While you can hardly turn on the television or open a magazine without reading about the dangers of obesity, your body fat percentage -- the amount of your weight that comes from fat vs. lean mass -- is actually a better look at your disease risk.

The more lean body mass you have, the higher your metabolism is likely to be. Having a healthy percentage of lean body mass may make you less likely to become sick or to develop health problems such as heart disease or diabetes.

Losing extra pounds is important to decreasing risk for disease, such as cancer, gallbladder disease and coronary heart disease, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. If you need to lose weight quickly and can’t exercise, it’s possible with healthy lifestyle changes.

Adolescent obesity poses a public health risk and, as of 2012, more than 20 percent of teenagers were obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, some teenage girls may suffer from body image problems and believe they are overweight, even if they're not.

Ashley Graham's recent Instagram post sheds light on a very common aspect of women's bodies: cellulite.

Losing upper belly fat can challenge even the most industrious athlete, but it’s easier to lose than you think. A combination of diet and exercise to lose weight everywhere is the only way to trim your middle -- spot reduction doesn’t exist.

Advertisements blast you with the latest and greatest devices and techniques to break up or get rid of your fat cells. While they sound wonderful, vibrating devices and special massage techniques are not effective against fat cells.

Illnesses related to obesity cause nearly 300,000 deaths per year in the United States, which makes obesity second only to smoking as the leading cause of preventable death.

When it comes to weight loss, monitoring your body composition can be just as helpful in assessing your progress as tracking numbers on a scale.

No special exercise machine or fad diet effectively burns fat lumps in the body. To rid your body of excess fat, you have to create a calorie deficit through changes in your diet and exercise. If you choose a sensible, healthy plan that suits your lifestyle, you are more likely to stick with your weight-loss effort.

Obesity is becoming more prevalent in the United States. According to the National Institute of Diabetes Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 66 percent of Americans are either overweight or obese. These terms carry different stipulations, but both are considered unhealthy.

Having enough subcutaneous fat to "pinch an inch" might not have the health risks of deep-abdominal visceral fat, but it can still get in the way of achieving a very lean and toned physique.