Don't Kill Yourself - An Overview About Obesity
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Department of General Medicine
Obesity is the medical condition that is characterized by excessive accumulation of body fat ,that may have a negative effect on health, leading to diminished life expectancy or increased health problems.
People are said to be obese ,when the Body Mass Index(BMI) (a measurement obtained by dividing a person's weight by the square of the person's height) exceeds 30kg/m2.The range 25-30kg/m2 defined as overweight.
Obesity increases the probability of various diseases such as Diabetes,heart diseases,Obstructive sleep apnea ,certain types of cancer and osteoarthritis etc.Obesity is due to the combination of excessive food energy intake, lack of physical activity and genetic susceptibility, although a few cases are caused primarily by genes,psychiatric illness,medications and endocrine disorders.
Primary prevention
Regular evaluation of lifestyle factors (e.g, diet, exercise, sleep) identifies patients at risk for excess weight gain .Preventive lifestyle changes are important.The most powerful approach is to modify unhealthy habits of the entire family.
The steps to prevent weight gain are following ie ;
• Exercise regularly ; You need to get 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity activity for a week to prevent weight gain. Intense physical activities include fast walking and swimming may decrease the weight gain.
• Follow a healthy eating plan ; Focus on low-calorie, nutrient-dense foods, such as vegetables ,fruits and whole grains. Avoid saturated fat, alcohol and limit sweets . Eat three regular meals a day with limited snacking. You can eat small amounts of high-fat, high-calorie foods as an infrequent treat. Always choose foods that assist a healthy weight and better health most of the time.
• Know and avoid the food traps that cause you to eat ; Recognize situations that trigger out-of-control eating. Try to keeping a journal and write down what you eat, , when you take food, how much you eat ,how you're feeling and how hungry you are etc. After a while, you should see patterns emerge. You can plan ahead and develop plans for handling these types of situations and stay in control of your food intake behaviors.
• Detect your weight regularly ; People who weigh themselves at least once a week are more successful . Monitoring your weight which tell you whether your efforts are working and can help you to identify small weight gains before they become danger problems.
• Be consistent ; Sticking to your healthy-weight plan during the week, on the weekends, vacation and holidays as much as possible increases your chance of long-term success.
Treatment
Treatment Goal : For children, lower rate of weight gain or 1-2 lb/week weight loss is reasonable. For adults, 10% weight loss in 6 months is needed.All weight-loss programs require changes in eating style and increased physical activity.
Other treatment methods include :
Lowering calories and practicing healthier eating habits are important to overcoming obesity.
- Exercise and other physical activity
Exercise or Increased physical activity is an vital part of obesity treatment. Peoples can able to maintain their weight loss by regular exercise.
A behavior modification can help to make lifestyle changes and lose weight. Following steps helps to examining your current habits to find out what factors, stresses or condition may have contributed to your obesity etc.
- Prescription weight-loss medications
Obesity management needs a healthy diet and regular exercise. But in certain situations, use of weight-loss medication also helps to reduce obesity. Frequently used medicines are orlistat, buproprion, naltrexone,lorcaserin , phentermine, topiramate and liraglutide.
In some cases,weight-loss surgery(Bariatric surgery),is an another option.Common weight-loss surgeries include:
- Gastric bypass surgery
- Biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch
- Gastric sleeve
- Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB)
Reference :
- Mayoclinic; Didease and conditions Obesity By Mayo Clinic Staff
- Faculty Group Practice ; Obesity Prevention and Management by Obesity Guideline Team
- Obesity ; From Wikkipedia