Obesity – Major Threat to Your Health & Life
Many people consider obesity as an overweight. This is because the meaning of obesity and overweight are parallel to each other but yet they do not meet on any point. Obesity is a medical term which determines that the person has exceed overweight and is now obese, who is in a critical state of developing many fatal and long term diseases.
Obesity can be simply defined as an unwanted and unhealthy amount of body fats. Today obesity has become a serious issue in public health. Nearly, 1 billion of people are categorized obese and the latest approximations are that 34 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 to 74 years are overweight, and an additional 27 percent are obese.
Though many weight loss tonics and medications are available but still obesity is increasing rapidly because of the negligence, poor diets, null physical exercise etc.
Are you obese?
There are many ways to measure the obesity. But, here are three different ways which are widely use to measure the obesity.
Body mass index (BMI):
Body Mass Index (BMI) is widely used measuring tool for obesity. It is also known as the standard method to measure the obesity. BMI calculates the obesity by the help of simple mathematical calculation which is weight divided by the height. Where, weight is in kilograms and height in the meter square i.e. weight in kilograms/ height in meter2. BMI of 25 to 29 results overweight and BMI result over 30 shows obese. Although BMI is widely used it also has some limitations. BMI results are not always 100% true and sometimes it also results wrong because it cannot distinguish between body fat and muscles.
Waist circumference:
Waist circumference is non-scientific and improper way to measure obesity. It especially measures the fat contents in the abdominal area. Obesity is harmful and is the source of different diseases because of its unwanted fats that disturbs the body function. But, fats around the abdomen are considered even worst and are very dangerous. Men are at increased risk if they have a waist measurement greater than 40 inches. Women are at increased risk if they have a waist measurement greater than 35 inches.
Waist to hip ratio:
This is the ratio of one’s waist circumference divided by one’s hip circumference. This ratio also reflects the hypothesis that carrying weight around the mid-section is particularly detrimental for people with a given BMI. A WHR that is greater than 1.0 is considered risky. For women, a WHR of 0.80 or less is considered safe, whereas a WHR of 0.90 for men is considered safe.
What health risk does obesity transports?
Heart disease:
Heart disease is the major cause of death observed in US. People who are obese develop high risk of heart diseases like: high blood pressure, heart attack problem, stroke etc. In obese people sudden death due to angina, heart attacks and stroke is seen which is very hazardous. If you are obese then it’s better if you focus on your diets and physical exercise. A balance diet and proper physical exercise can help you reduce the risk of heart disease.
Diabetes:
Type2 diabetes is commonly seen in obese people. The unwanted body fat reduces the body ability to produce insulin which leads to type2 diabetes. Obesity and diabetes has been major cause of early death and sudden attacks of heart associated diseases. Obese people are more likely to suffer from type2 diabetes then the normal people.
The only way to avoid these diseases and problems is to reduce your body fat by physical exercise and proper diets. It is a good idea if you consult your doctor for weight loss program.
Sleep apnea:
Sleep apnea is life threatening condition seen in obese people. Generally, obese people are found to suffer from this critical condition where the individual stops breathing for a short period to time. People suffering from sleep apnea may get heart attack and strokes which may lead to death. The simple and the best way to avoid this fatal problem is weight loss.
Gout:
Gout is an extreme joint pain due to the high level of uric acid present in our blood. Lack of physical exercise and poor diet sometimes leads to severe condition by forming the uric acid into a crystal masses which sets down in our joint and cause gout. People who are obese are seen to face this problem because of their weight, poor diet and physical exercise. If you are suffering from gout then we suggest you to consult your doctor before making any decision for weight loss program and using other weight loss tonics.
Psychological factor:
Psychological factor is a serious problem in obesity. People who are obese generally feel shame and embracing due to their body figure and size. Obese people are seen humiliated at their work and school which surely leads to depression. The only way to shun these problems can be weight loss and doctors suggestions.
Are you standing on the following spots?
Age:
Our body metabolism changes with the growing age. As we grow old the body metabolism slows down and the body needs only limited amounts of fat and calories.
But, many people think that in adult age body becomes weak so they consume more amounts of foods and perform less physical activity which certainly leads to obesity. People lack physical exercise but consume more which brings obesity.
Genetics:
Genes affects our weight related process and body metabolism like: as metabolic rate, blood glucose metabolism, fat-storage etc. It is seen that if the parents are obese then children are also likely to be obese. Though this is not universal but still the probability remains high. In some other cases when the infant is born overweight then it is seen that his/her mother is physically less active. Therefore, even genes play important role obesity.
Physical exercise:
Physical exercise is a basic necessity to overcome obesity. If you are obese then it’s good if we join jogging, swimming, yoga classes and other physical work outs to reduce the unwanted body fat. Low physical efforts tend to increase obesity along with different diseases.
Eating habit:
Eating habit is considered as a source of obesity. Some people have a habit of eating even if they are not hungry, this is not good because providing more fats and calories then the body demands leads to obesity because these unwanted fats store in our body and gives negative impact to our body.
Slow metabolism:
Women face more difficulty in loosing weight then men. Women have less muscles then men and muscles are the main fats burning factors in our body. The food we eat contains fats and calories which is burn down by the muscles and digestive process which converts them to energy. As the women have less muscular body their body metabolism to burn these foods are slow. Hence, if the woman is obese then she will definitely face problems in losing their weight and even to regain it when they are under weight.
If you belong to any of above mentioned points then you are likely to have obesity. But, obesity can be reduced and avoided with good physical exercise, better diet and being health conscious.
What Surgery can do for you?
Obesity surgery is the last stage known for weight reduction. The surgery is found critical and is expensive too. Doctors prescribe surgery only when the person is found to be in life threatening stage. Obese people with high blood sugar level and blood pressure or every means of weight loss when fails then the procedure of surgery in done.
Bariatric surgery:
Bariatric surgery is a treatment option for those people who are living with morbid obesity. The surgeon recommends this surgery for only those obese people have not yet experienced any weight loss from any other weight loss programs. It is a medical name used for different procedures which includes ef
fective weight loss agenda for the obese people.
Restrictive procedure:
Into this process a small stomach pouch is made by the surgeon that limits the amount of food consumed by the patient. This stomach pouch is filled quickly even with a small amount of food which satisfies the patient even with the less food. Some of the examples are: gastric banding and sleeve gastrectomy.
Malabsorptive Procedure:
During these procedures, the surgeon reroutes the small intestine so that food skips a portion of it. The small intestine absorbs calories and nutrients from food, and avoiding part of it means that some calories and nutrients are not absorbed.
Surgeons rarely perform strictly malabsorptive procedures. Most procedures that use malabsorption also use restriction.
Combination Procedure:
Certain procedures such as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery use a combination of restriction and malabsorption. During this procedure, the surgeon creates a small pouch. The surgeon then attaches a Y-shaped section of the small intestine directly to the stomach pouch. This allows food to bypass a large portion of the small intestine, which absorbs calories and nutrients. The smaller stomach pouch causes patients to feel fuller sooner and eat less food; bypassing a portion of the small intestine means the patient’s body absorbs fewer calories. Some examples of combination procedure are: gastric bypass and Biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch.
The above mentioned methods and procedures help to reduce weight and unnecessary body fats in the patient. But, the surgery of obesity is only done when no other weight loss program works on the patient.
Your prescribed Medications:
If you are obese then consult your doctor because the medications prescribed by them are often seen helpful with some amazing results. With a successful medication program one can easily reduce 5 pounds of your weight within a month of his treatment. Loss of 10 to 15 percent of in the total weight is seen approximately in every individual who undergo medication prescribed by the doctors.
But, medication has also its limits. Great loss of weight can only be expected when they are taken as directed by doctors. Mean while physical exercise and balanced diet are also recommended because as the medication is discontinued abnormal gain of weight and fatty tissues are observe.
Medications are suggested by doctors when the BMI of the patient is found greater then 30 or of those people having BMI more then 27 who have other medical problems like: diabetes, high blood pressure etc. if not then rather then undergoing medication process its better to work out with your diets and physical exercises which can naturally help you to reduce your weight without any side effects.
5 easy ways to maintain your health, body and Obesity:
” Sleep well because your body needs rest. Don’t sleep at day time and don’t sleep more then 8 hours.
” Munch some balanced diet as directed by your doctors because they know the best. Stick with your routine and your directed diets.
” Increase your exercise a bit and give more time to your body. Keep in mind that you must be physically and psychologically strong so make your self strong and don’t feel hectic.
” Take a regular walk and engage yourself in different activities like: swimming, aerobic, yoga, jogging etc.
” Aim to loose 2 pounds a week. Put some physical exercise in your daily routine but not the hard one.
I don’t carry heavy qualifications or experience in the field of article writing because I am 25 years old writer with a history of 5 years in this field. But with a great enthusiasm I have been able to serve different newspapers and magazines with my writings on various subjects. Beside this, I am blog post writer too. Thus, I hope that my little knowledge and experience can benefit all readers and information seekers equally. Author: Keran Bista

