Obesity

Obesity is a medical condition which occurs when a person has too much fat on their body. Obesity can cause health related problems, lead to a shortened life expectancy and obesity can even result in death.

Obesity is defined according to the Body Mass Index or BMI calculation. This is a simple obesity formula which divides a person’s body weight by their height in square metres

BMI = Weight in Kilograms / Height in M²

A BMI equal to or above 25 indicates that you are overweight whilst obesity is defined as having a BMI equal to or greater than 30. BMI is a good indicator and a useful standard that can be applied across different groups and sexes but it should be used as a rough guide because some individuals can carry more fat than others despite being of a similar height and weight.

Some obesity facts and figures*

•    Obesity affects some 300 million people worldwide
•    Estimates put 1.5 billion of the world’s population as overweight
•    One in ten of the world’s population is obese
•    You are more likely to suffer with obesity if you are ‘middle age’ or at retirement age

Causes of obesity

Obesity is caused by a high intake of food and calories and correspondingly low exercise or activity levels. This surplus intake results in the body retaining and building up fat. This is an individual or technical explanation of obesity but the root causes of obesity can often be traced back to many factors such as genetics, diet, lifestyle and economic factors.

If obesity is untreated what can it lead to?

Obesity places stress on the body and it can have significant physical and mental consequences. Obesity greatly increases the chances of various life threatening conditions such as those mentioned below. It has been widely reported that obesity is one of the world’s top preventable killers which is estimated to shortly overtake smoking related deaths.

•    Diabetes – You are twice as likely to contract type 2 diabetes if you are obese.
•    Heart disease and strokes – Obesity increases blood pressure which can be a major contributor to obesity linked heart disease and strokes.
•    Osteoarthritis – Extra pressure on the joints and a lack of exercise make this a common symptom and obese people often have problems with knees, lower back and hips.
•    Cancer – Obesity raises the chances of various types of cancers for both men and women

How can I treat obesity?

There is no secret success to losing weight and a healthy lifestyle which includes a moderate and balanced food intake coupled with a regular exercise regime should help you lose weight and move away from obesity. Some obesity patient’s are unable to achieve the weight loss required unaided and through traditional dieting and exercise. For those obesity patients a doctor may recommend bariatric surgery to help them lose weight and reduce the chances of any diseases and conditions which are made more probably by being obese.