1. WHAT IS OBESITY?
a. Obesity is a disease process in which there is excess fat accumulation in the body leading to adverse effects on health. Obesity or overweight results from complex interplay between the genetic factors and the environmental influences, and is largely due to changing dietary habits with shift towards refined, high calorie food, increasing mechanization resulting in lack of physical activity, and sedentary lifestyles.
2. OBESITY IS MOTHER OF ALL IMPORTANT DISEASES OF ADULT LIFE
b. Overweight or Obesity is possibly mother of all diseases of adult life. Obesity is a disease process which increases the risk of developing a number of other diseases of adult life like high blood pressure, ischaemic heart disease (angina & heart attacks), stroke (paralytic attacks), gall bladder disease, joint problems, sleep apnoea, respiratory problems, cancers of uterus, breast, large intestine and prostate, and even pancreatic malignancy. In fact there is a list of more than 30 diseases which obesity predisposes to.
3. HOW DO I KNOW WHETHER I AM OBESE OR NOT?
a. If you look overweight, very high chances that you are obese. This is simple "eyeball test". Another simple way to calculate your normal body weight is your height in cms minus 100, multiplied by 0.9. So if your height is 165cms, than you normal weight should be (165-100=65x0.9=58.5kg). A body weight 10-20% above normal is considered obesity.
b. You can also check your body mass index online – normal BMI for Indians is 18.0-23.0kg/m2.
4. OBESITY – IS IT A DISEASE OR A SIGN OF PROSPERITY?
a. Obesity is a chronic disease which increases the risk of a number of diseases of adult life. The risks associated with overweight were well recognized even during the time of Hippocrates. Omar Khayyam, noted Persian physician & philosopher mentioned in his writings "fat people may die happy, nevertheless they die younger".
Despite the established association between obesity and a number of chronic conditions, little recognition has been given to obesity itself as chronic disease. On the contrary, obesity was traditionally believed to be associated with affluent lifestyles in the west. In India, overweight has long been considered as a sign of prosperity. Hence, most of the overweight persons do not care to consult their physicians unless they develop some co-morbid problem.
5. WHY LOSE WEIGHT?
a. Obesity or overweight increases the risk of developing a number of other diseases of adult life like high blood pressure, ischaemic heart disease (angina & heart attacks), stroke (paralytic attacks), gall bladder disease, joint problems, sleep apnoea, respiratory problems, cancers of uterus, breast, large intestine and prostate, and even pancreatic malignancy. In fact there is a list of more than 30 diseases which obesity predisposes to. Even in children with overweight, there is increased risk of developing high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, early onset of adult type diabetes (Type 2), and of course the psychosocial probems associated with overweight. And losing weight is associated with positive effects on all these illnesses.
6. HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT AND HOW MUCH TO LOSE?
a. Ideal treatment of an obese patient is based on a multidisciplinary team approach. The team includes a physician, a nurse, nutritionist, psychologist, and exercise physiologist, and a surgeon may be required if nothing works. Various treatment modalities applied for weight reduction include diet regulation, behaviour modification, prescribed exercises, medication, management of complications, and surgery as the last resort.
The management of obesity consists of reduction in calorie intake and dietary modifications, increasing the physical activity, behavior therapy, medically approved drug therapy, and if nothing works surgical management.
b. One does not need to achieve ideal body and should set realistic goals for weight loss. In fact losing only about 5% gives you improvement in majority of metabolic abonormalities and losing 10% weight leads to more than 90% correction in obesity related health risks.
7. CAN I ACHIEVE ALL THE HEALTH BENEFITS WITH ONLY 5-10% WEIGHT LOSS?
a. Well, the answer is a big YES. Losing only 5-10% of your current body weight is not only sufficient to achieve health benefits but is also a realistic and practical target for weight reduction. A modest reduction in body weight of 5-10% is associated with reduction in the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, angina & heart attacks, improvement in good cholesterol & reduction in bad cholesterol levels, improvement in exercise capacity, better cardio respiratory fitness, and improvement in self confidence
