Partners in the Collaborative on Health and the Environment write that the obesity epidemic is the result of many interacting factors and not just a lifestyle challenge. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has publicly stated the importance of access to healthy food to help curb the increasing prevalence of obesity. Other factors contributing to obesity include socioeconomic status and genetic predisposition, as well as poorly designed communities that discourage walking and biking. But in addition to these issues, the prestigious international Endocrine Society published a seminal report last year stating that "scientific research implies the impact of environmental substances in the generative roots of obesity." The rapidly growing body of scientific evidence suggests that chemicals known as endocrine disruptors may be associated with a range of health concerns and may also act as "obesogens" – substances that trigger the propensity to develop obesity.

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