Obesity is a chronic condition characterized by excess body fat. It occurs as a result of the imbalance between the intake and the expenditure of calories, with the excess calories stored as body weight/fat.
How common is Obesity?
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion adults were overweight and more than half a billion were obese. At least 2.8 million people each year die as a result of being overweight or obese. The prevalence of obesity has nearly doubled between 1980 and 2008. Once associated with high-income countries, obesity is now also prevalent in low- and middle-income countries.Globally, 42 million preschool children were overweight in 2013.
How can one tell they are obese/ overweight?
Body mass index (BMI) – the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters (kg/m2) – is a commonly used index to classify overweight and obesity in adults. WHO defines overweight as a BMI equal to or more than 25, and obesity as a BMI equal to or more than 30.
- Other parameters include:
- Waist circumference
- Waist Hip ratio.
What the common problems associated with Obesity?
- Coronary Heart Disease.
- High Blood Pressure.
- Type 2 Diabetes.
- Stroke.
- Cancer.
- Osteoarthritis.
- Sleep apnea.
- High Blood Cholesterol.
- Obesity Hypoventilation Syndrome.
- Gall stones
What is the correlation between obesity and Type 2 Diabetes?
Every single person who is about 10 kg overweight runs the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. If you're 20 kg or more overweight, you have a considerable chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
What are the Treatment options for obesity?
The mainstay of treatment is lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise.
Medication can be used such as Orlistat. Orlistat works by preventing around a third of the fat from the food you eat from being digested. This undigested fat is not absorbed into your body and is passed out with your faeces (stools).
Bariatric Surgery/ Weight loss surgery: - Helps you lose weight by altering the body’s food digestion and absorption.