Introduction: Obesity is one of the biggest health problems in the world.

And this
problem is serious in our country, Malaysia. Based on deputy Health Minister Dr.
Lee Boon Chye said in March 2019, he said that Malaysia is the “most obese”
country in Southeast Asia with the prevalence of obesity at 17.7% and being
overweight at 30%.

Based on the result, we can see that Malaysia has a severely higher percentage of
obesity than other countries, especially the females. Tackling obesity as the root
cause of cancer would also reduce the incidence of other non-communicable
diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. So, what is
the reason that causes obesity to be the highest in Malaysia? Is it because of
Malaysians do not understand the bad effects of obesity? In my opinion,
Malaysians know very well what obesity can cost us. I believe that we all have
written this essay before in our secondary school: The disadvantages of obesity.
As we all have common knowledge about obesity, I will inform you about three
causes of obese, which are psychological problems of individuals, aggressive
marketing from food companies and friends and family play a role in obesity.
Body

First and foremost, we will look at the psychological problems each of us face.
Some people who are obesity might seek emotional comfort in food. When they
are stress or depression, there were eat more calorie at the same time to feel
distress and happy. Psychological problem causes the obesity routinely
overindulges in food.Actually, obesity is as much a psychological problem than a
physical problem. This is because of the psychological aspects of obesity are so
important, psychological assessments and interventions have become an integral
part of a multidisciplinary approach to treating obesity. Obese people may fall
into the emotional toll of obesity.
Secondly, aggressive marketing is also contributing to today’s obesity epidemic.
Research from the American Heart Association shows that aggressive marketing
and advertising of high-calorie, unhealthy foods to children are the cause of the
prevalence rate of obesity increased. Currently, almost one-third of children are
obese or overweight. Not only are these young lives at risk, but overweight and
obese children are more likely to become obese adults, condemned to choleric
and costly diseases, disability, and premature death. Much of the progress we
have made in the fight against obesity could be lost if we did not reserve
aggressive marketing problems. Furthermore, aggressive marketing leads people
especially children to spend their money on high-calorie, low-nutrient dense
foods. Even though we cannot justify for manipulative advertising and marketing
practices and support efforts to restrict these practices, we can still raise
awareness to the public especially parents, to encourage their children to eat less
and become a role model themselves.

Last but not least, friends and family also play a role in obesity. Let me ask you a
question, do you have friends or siblings who are obese? If yes, you have to listen
carefully to what I want to say right now. Good friends and family share life’s ups
and downs. They may also share a tendency to gain excessive weight. The
researchers from Ruth Ann Carpenter (2008) found that thin and overweight
people tend to be clustered together and that increases a person’s odds of
becoming obese by 57%. Additionally, if one sibling became obese, the chances
that the other siblings would also become obese increased by 40%. So how does
this relate to you? Having obese friends and family members may cause you to
change your tolerance for being obese, as it may influence your behaviour of
thinking. In other words, you may unconsciously say to yourself, “I see you’ve
gained weight, so it is okay for me to gain weight too. So，help your obese
friends to lose weight together, otherwise you might get obese too.
Conclusion

As we have seen, obesity can also caused by psychological problems of

individuals, aggressive marketing from food companies and friends and family
play a role in obesity. As a Malaysian, we have the responsibility to decrease the
percentage of obesity prevalence population in our country. We must control our
diet, try to reduce the chances of getting fat and think positively. This all of my
speech, thank you.