الفهرس 
Definitions of obesityOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Obesity emerged as a health issue during the past century, but
prevalence of obesity and the numbers of people who are overweight has
increased rapidly in many industrialized countries. In the US, where
overweight and obesity among adults have been increasing for more than three
decades, over 60 % of adults are now classified as either obese or overweight;
among adults between 20 and 74 years of age, obesity nearly doubled from
12.8 % to 22.5 % between 1960 and 1994 (NHLBI and NAASO, 2000; and
Wechsler, 2003).
Around 991-1124 million $ relates to the direct healthcare costs of
treating obesity and its consequences, comprising general practitioner
consultations, inpatient and day case admissions, out-patient attendances and
drug costs. This equates to 2.3-2.6 % of total net National Health Service
(NHS) expenditure in 2001/02 (House of Commons Health Select
Committee, 2004).
Obesity is a major public health and economic concern. Worldwide, an
estimated 1.6 billion adults were overweight and 400 million were obese in
2005. By 2015, it is expected there will be 2.3 billion overweight and more
than 700 million obese adults worldwide (Katherine, 2009). In 2007-2008, the
age-adjusted prevalence of obesity was 33.8 % among men, and 35.5% among
women (Carroll et al., 2010). Among children aged 6 through 19 years, the
prevalence of overweight (16.0%) was more than 3 times the target prevalence
(5%) (Tomkinson et al., 2010) .Obesity contribution to many life threatening
conditions makes it the second leading causes of death in the United States,
contributing to more than 300 000 death each year (Dowell et al., 2006).
There is also a significant healthcare cost associated with treating
obesity and its direct consequences. And social care costs are higher for the
obese. Higher levels of sickness and absence from work among the obese
reduce productivity and impose costs on businesses. Premature mortality as a
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INTRODUCTION
consequence of obesity reduces the national output relative to the level it would
be in the absence of obesity (Stuckler et al., 2006).
Obesity is becoming a significant problem for many countries around
the world. Rats of obesity have reached epidemic levels, and both developed
and developing countries are now affected (Sareen et al., 2009). It has more
doubled in prevalence in the last 30 years (Christina et al., 2009). The global
prevalence of obesity has increased considerably in the last decade (Hursel
and Westerterp, 2010).
Obesity is a major risk factor for hypertension, cardiovascular disease,
type 2 diabetes mellitus, and some cancers in men and women. Other comorbid
conditions that could occur as a result of obesity include sleep apnea,
osteoarthritis, infertility, idiopathic intracranial hypertension, lower extremity
venous stasis disease, gastroesophageal reflux, and urinary stress incontinence
(Das, 2010).
Phytotherapy is the treatment and prevention of diseases using plants,
plant parts, such as leaves, flowers, roots, fruits, and seeds and preparations
made from them, theses plants called medicinal plants, or herbs (Weiss and
Fintelmann, 2000). Plants have always played a significant role in maintaining
the health and improving the quality of human life; many western drugs owe
their origin to plant extracts. The American Indians also utilized a number of
native herbs for medicinal purposes. Self–prescribed herbal preparations are
commonly consumed today for a whole list of common ailments or conditions,
while these herbs are generally consumed in small amounts; it is interesting to
note that they contain similar health– promoting phytochemicals as do fruits
and vegetables. There is clearly a botanical and chemical similarity between
many of the herbal seasonings and conventional vegetables in the human
dietary (Criag, 2001). According to estimates of the World Health
Organization, 80% of the world population is primarily reliant on traditional
methods of healing which use empirical knowledge based on the use of
medicinal plants (Muller and Mechler, 2005).