ABSTRACT
Obesity is a major health hazard, with increased risk for cardiovascular disease (mainly heart disease and stroke), type 2 diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis), and certain types of cancer (endometrial, breast, and colon).1 The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that in 2005, approximately 1.6 billion adults worldwide were overweight and at least 400 million were obese. Further, the WHO estimated that at least 20 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight. The projected numbers for 2015 are larger, with 2.3 billion adults expected to be overweight and 700 million expected to be obese.1
