December 29th, 2009 
Health News From a list of ten possible causes of weight gain – ones experts feel play a role in the obesiy epidemic – I asked the teens to chec off the five main reasons for their weight gain. At least 75% cited the first three causes; each of the other causes was checked by at least 25% of the teens. No teen gave just one reason for weight gain; some checked them all. Here’s how the reasons rank, according to how often they were checked.
Reason #1: Too much snacking. Molly S feels that oversnacking was the number one cause of her weight gain. Now, her mother says, “we have nothing very snack food related in the cupboard. Ice cream, cookies, chips, et cetera, have been replaced by fruits.”
Reason #2: Portion sizes too large. Erin D says that her portions were three times larger when she was overweight than they are today. “Now,” she says, “when I go to fast-food restaurants, I can’t eat a whole value meal. I’m satisfied with a kid’s meal.”
Reason #3: Not enough exercise. Victor F was able to lose 50 pounds by exercising four or five times a week, as well as by learning about and practicing good nutrition. Three years later, he still finds time to exercise regularly, even though he’s in medical school.
Reason #4: Ate too many sweets and desserts: Wes G, who feels that his number one reason for gaining weight was eating too many sugary foods, says that a major difference for him now is cutting out his nightly “giant bowl of ice cream.” (He still eats occasionally.)
Reason #5: Emotional causes (eating when lonely, bored, or sad). Sari M became overweight when her father left the family. Now when she feels like eating for emotional reasons, she usually goes to a coffee house, “where the drinks are all fairly low calorie and I can be around people and friends who will hopefully cheer me up.”
Reason #6: Spent too much time in front of the TF, computer, and/or video games. Christine F says that too much TV and computer time were the major culprits in her weight gain. The most important thing she did to lose weight was “exercised! It took a while to get motivated, but as soon as there were visible results, I was hooked.”
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