Adolescent obesity is a major public health crisis nationally and internationally. “In 2012, the percentage of adolescents aged 12 to 19 were obese. The increase in adolescent obesity from 2010-2014 was from 5% to nearly 21% in the United States” (Flegal,2013). Adolescent obesity is a serious problem in the United States and must be addressed. Causes Adolescent obesity is caused by numerous factors, including a person's lifestyle, eating habits and environment. No single factor or behavior can cause obesity. When children decide to eat more than they need, their bodies store extra calories in fat cells to use this energy later. Over time, if this pattern continues and their body does not need this stored energy, they develop more fat cells and can lead to becoming obese (Kaneshiro, 2012). Eating habits Bad eating habits are one of the factors that can lead a teenager to develop obesity. Parents are also a key factor for a child to become obese, at home parents tend to buy junk food so that their children instead eat things they should eat like fruits and vegetables. Additionally, parents tend to have less time to plan and prepare healthier meals, resulting in children consuming more processed and fast foods that are usually less healthy than home-cooked meals (Kaneshiro, 2012). If a parent is overweight and has poor diet and exercise habits, the child is likely to adopt the same habits. Up to one in five children in the United States are overweight or obese, and this number continues to increase (Benaroch, 2012). The way we eat as children can strongly influence our eating behaviors as adults. When we repeat these behaviors for many years, they become habits. These learned habits lead to eating, no matter if we are... at the center of the document....../medlineplus/ency/patientinstructions/00383.htmKarnik, SK, & Kanekar, AKUS National Library of Medicine, (2010). Childhood obesity: a global public health crisis. Retrieved from the National Center for Biotechnology website: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3278864/ Nordquist, C.N. (2010). All about obesity. Medical News Today, excerpted from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/obesity/ Obesity in Adolescents. (2014). (Doctoral Dissertation, University of Rochester) Retrieved from http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/Encyclopedia/Content.aspx?ContentTypeID=90&ContentID=P01627US Department of Disease Control and Prevention Centers, (2012 ). Causes of Overweight and Obesity Consequences Retrieved from CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/adult/causes/index.htmlWeeks, A.W. (2013). Psychological effects of adolescent obesity. Live strong, yes:353259