What is Obesity?
A person whose
weight is at least 20% higher than it has to be is considered as obese. You
will be considered overweight if your BMI is between of 25 and 29.9, and you
will be considered obese if your BMI is 30 or above. If your BMI is between of
18.5 and25, then your weight is in ideal range. People with BMI less than 18.5
are considered as underweight. BMI is not very definite way to diagnose
obesity, because sometimes people have high BMI if they are very muscular. But
still BMI is very helpful to identify whether you are underweight, normal, overweight
or obese.
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Obesity can lead you to some serious diseases
like gallstones, diabetes, heart diseases and high blood pressure. Obesity can
also lead a person to cancer. It is difficult to treat obesity because it has a
regeneration rate. There are high chances of weight regain within the five
years of your weight loss. Medication and diet plan can help the patient but
it’s not a short term process. You have to follow diet plan, exercise
regularly, and participate in physical activity.
In United States
obesity has increased very fast. Almost two out of three adults are obese or
overweight. Obesity is also increasing in childe. Obesity is also spreading
throughout the world; it is doubled from 1991 to 1998. In 2014 almost 37
percent of adults were obese in United States.
Health Risks Associated with Obesity
Obesity
is very harmful to one’s health in many ways. Almost 112,000 people died per
year due to obesity in United States. In these deaths most patients had BMI
greater than 30. Patient of obesity have a greater risk of chronic diseases which
includes gallstone, sleep apnea, gout, cancer, congestive heart failure, heart
attack, stroke, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, insulin
resistance and many more.
Insulin Resistance
Insulin is very important to transport blood glucose into our
body. Insulin is also very important to keep our blood glucose level under
control. When insulin does not transport blood glucose to our cells this
condition is called insulin resistance. Muscle cells are less resistant to insulin
as compare to fat cells. Insulin resistance is caused due to obesity. Pancreas
of an obese person does not produce enough insulin to keep blood glucose to
normal level.
Type 2 Diabetes
An obese person also has a greater risk of diabetes. The type
2 diabetes is directly associated with central obesity. Central Obesity is a
condition in which excessive fat gathered around the waist. If a person is
insulin resistant he/she has a greater risk to diabetes.
High Blood Pressure
Obese Persons are tends to be more hyperactive than a normal
person. Hyperactive is a condition in which you get more excited easily and
cannot stay still or think about your work. Hyperactive person have a poor
concentration and require less sleep. Blood pressure increases more
significantly in obese women than men.
Heart Attack
The risk of coronary artery disease increases three to four
times if your BMI is greater than 29. The risk of coronary artery disease
increases by 1% with every 1KG increase in body weight. An obese person is more
likelihood to have a heart attack. If an obese person already had a heart
attack he is more likely to have a second heart attack.
Cancer
Obese people have a greater risk of colon cancer as compare
to the normal persons. Obesity is also a risk factor for rectum and prostate
cancer in men and gallbladder and uterus cancer in women. Breast cancer is also
associated with obesity, particularly in postmenopausal women.
Causes of Obesity
A person’s
weight is determined by the balance between energy expenditure and calorie
intake. A person gains weight if he/she takes more calorie than he/she burns
through physical activity, and a person loses weight if he/she takes fewer
calories than he/she burns through physical activity. In modern living obesity
is a common problem of many people because they eat food which is rich in
calories and do their work by sitting on a desk or on a sofa or in their cars.
There are too many factors behind obesity let’s discuss them in detail:
Eating too much calories
In developed countries people are eating too much food which
is rich in calories however this is spreading worldwide. Billions of dollars
are spent on awareness campaigns to encourage people to eat healthy food, but
still lot of people is continuing overeating. In United States 14% of adult
population was obese in 1980; and it increases to 31% in 2000 and this figure
goes to 37% in 2014. Almost every one of us is using sweet drinks, which are a
rich source of carbohydrate. In United States the consumption of fast food is
almost tripled in last three decades. Fast food and carbohydrates are very rich
source of calories; too much use of these types of food items can lead us to
obesity.
Desk bound Lifestyle
Due the facilities like washing machines, dish washers, cars,
computers and many more, people are leading a deskbound life. In developed
countries like United States people are very dependent on cars. They do not
want to travel by self even if their destination is only a few hundred meters
away. Most of the jobs in USA are deskbound; no physical activity is required
in these jobs. You just have to sit on your chair in front of your computer and
do your work for a whole day without doing any physical activity. To burn more
calories you have to be involved in a physical activity. Physical activity just
not burn calories, it also has an effect on our daily life. Physical activity
is very important to keep our insulin level under control. As we discussed
above unstable insulin is a cause of obesity.
Less Sleeping
Warwick Medical School at the University of Warwick has
carried out a research, and according to that research the risk of obesity is
doubled if you do not sleep enough. Due to the lack of sleep our body starts
producing Ghrelin. Ghrelin is a hormone that stimulates appetite. And due to
less sleep the production of Leptin is reduced. Leptin is a hormone that holds
back appetite.
Medications
According to Annals of Pharmacotherapy there are some
medicines which cause weight gain. So if you start gaining weight after you
start taking some medicines, it could be a cause of weight gain. There is a
wide variation in response of medicines to weight gain. If you are gaining
weight it is better to discuss it with your physician before discontinuing your
medications because this could be dangerous for you. If an individual is predisposed to obesity,
he/she should select an alternative therapy by discussing the issue with the physician.
Psychological Problems
Some people start eating frequently in stress, anger or
sadness. In a TV show with title “My 600-LB Life” on Discovery Channel, lot of
people confessed that they starts eating too much to overcome their depression
or anger. While lot of people who are overweight have no psychological problem.
But still psychological problems are one of the causes of obesity.
Social Issues
There are some social issues which are directly connected
with obesity. Social issues like lack of money to buy healthy foods or less safe
places to walk and exercise could cause obesity. If you are living in a big
city everything is available at your doorstep and you do not have to walk to
take them which could be a cause of obesity.
Treatments of Obesity
The
treatment of obesity is a lifelong process and cannot be a short term process.
The obese person has to acknowledge that a modest weight loss is also beneficial.
To prevent obesity we have to control
the causes of obesity. So let’s discuss the steps which we can take to treat
obesity.
Eating Healthy Food
It is very important to eat healthy food while treating
obesity. Read the calorie table before eating anything. Obese people are
advised to reduce calorie intake by minimum 600 calories a day if they want to lose
weight. It means take maximum 1400 to 1900 calories a day.
It is really important to swap energy drinks and fast food
with healthy drinks and healthy food to achieve your planned body weight. Try
to avoid salty food because it could be dangerous to your blood pressure.
Your daily food should contain plenty of vegetables and fruits,
bread, rice and starchy food. Milk and dairy food items, meat, fish and eggs
are also very important when you are treating obesity. Take a very small amount
of food which is rich in calories and sugar.
Do not take very low calorie food. You will lose weight rapidly
but it will make you weak. So these foods are not recommended for everyone.
Exercise Regularly
Taking healthy food will help you to lose your weight, but
physical activities are very important to maintain healthy weight. Daily
exercise will not only help you to lose weight but it will also help you to
maintain it. So it is highly recommended to exercise daily when you are
treating obesity. Daily exercise has many benefits along with weight loss such
as it reduces diabetes risk by 40% and many more. It is highly recommended to
everyone to exercise at least 150 minutes a week to stay healthy.
You should pick activities you enjoy and want to continue. To
stay motivated it is important to exercise with family or friends. It is said
that it’s never too late, so take a start today.
Sleeping Properly
It is really important for an adult to sleep at least 6 hours
a day. If your job does not allow you to sleep for 6 hours continuously take
napes to complete 6 hours. It is better to sleep at night but it is not necessary
to sleep 6 hours continuously in the night; you could also sleep in the day
time to make it 6 hours a day of your sleep. So sleep properly and stay
healthy.
Medication
There are many different types of medicines which are used
for the treatment of obesity. You should discuss it with your physician before
starting any medicine. You cannot achieve your desired results only with
medicines. So start exercising daily along with medicines to achieve your
desired results.
Conclusion
It is
really important to keep balance between your calories intake and consumption of
them. What you are will be determined by what you eat. To maintain your ideal
weight you will be dependent on the food you eat. So eat healthy and stay
healthy. The U.S Department of Agriculture has issued the following
instructions:
Ø Have a variety in your food.
Ø Balance your calorie intake with exercise to physical activity.
Ø Your food must contain plenty of fruits, vegetables and grain.
Ø Chose low fat and low cholesterol diet.
Ø You should choose a moderate diet in sugars, salt and sodium.
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