Welcome back to the Telecare Choice news roundup. This month, we take a look at whether obesity can be traced to our genetics, the breaking of restrictions for summer solstice, and meet Joe Biden’s English Cousin.
Born To Be Obese
With new research stating there is no way to be obese and healthy, concerns over the high and rising rates of obesity are ever so prevalent.
There are many theories relating to the cause of obesity. While the stigma surrounding it points to laziness and greediness, many experts say this is simply not true. It has been proven time and time again that poor economical circumstances lead to obesity. Most likely due to cheaper and quicker to make food items being higher in calories. It has also been hypothesised that previous trauma can also result in an unhealthy relationship with food and that obesity is a form of disordered eating like anorexia or bulimia.
However, even more recently, it has been suggested that obesity and the inability to lose weight may be based in our DNA. Those who have a mutation of the MC4 receptor or possess a variant of the FTO gene have more chance of being obese. These genes would have helped our ancestors survive famine, however, in the times of junk food being at the click of a button, they simply make carriers gain unnecessary weight. This predisposition to weight gain is supported by a study from GP records in the UK showed that the chance of achieving normal weight in people with morbid obesity is one-in-700 to one-in-1,000 annually.
It’s a disheartening thought for those who are hoping to shift some extra pounds. So, what can be done about it? Experts say our attitudes towards obesity as a society need to change drastically and it needs to be viewed as a medical issue rather than a result of simply bad diet and a sedentary lifestyle. Certain types of surgery such as gastric bypass or gastric bands can help with weight loss, however, England has one the highest rates of adult obesity and one of the lowest rates of spending per capita on this kind of surgery. It is clear the government will have to improve this funding if they want to see any change in the obesity epidemic in the UK.
Hundreds Attend Stonehenge For Summer Solstice
The summer solstice is when the sun reaches its maximum declination. It marks the longest day of the year and the beginning of summertime. Every year people in the Northern Hemisphere travel to the best spot to catch the sun be directly overhead at the Tropic of Cancer and Stonehenge is a popular destination for viewing.
However, after the government announced restrictions were not being relaxed as planned on 21st June, official access to the site had been stopped. Yet this, nor government guidelines stopped a significant number of people jumping the fences put in place and gathering en masse within the walls of Stonehenge to watch the sunrise. They brandished a banner reading “Standing for Stonehenge.”
English Heritage planned a live feed of the sunrise, however, it was pulled for safety reasons. This meant those who had followed government guidelines did not get to see the once a year event.
Joe Biden’s English Cousin
Paul Harris of Hampshire has been an ancestor hobbyist for over 20 years. However, it was only recently he made his biggest and most surprising discovery yet, he was related to US President, Joe Biden.
The hunt started with an off-hand comment from Mr. Harris’ daughter. As the name Biden began cropping up in his findings, she remarked, “Wouldn’t it be funny if we were related to Joe Biden?” However, it struck a chord in the software engineer and he began to look into the notion.
Soon enough he discovered a firm link between the president and Bidens from Westbourne, West Sussex, which led to the revelation that he was the 5th cousin of the US President. The news has been happily welcomed by Mr. Harris’ daughter and grandchildren, who gleefully showed off their family tree at school. They are now pleading with their grandfather to write to the president. “They’re waiting for their invite to the White House,” Mr. Harris said. The prospect of a family reunion is not so unbelievable, what with Joe Biden making several trips before his presidency to meet distant relatives in the Republic of Ireland.
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