceding chapters.Less
The case for a preventative approach to the obesity epidemic is compelling. Obesity poses what is arguably one of the most significant threats to population health that is currently faced. The data presented in this book highlight just how common obesity has become in children and in adults across the globe, and how it impacts disproportionately on the poor. This chapter presents a summary of the discussions in the preceding chapters.
Richard Stevenson
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199539352
- eISBN:
- 9780191724008
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199539352.001.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
Flavour is arguably the most fascinating aspect of eating and drinking. It utilises a complex variety of senses and processes, that incredibly work together to generate a unified, and hopefully ...
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Flavour is arguably the most fascinating aspect of eating and drinking. It utilises a complex variety of senses and processes, that incredibly work together to generate a unified, and hopefully pleasurable, experience. The processes involved are not just those involved in tasting at the time of eating, but also memory and learning processes — we obviously shun those foods of which we have a negative memory, and favour those we enjoy. Our understanding of the science of flavour has improved in recent years, benefiting psychology, cuisine, food science, oenology, and dietetics. This book describes what is known about the psychology and biology of flavour. The book is divided into two parts. The first explores what we know about the flavour system; including the role of learning and memory in flavour perception and hedonics; the way in which all the senses that contribute to flavour interact, and our ability to perceive flavour as a whole and as a series of parts. The later chapters examine a range of theoretical issues concerning the flavour system. This includes a look at multisensory processing, and the way in which the mind and brain bind information from discrete sensory systems. It also examines the broader implications of studying flavour for societal problems such as obesity.Less
Flavour is arguably the most fascinating aspect of eating and drinking. It utilises a complex variety of senses and processes, that incredibly work together to generate a unified, and hopefully pleasurable, experience. The processes involved are not just those involved in tasting at the time of eating, but also memory and learning processes — we obviously shun those foods of which we have a negative memory, and favour those we enjoy. Our understanding of the science of flavour has improved in recent years, benefiting psychology, cuisine, food science, oenology, and dietetics. This book describes what is known about the psychology and biology of flavour. The book is divided into two parts. The first explores what we know about the flavour system; including the role of learning and memory in flavour perception and hedonics; the way in which all the senses that contribute to flavour interact, and our ability to perceive flavour as a whole and as a series of parts. The later chapters examine a range of theoretical issues concerning the flavour system. This includes a look at multisensory processing, and the way in which the mind and brain bind information from discrete sensory systems. It also examines the broader implications of studying flavour for societal problems such as obesity.
Mario Mazzocchi, W. Bruce Traill, and Jason F. Shogren
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199213856
- eISBN:
- 9780191695902
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213856.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Public and Welfare
The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst ...
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The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst much has been written on the subject, this book takes a unique approach by looking at the obesity epidemic from an economic perspective. Written in a language accessible to non-specialists, the authors provide a timely discussion of evolving nutrition policies in both the developing and developed world, discuss the factors influencing supply and demand of food supply, and review the evidence for various factors which may explain recent trends in diets, weight, and health. The traditional economic model assumes people choose to be overweight as part of a utility maximisation process that involves choices about what to eat and drink, how much time to spend on leisure, food preparation, and exercise, and choices about appearance and health. Market and behavioural failures, however, such as time available to a person, education, costs imposed on the health system and economic productivity provide the economic rationale for government intervention. The authors explore various policy measures designed to deal with the epidemic and examine their effectiveness within a cost-benefit analysis framework. While providing a sound economic basis for analysing policy decisions, the book also aims to show the underlying limits of the economic framework in quantifying changes in public well-being.Less
The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst much has been written on the subject, this book takes a unique approach by looking at the obesity epidemic from an economic perspective. Written in a language accessible to non-specialists, the authors provide a timely discussion of evolving nutrition policies in both the developing and developed world, discuss the factors influencing supply and demand of food supply, and review the evidence for various factors which may explain recent trends in diets, weight, and health. The traditional economic model assumes people choose to be overweight as part of a utility maximisation process that involves choices about what to eat and drink, how much time to spend on leisure, food preparation, and exercise, and choices about appearance and health. Market and behavioural failures, however, such as time available to a person, education, costs imposed on the health system and economic productivity provide the economic rationale for government intervention. The authors explore various policy measures designed to deal with the epidemic and examine their effectiveness within a cost-benefit analysis framework. While providing a sound economic basis for analysing policy decisions, the book also aims to show the underlying limits of the economic framework in quantifying changes in public well-being.
Mario Mazzocchi, W. Bruce Traill, and Jason F. Shogren
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199213856
- eISBN:
- 9780191695902
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213856.003.0006
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Public and Welfare
This final chapter summarizes the evidence and identifies remaining questions. It argues that obesity policy is as much a question of social choice as of biology. It gives the key points raised by ...
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This final chapter summarizes the evidence and identifies remaining questions. It argues that obesity policy is as much a question of social choice as of biology. It gives the key points raised by the book. It claims that obesity poses a modern day challenge to understanding human health and welfare and that it may be due to technological change. Obesity policy needs economics for risk assessment and management. It also offers that obesity cannot be changed by information policy alone but with a combination of fat taxes and thin subsidies.Less
This final chapter summarizes the evidence and identifies remaining questions. It argues that obesity policy is as much a question of social choice as of biology. It gives the key points raised by the book. It claims that obesity poses a modern day challenge to understanding human health and welfare and that it may be due to technological change. Obesity policy needs economics for risk assessment and management. It also offers that obesity cannot be changed by information policy alone but with a combination of fat taxes and thin subsidies.
Avner Offer
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199216628
- eISBN:
- 9780191696015
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199216628.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Economic History
Since the 1940s Americans and Britons have come to enjoy an era of rising material abundance. Yet this has been accompanied by a range of social and personal disorders, including family breakdown, ...
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Since the 1940s Americans and Britons have come to enjoy an era of rising material abundance. Yet this has been accompanied by a range of social and personal disorders, including family breakdown, addiction, mental instability, crime, obesity, inequality, economic insecurity, and declining trust. This book argues that well-being has lagged behind affluence in these societies, because they present an environment in which consistent choices are difficult to achieve over different time ranges and in which the capacity for personal and social commitment is undermined by the flow of novelty. The book's approach draws on economics and social science, makes use of the latest cognitive research, and provides a detailed and reasoned critique of modern consumer society, especially the assumption that freedom of choice necessarily maximizes individual and social well-being. The book falls into three parts. Part one analyzes the ways in which economic resources map on to human welfare, why choice is so intractable, and how commitment to people and institutions is sustained. It argues that choice is constrained by prior obligation and reciprocity. The second section then applies these conceptual arguments to comparative empirical studies of advertising, of eating and obesity, and of the production and acquisition of appliances and automobiles. Finally, in part three, the book investigates social and personal relations in the USA and Britain, including inter-personal regard, the rewards and reversals of status, the social and psychological costs of inequality, and the challenges posed to heterosexual love and to parenthood by the rise of affluence.Less
Since the 1940s Americans and Britons have come to enjoy an era of rising material abundance. Yet this has been accompanied by a range of social and personal disorders, including family breakdown, addiction, mental instability, crime, obesity, inequality, economic insecurity, and declining trust. This book argues that well-being has lagged behind affluence in these societies, because they present an environment in which consistent choices are difficult to achieve over different time ranges and in which the capacity for personal and social commitment is undermined by the flow of novelty. The book's approach draws on economics and social science, makes use of the latest cognitive research, and provides a detailed and reasoned critique of modern consumer society, especially the assumption that freedom of choice necessarily maximizes individual and social well-being. The book falls into three parts. Part one analyzes the ways in which economic resources map on to human welfare, why choice is so intractable, and how commitment to people and institutions is sustained. It argues that choice is constrained by prior obligation and reciprocity. The second section then applies these conceptual arguments to comparative empirical studies of advertising, of eating and obesity, and of the production and acquisition of appliances and automobiles. Finally, in part three, the book investigates social and personal relations in the USA and Britain, including inter-personal regard, the rewards and reversals of status, the social and psychological costs of inequality, and the challenges posed to heterosexual love and to parenthood by the rise of affluence.
Cynthia Franklin, Mary Beth Harris, and Paula Allen-Meares (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- April 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195370591
- eISBN:
- 9780199893508
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195370591.001.0001
- Subject:
- Social Work, Children and Families
Here, readers will find an overview of adolescent health issues and step-by-step prevention and intervention guidance. This Concise Companion covers major health issues that affect students' well ...
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Here, readers will find an overview of adolescent health issues and step-by-step prevention and intervention guidance. This Concise Companion covers major health issues that affect students' well being — from substance abuse to STDs to obesity — and presents strategies to improve student health by addressing risky behaviors. Each chapter is filled with charts, checklists and cases, organized around What We Know, What We Can Do, Tools and Practice Examples, and Key Points to Remember.Less
Here, readers will find an overview of adolescent health issues and step-by-step prevention and intervention guidance. This Concise Companion covers major health issues that affect students' well being — from substance abuse to STDs to obesity — and presents strategies to improve student health by addressing risky behaviors. Each chapter is filled with charts, checklists and cases, organized around What We Know, What We Can Do, Tools and Practice Examples, and Key Points to Remember.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients ...
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Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients determines whether wild animals thrive, how populations evolve and decline, and how ecological communities are structured. This is the first book to address nutrition's enormously complex role in biology, both at the level of individual organisms and in their broader ecological interactions. The book provides a comprehensive theoretical approach to the analysis of nutrition—the Geometric Framework. The book shows how it can help us to understand the links between nutrition and the biology of individual animals, including the physiological mechanisms that determine the nutritional interactions of the animal with its environment, and the consequences of these interactions in terms of health, immune responses, and lifespan. The book explains how these effects translate into the collective behavior of groups and societies, and in turn influence food webs and the structure of ecosystems. It then demonstrates how the Geometric Framework can be used to tackle issues in applied nutrition, such as the problem of optimizing diets for livestock and endangered species, and how it can also help to address the epidemic of human obesity and metabolic disease.Less
Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients determines whether wild animals thrive, how populations evolve and decline, and how ecological communities are structured. This is the first book to address nutrition's enormously complex role in biology, both at the level of individual organisms and in their broader ecological interactions. The book provides a comprehensive theoretical approach to the analysis of nutrition—the Geometric Framework. The book shows how it can help us to understand the links between nutrition and the biology of individual animals, including the physiological mechanisms that determine the nutritional interactions of the animal with its environment, and the consequences of these interactions in terms of health, immune responses, and lifespan. The book explains how these effects translate into the collective behavior of groups and societies, and in turn influence food webs and the structure of ecosystems. It then demonstrates how the Geometric Framework can be used to tackle issues in applied nutrition, such as the problem of optimizing diets for livestock and endangered species, and how it can also help to address the epidemic of human obesity and metabolic disease.
Adam Drewnowski
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
Obesity in the United States is a socio-economic issue. Recent advances in geographic information system methodology can provide a better understanding of the impact of neighbourhood deprivation on ...
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Obesity in the United States is a socio-economic issue. Recent advances in geographic information system methodology can provide a better understanding of the impact of neighbourhood deprivation on access to healthy foods, diet quality and selected health outcomes. Whereas state-level Centers for Disease Control maps are still best known, newer approaches have mapped obesity at different levels of geographic aggregation: county, political district, zip code or census tract. This chapter examines data from the new Seattle Obesity Study, which permits the mapping of dietary behaviours and health outcomes at the property parcel tax level – the finest level of geographic resolution possible. Analysis suggests that food-consumption patterns also show a spatial distribution, broadly following the geographic distribution of wealth and social class.Less
Obesity in the United States is a socio-economic issue. Recent advances in geographic information system methodology can provide a better understanding of the impact of neighbourhood deprivation on access to healthy foods, diet quality and selected health outcomes. Whereas state-level Centers for Disease Control maps are still best known, newer approaches have mapped obesity at different levels of geographic aggregation: county, political district, zip code or census tract. This chapter examines data from the new Seattle Obesity Study, which permits the mapping of dietary behaviours and health outcomes at the property parcel tax level – the finest level of geographic resolution possible. Analysis suggests that food-consumption patterns also show a spatial distribution, broadly following the geographic distribution of wealth and social class.
Thorkild I. A. Sørensen, Benjamin Rokholm, and Teresa A. Ajslev
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0009
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
The prevailing interpretation of the global epidemic of obesity is that it is a consequence of changes in societies toward more so-called obesogenic environments, changes which involve the emergence ...
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The prevailing interpretation of the global epidemic of obesity is that it is a consequence of changes in societies toward more so-called obesogenic environments, changes which involve the emergence of living conditions that promote persisting positive energy balance. A critical implication of this contention is that the development of the epidemic has followed the corresponding development of the obesogenic environment. This chapter focuses on the history of the obesity epidemic in Danish children and young adult men since the interwar period. Surprisingly, the epidemic has developed in sharply delineated phases closely linked to year of birth, a pattern that is not concordant with the presumed obesogenic changes, which are also problematic for other theoretical and empirical reasons. These findings suggest that the drivers of the epidemic are some changes in the perinatal environment, perhaps even before conception, increasing risk of obesity later in life. Identification of these drivers of the epidemic may offer strong preventive tools to combat obesity.Less
The prevailing interpretation of the global epidemic of obesity is that it is a consequence of changes in societies toward more so-called obesogenic environments, changes which involve the emergence of living conditions that promote persisting positive energy balance. A critical implication of this contention is that the development of the epidemic has followed the corresponding development of the obesogenic environment. This chapter focuses on the history of the obesity epidemic in Danish children and young adult men since the interwar period. Surprisingly, the epidemic has developed in sharply delineated phases closely linked to year of birth, a pattern that is not concordant with the presumed obesogenic changes, which are also problematic for other theoretical and empirical reasons. These findings suggest that the drivers of the epidemic are some changes in the perinatal environment, perhaps even before conception, increasing risk of obesity later in life. Identification of these drivers of the epidemic may offer strong preventive tools to combat obesity.
Roberto Rona and Susan Chinn
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780192629197
- eISBN:
- 9780191723612
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780192629197.001.0001
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health, Epidemiology
The National Study of Health and Growth (NSHG) was a surveillance system of growth in primary school children of England and Scotland from 1972 to 1994. The system included a representative sample ...
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The National Study of Health and Growth (NSHG) was a surveillance system of growth in primary school children of England and Scotland from 1972 to 1994. The system included a representative sample and an inner city sample. The study was valuable for assessing the possible impact of food welfare policy and social factors on nutritional status, mainly assessed in terms of height. The NSHG was the first study to document an increase in child obesity in the United Kingdom. Although the principal aim of the NHSG was to monitor nutritional status, the study was influential in assessing trends in respiratory illness, especially asthma, and in reporting on the risk factors of obesity, cholesterol levels, blood pressure and physical fitness, and other health complaints such as food intolerance, enuresis, and sleep disturbances. The NSGH was successful in maintaining a high response rate throughout its existence.Less
The National Study of Health and Growth (NSHG) was a surveillance system of growth in primary school children of England and Scotland from 1972 to 1994. The system included a representative sample and an inner city sample. The study was valuable for assessing the possible impact of food welfare policy and social factors on nutritional status, mainly assessed in terms of height. The NSHG was the first study to document an increase in child obesity in the United Kingdom. Although the principal aim of the NHSG was to monitor nutritional status, the study was influential in assessing trends in respiratory illness, especially asthma, and in reporting on the risk factors of obesity, cholesterol levels, blood pressure and physical fitness, and other health complaints such as food intolerance, enuresis, and sleep disturbances. The NSGH was successful in maintaining a high response rate throughout its existence.
Tim Lang, David Barling, and Martin Caraher
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780198567882
- eISBN:
- 9780191724121
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198567882.001.0001
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health, Epidemiology
For over half a century, food policy has mapped a path for progress based upon a belief that the right mix of investment, scientific input, and human skills could unleash a surge in productive ...
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For over half a century, food policy has mapped a path for progress based upon a belief that the right mix of investment, scientific input, and human skills could unleash a surge in productive capacity which would resolve humanity's food-related health and welfare problems. It assumed that more food would yield greater health and happiness by driving down prices, increasing availability, and feeding more mouths. In the 21st century, this policy mix is quietly becoming unstuck. In a world marred by obesity alongside malnutrition, climate change alongside fuel and energy crises, water stress alongside more mouths to feed, and social inequalities alongside unprecedented accumulation of wealth, the old rubric of food policy needs re-evaluation. This book explores the enormity of what the new policy mix must address, taking the approach that food policy must be inextricably linked with public health, environmental damage, and social inequalities to be effective. This book reflects the myriad of perspectives essential to a comprehensive view of modern food policy. It attempts to make sense of what is meant by food policy; explores whether the term has any currency in current policy discourse; assesses whether current policies help or hinder what happens; judges whether consensus can triumph in the face of competing bids for understanding; looks at all levels of governance, across the range of actors in the food system, from companies and the state to civil society and science; considers what direction food policies are taking, not just in the UK but internationally; assesses who (and what) gains or loses in the making of these food policies; and identifies a modern framework for judging how good or limited processes of policy-making are.Less
For over half a century, food policy has mapped a path for progress based upon a belief that the right mix of investment, scientific input, and human skills could unleash a surge in productive capacity which would resolve humanity's food-related health and welfare problems. It assumed that more food would yield greater health and happiness by driving down prices, increasing availability, and feeding more mouths. In the 21st century, this policy mix is quietly becoming unstuck. In a world marred by obesity alongside malnutrition, climate change alongside fuel and energy crises, water stress alongside more mouths to feed, and social inequalities alongside unprecedented accumulation of wealth, the old rubric of food policy needs re-evaluation. This book explores the enormity of what the new policy mix must address, taking the approach that food policy must be inextricably linked with public health, environmental damage, and social inequalities to be effective. This book reflects the myriad of perspectives essential to a comprehensive view of modern food policy. It attempts to make sense of what is meant by food policy; explores whether the term has any currency in current policy discourse; assesses whether current policies help or hinder what happens; judges whether consensus can triumph in the face of competing bids for understanding; looks at all levels of governance, across the range of actors in the food system, from companies and the state to civil society and science; considers what direction food policies are taking, not just in the UK but internationally; assesses who (and what) gains or loses in the making of these food policies; and identifies a modern framework for judging how good or limited processes of policy-making are.
Edmund T. Rolls
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199659890
- eISBN:
- 9780191772078
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199659890.001.0001
- Subject:
- Neuroscience, Behavioral Neuroscience, Development
What produces emotions? Why do we have emotions? How do we have emotions? Why do emotional states feel like something? What is the relation between emotion, and reward value, and subjective feelings ...
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What produces emotions? Why do we have emotions? How do we have emotions? Why do emotional states feel like something? What is the relation between emotion, and reward value, and subjective feelings of pleasure? How is the value of a good represented in the brain? Will neuroeconomics replace classical microeconomics? How does the brain implement decision-making? Are gene-defined rewards and emotions in the interests of the genes, and does rational multistep planning enable us to go beyond selfish genes to long-term plans and social contracts in the interests of the individual? This book seeks explanations of emotion and decision-making by considering these questions.Less
What produces emotions? Why do we have emotions? How do we have emotions? Why do emotional states feel like something? What is the relation between emotion, and reward value, and subjective feelings of pleasure? How is the value of a good represented in the brain? Will neuroeconomics replace classical microeconomics? How does the brain implement decision-making? Are gene-defined rewards and emotions in the interests of the genes, and does rational multistep planning enable us to go beyond selfish genes to long-term plans and social contracts in the interests of the individual? This book seeks explanations of emotion and decision-making by considering these questions.
Avner Offer, Rachel Pechey, and Stanley Ulijaszek (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
The problem of obesity is of increasing national and international importance. This book, which provides a solid foundation for the social interpretation of obesity, assessing the role of ...
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The problem of obesity is of increasing national and international importance. This book, which provides a solid foundation for the social interpretation of obesity, assessing the role of institutions rather than the individual, argues that obesity is a response to stress and that some types of welfare regimes are more stressful than others. International comparisons show that English-speaking market-liberal societies have higher levels of obesity as well as higher levels of labour and product market competition, leading to inequalities that induce uncertainty and anxiety.Less
The problem of obesity is of increasing national and international importance. This book, which provides a solid foundation for the social interpretation of obesity, assessing the role of institutions rather than the individual, argues that obesity is a response to stress and that some types of welfare regimes are more stressful than others. International comparisons show that English-speaking market-liberal societies have higher levels of obesity as well as higher levels of labour and product market competition, leading to inequalities that induce uncertainty and anxiety.
Kate E. Pickett and Richard G. Wilkinson
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0010
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
Almost all health and social problems that have social gradients (more common further down the social ladder) are very much more common in societies with bigger income differences between rich and ...
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Almost all health and social problems that have social gradients (more common further down the social ladder) are very much more common in societies with bigger income differences between rich and poor. Obesity is part of a very general picture to do with class, status and inequality that affects longevity, violence, mental health, teenage births, drug abuse and child well-being, among other outcomes. The causal pathways through which obesity might be affected by inequality are discussed in this chapter.Less
Almost all health and social problems that have social gradients (more common further down the social ladder) are very much more common in societies with bigger income differences between rich and poor. Obesity is part of a very general picture to do with class, status and inequality that affects longevity, violence, mental health, teenage births, drug abuse and child well-being, among other outcomes. The causal pathways through which obesity might be affected by inequality are discussed in this chapter.
Avner Offer, Rachel Pechey, and Stanley Ulijaszek
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0011
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
Among affluent countries, those with market-liberal regimes (which are also English-speaking) tend to have the highest prevalence of obesity. The impact of cheap, accessible high-energy food is often ...
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Among affluent countries, those with market-liberal regimes (which are also English-speaking) tend to have the highest prevalence of obesity. The impact of cheap, accessible high-energy food is often invoked in explanation. An alternative approach is that overeating is a response to stress, and that competition, uncertainty and inequality make market-liberal societies more stressful. This chapter reports an ecological regression meta-study that pools 96 surveys from 11 countries, using data collected in the years 1994 to 2004. The fast-food ‘shock’ impact is found to work most strongly in market-liberal countries. Economic insecurity, measured in several different ways, is almost twice as powerful, while the impact of inequality is weak.Less
Among affluent countries, those with market-liberal regimes (which are also English-speaking) tend to have the highest prevalence of obesity. The impact of cheap, accessible high-energy food is often invoked in explanation. An alternative approach is that overeating is a response to stress, and that competition, uncertainty and inequality make market-liberal societies more stressful. This chapter reports an ecological regression meta-study that pools 96 surveys from 11 countries, using data collected in the years 1994 to 2004. The fast-food ‘shock’ impact is found to work most strongly in market-liberal countries. Economic insecurity, measured in several different ways, is almost twice as powerful, while the impact of inequality is weak.
Avner Offer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
Obesity, which is rising in affluent societies, is bad for health, expensive to treat and stigmatising. Its prevalence is higher in market-liberal societies than in those with a more extensive ...
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Obesity, which is rising in affluent societies, is bad for health, expensive to treat and stigmatising. Its prevalence is higher in market-liberal societies than in those with a more extensive welfare state. This book explores the hypothesis that obesity is a response to stress, and that market-liberal societies are more stressful due to the greater intensity of economic and social competition, and to lower levels of social protection.Less
Obesity, which is rising in affluent societies, is bad for health, expensive to treat and stigmatising. Its prevalence is higher in market-liberal societies than in those with a more extensive welfare state. This book explores the hypothesis that obesity is a response to stress, and that market-liberal societies are more stressful due to the greater intensity of economic and social competition, and to lower levels of social protection.
Kevin W. Capehart and Jon D. Wisman
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
The past three decades have witnessed a substantial increase in insecurity and stress as capitalism's creative destruction has become ever-more pervasive. A link between insecurity, stress and ...
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The past three decades have witnessed a substantial increase in insecurity and stress as capitalism's creative destruction has become ever-more pervasive. A link between insecurity, stress and obesity is strongly suggested by the negative social gradient of obesity. This chapter begins with a survey of the dominant explanations of the obesity epidemic and their limitations. The second section surveys research that is supportive of a relationship between insecurity, stress and obesity. The third section provides evidence of the rise of insecurity and stress as creative destruction has gathered momentum over the past three decades. The fourth section examines the anomalously stable obesity rates between 1960 and 1980. The fifth section notes evidence of the worldwide relationship between rising insecurity and obesity. The chapter concludes with a reflection that, should the argument be correct, the obesity epidemic may be symptomatic of a social disorder in modern capitalist society.Less
The past three decades have witnessed a substantial increase in insecurity and stress as capitalism's creative destruction has become ever-more pervasive. A link between insecurity, stress and obesity is strongly suggested by the negative social gradient of obesity. This chapter begins with a survey of the dominant explanations of the obesity epidemic and their limitations. The second section surveys research that is supportive of a relationship between insecurity, stress and obesity. The third section provides evidence of the rise of insecurity and stress as creative destruction has gathered momentum over the past three decades. The fourth section examines the anomalously stable obesity rates between 1960 and 1980. The fifth section notes evidence of the worldwide relationship between rising insecurity and obesity. The chapter concludes with a reflection that, should the argument be correct, the obesity epidemic may be symptomatic of a social disorder in modern capitalist society.
Robin I.M. Dunbar
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0003
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
The brain consumes about 20 per cent of the total energy intake in human adults. Primates, and especially humans, have unusually large brains for body size compared with other vertebrates, and ...
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The brain consumes about 20 per cent of the total energy intake in human adults. Primates, and especially humans, have unusually large brains for body size compared with other vertebrates, and fuelling these is a significant drain on both time and energy. Larger-brained primates generally eat fruit-intense diets, but human brains are so large that a reduction in gut size is needed to free up sufficient resources to allow a larger brain to be evolved, placing further pressure on foraging. The early invention of cooking increased nutrient absorption by around 30 per cent over raw food. Increasing digestibility in this way perhaps inevitably leads to risk of obesity when food is super-abundant, as it is in post-industrial societies. However, obesity has clearly been around for a long time, as suggested by the late Palaeolithic Venus figures of Europe, so it is not a novel problem.Less
The brain consumes about 20 per cent of the total energy intake in human adults. Primates, and especially humans, have unusually large brains for body size compared with other vertebrates, and fuelling these is a significant drain on both time and energy. Larger-brained primates generally eat fruit-intense diets, but human brains are so large that a reduction in gut size is needed to free up sufficient resources to allow a larger brain to be evolved, placing further pressure on foraging. The early invention of cooking increased nutrient absorption by around 30 per cent over raw food. Increasing digestibility in this way perhaps inevitably leads to risk of obesity when food is super-abundant, as it is in post-industrial societies. However, obesity has clearly been around for a long time, as suggested by the late Palaeolithic Venus figures of Europe, so it is not a novel problem.
Trenton G. Smith
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780197264980
- eISBN:
- 9780191754135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264980.003.0004
- Subject:
- Sociology, Health, Illness, and Medicine
While conventional wisdom holds that excessive body weight is the product of some combination of a high-calorie diet and a sedentary lifestyle, public health measures aimed at these factors have been ...
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While conventional wisdom holds that excessive body weight is the product of some combination of a high-calorie diet and a sedentary lifestyle, public health measures aimed at these factors have been met with only limited success. This chapter considers the possibility that obesity might be better understood in terms of the biologist's notion that humans and other animals evolved the ability to store body fat as an optimal response to the presence of starvation risk. Evidence from a broad array of disciplines is consistent with this view, including the neuroendocrinology of energy homeostasis, parallels between human and animal fattening behaviour, the effect of stress on dietary intake, population-level studies of the impact of economic insecurity on body weight and international variation in obesity rates.Less
While conventional wisdom holds that excessive body weight is the product of some combination of a high-calorie diet and a sedentary lifestyle, public health measures aimed at these factors have been met with only limited success. This chapter considers the possibility that obesity might be better understood in terms of the biologist's notion that humans and other animals evolved the ability to store body fat as an optimal response to the presence of starvation risk. Evidence from a broad array of disciplines is consistent with this view, including the neuroendocrinology of energy homeostasis, parallels between human and animal fattening behaviour, the effect of stress on dietary intake, population-level studies of the impact of economic insecurity on body weight and international variation in obesity rates.
