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Understanding Obesity

Approx. 6 hours to complete

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Course Summary

This course provides an in-depth understanding of obesity, its causes, and its health consequences. Students will learn about the latest research on obesity and will be equipped with tools and strategies to prevent and manage obesity.

Key Learning Points

Obesity is a complex condition that is influenced by various factors such as genetics, environment, and behavior.
Understanding the physiology of weight gain and loss is crucial in preventing and managing obesity.
Effective strategies for preventing and managing obesity include dietary changes, physical activity, and behavioral modifications.

Learning Outcomes

Understand the complex causes of obesity
Learn effective strategies for preventing and managing obesity
Be equipped with tools and resources to lead a healthy lifestyle

Prerequisites or good to have knowledge before taking this course

A basic understanding of biology and human physiology
Access to the internet and basic computer skills

Course Difficulty Level

Intermediate

Course Format

Self-paced online course
Video lectures
Quizzes and assignments

Similar Courses

Nutrition, Health, and Lifestyle: Issues and Insights
Epidemiology: The Basic Science of Public Health

Related Education Paths

Notable People in This Field

Dr. Yoni Freedhoff
Dr. David Ludwig

Related Books

Description

In this course, we’ll look at the facts and misconceptions around obesity and discuss key physiological and psychological concepts around the brain’s control of appetite and body weight. We’ll consider the biological and environmental pressures that make it easy to gain weight (and hard to lose it!). Most importantly, we'll give you the opportunity to reflect on your own knowledge and assumptions around the subject.

We deliver course materials as a mixture of videos, audio-only MOOCcasts, and a selection of short readings. There are short weekly quizzes, a peer-reviewed exercise, and discussion activities on the forum. These will help you prepare for the final project. In it, you are invited to demonstrate your evidence-informed understanding and express how you'll develop it beyond the course. The course features Citizen Science projects. We'll collect data from you (anonymously, of course) and use it to drive participant-led discussions of controversial ideas. In this way, we hope to explore ideas around diet and obesity. These projects also give a taste of how scientific evidence is collected and interpreted by scientists, and give some indication how much there still is to discover and understand.

Outline

Week 1: What we know, and how we know it.
Rules of engagement
Why is obesity a problem?
What do we know about appetite and obesity? Part 1
What do we know about appetite and obesity? Part 2
About the course
MOOCcast 1.1: The Scientific Method
MOOCcast 1.2: Science, evidence and the media
Week 1 quiz

Physiology and Stress
The physiology of appetite
Early-life experience
MOOCcast 2.1: Is food an addictive substance?
MOOCcast 2.2: Is eating a behavioural addiction?
MOOCcast 2.3: Stress, eating and dieting
Week 2 quiz

Psychology and Behaviour
The psychology of appetite
Economic approaches to obesity
MOOCcast 3.1: Portion size and meal size
MOOCcast 3.2: Food insecurity
Week 3 quiz

Consolidation and Discussion
Week 4 quiz

Summary of User Reviews

Learn about the causes, consequences, and treatment of obesity with Understanding Obesity course on Coursera. Students have praised the comprehensive and informative content of the course.