Obesity
Disclaimer: Not medical or professional advice. Always seek the advice of your physician.
What is Obesity? Is it an aesthetic problem, physical activity restriction, or real disease? How does it affect health? What are the consequences? We will try to give answers in this article.
What is Obesity?
Obesity is defined as a serious disease by worldwide medical associations. Moreover, the WHO declared obesity a global epidemic in 1997. In most developed countries, more than half of adults do not have a healthy weight, and a third of the population is obese.
Obesity is characterized by an excessive accumulation of fat beneath the skin (subcutaneous fat) and around internal organs. More than 40 percent of Americans have obesity.
When Did The Obesity Problem Begin?
Problems with excess weight have been observed in human populations over the ages. Archaeologists have confirmed this fact through Stone Age finds. However, the capability to store fat for times of food shortage was an evolutionary advantage, which helped to survive.
According to the records of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Indian cultures, obesity was considered a sin. Hippocrates noted that overweight people had shorter life expectancy, and obese women were infertile. To treat obesity, he recommended limiting the amount of food intake and paying more attention to physical activity.
Classification of Obesity
To diagnose obesity, the doctor needs to evaluate the patient’s waist-hip ratio, weight, height, age, percentage of fat and muscle, ethnic characteristics, and many other details. The most popular tool to assess the person's health risks associated with obesity is the Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI helps to determine a healthy body weight in relation to a specific height. It also identifies whether a person is obese.
Overweight — BMI 25.0-29.9
Excess body mass is 30-40%. Health indicators (blood pressure, blood glucose, cholesterol levels) of this weight fall within normal limits. This type is defined as metabolically healthy obesity. But the research carried out by professor Rachel Batterham at University College London shows that such compensatory mechanisms of the body tend to deteriorate over time (usually after 50 to 60 years). The life expectancy of overweight patients is reduced by about 3-5 years due to early death caused by cardiovascular disease.
Obesity — BMI 30.0-39.9
Excess body mass is 50-90%. It causes lifestyle-related problems. Obese people get tired quickly, suffer shortness of breath, snore at night, and develop joint diseases. Being obese can lead to high blood pressure and an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Studies show that the life expectancy of such patients is reduced by 5-8 years.
Severe Obesity — BMI over 40
The norm of weight is exceeded by more than 2 times. People with severe obesity experience difficulties with reproductive function, often get disabilities, suffer from major depression and chronic diseases.
You can find out your BMI here. Important note! BMI does not show the real percentage of fat and muscle. Besides, it does not account for gender, age, or ethnicity.
Causes of Obesity
A person can gain weight due to a variety of reasons. One of the main causes is the imbalance between the amount of energy taken in through food and the amount of energy spent on physical activity. The excess calories get converted to fat. Over time, fat accumulates in the subcutaneous tissue, abdominal wall, omentum, and internal organs. The more fat deposits, the higher the body weight. Next, we suggest discussing other causes of obesity.
Psychosomatic Causes of Obesity
The connection between food and mood is often observed in overweight individuals. This phenomenon has several possible causes.
- The sheer abundance of delicious food evokes associations with holidays, parties, joy, and meeting friends.
- Food becomes a coping mechanism for stress and depression. Scientists have long proven that feelings of anxiety, resentment, psychological stress cause the pancreas to produce more insulin. Subsequently, blood sugar levels fall, stimulating cravings for food and feelings of hunger. A person receives a signal and experiences the urge to eat! As a result, food addiction only gets stronger.
Organic Causes of Obesity
Obesity can be caused by diseases associated with metabolic disorders: hormonal disorders, thyroid diseases, neoplasia, limitation in physical activity, genetics, side effects of medications.
External Causes of Obesity
- Unhealthy food is often much easier to buy than healthy food. When people are hungry, they cannot rationally approach the choice of food. Therefore, food high in fat and carbohydrates seems to be the most appealing.
- A person does not have the financial ability to eat healthily.
- Risk Factors That Lead to Obesity
- A sedentary or inactive lifestyle. For example, office work and no physical activity, sport, or walking.
- Hormone‐related physiological conditions in women (pregnancy, lactation, menopause).
- Unhealthy dietary habits — snacking on fast food, drinking soda instead of water.
- Lack of sleep and chronic stress.
Complications of Obesity
A healthy adult has about 600 billion fat cells in the body. Eating too much food that is high in fat and doing too little exercise can result in an increase in the number of fat cells. This happens when the body has accumulated about 30 kg of fat. As each extra fat cell wants to be filled with fat, they signal the body to take in more food.
People who are obese are at increased risk for many serious diseases and health conditions.
- Cardiovascular diseases. Each additional kilogram of extra body fat is a big load on the heart and blood vessels, which increases the risk of stroke, heart attack, and high blood pressure.
- Diabetes. Overweight people, compared to those with a healthy weight, have a 40% higher risk of developing diabetes.
- Gallbladder diseases.
- Liver disease.
- Oncological diseases. Overweight women are more likely to develop breast cancer, while men have elevated prostate cancer risk. Besides, cancer of the rectum, kidneys, and stomach can affect both genders.
- Musculoskeletal system diseases, including gout and arthritis.
Why Obese People find it Harder to Lose Weight
The human body has intrinsic defense mechanisms that protect against the adverse effects of starvation. Complex biochemical processes transmit information to the brain about energy reserves and ways of energy compensation.
When losing weight, a deficiency of energy reserves is perceived as a signal of starvation. The body switches into a different metabolic regime. In this case, it tends to retain the maximum of incoming calories and experience increased hunger. The person cannot control this feeling. Such a reaction is aimed at the protection and safety of the body. However, an abundance of food leads to breakdown - the accumulation of energy reserves goes unnoticed.
It turns out that when trying to lose weight, people fight with their own bodies. Limitations in food result in an increased feeling of hunger rather than weight loss. It is really hard to overcome this pattern without the help of a doctor. Overweight people need a healthy balanced diet and a safe exercise program.
Various studies show that only 10-15% of obese patients can lose weight through diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes. Only 20% of them manage to keep the result for a period of two years.