OBESITY

Obesity is a disease in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that health may be negatively affected. The WHO criteria refers to obesity as a body mass index (weight divided by height squared) of 30 kg/m2 or higher. Research shows that an association between excessive body weight and various diseases (exist), particularly cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus type 2, sleep apnea, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.  As a result, obesity has been found to reduce life expectancy.

OBESITY FACTORS

Most researchers agree that a combination of excessive calorie consumption and a sedentary lifestyle are the primary causes of obesity.  In a minority of cases, increased food consumption can be attributed to genetic, medical, or psychiatric illness, but in general the rising prevalence of obesity is attributed to the availability of an easily accessible and palatable diet, car culture, and mechanized manufacturing.

 A 2006 review identifies ten other possible contributors to the recent increase in the rate of obesity:
(1) insufficient sleep,
 (2) endocrine disruptors - food substances that interfere with lipid metabolism,
(3) decreased variability in ambient temperature,
(4) decreased rates of smoking, which suppresses appetite,
(5) increased use of medication that leads to weight gain,
(6) increased distribution of ethnic and age groups that tend to be heavier,
(7) pregnancy at a later age,
(8) intrauterine and intergenerational effects,
 (9) positive natural selection of people with a higher BMI,
(10) Assortative mating, heavier people tending to form relationships with each other.

There are a number of factors that make individuals more prone to gaining weight and developing obesity.

Socio-economic status: ironically people living in western countries with a higher level of income and education are less exposed to the risk of obesity and more inclined to do something about their weight, than the poorer classes who are at great risk.

Urbanisation and westernisation: In rural, agricultural communities obesity is not common because such populations tend to eat low-fat diets based on unrefined cereals and do a great deal of physical work. When these people move to towns and start eating a western high-fat diet and expend less energy, their risk of developing obesity is high. South Africans are facing an explosion in obesity because such a large segment of our population is rapidly moving to the cities and adopting western eating habits. Cultural practices and advertising play an important role in making people regard foods as desirable even if they are ‘fatal’ for weight gain. Family practices are also often to blame when parents use food as a reward or pacifier.

Genetics can be responsible for 50-60% of the variation in an individual’s amount of abdominal fat. Obesity is known to run in families and if you have one or more obese parents or grandparents then your chance of developing obesity is very great. Individual susceptibility is also a factor and there is scientific evidence that certain individuals are less able to burn fat which predisposes them to obesity. Modern transport and labour-saving devices such as washing machines and vacuum cleaners make our lives easier, but prevent us from using up energy and contribute to weight gain. All these factors play a role in making modern men and women gain weight and run the risk of developing obesity. Some factors can’t be changed, but there are others that we can alter.

TREATMENT

The main treatment for obesity consists of eating less and exercising more. Diet programs may produce weight loss over the short term, but keeping this weight off can be a problem. It often requires making exercise and a lower calorie diet a permanent part of a person's lifestyle.

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www.health24.com
en.wikipedia.org