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The above text was sent by my former staff nurse in Government House Umuahia.
I sent back a teaser to her. “Are you overweight or obese?”. She replied with a different version. “Doc, I think I have excess weight. I then understood her dilemma. She was obese. Most women do not want to be called fat or obese. They use indeterminate language to describe their excess weight gain.
It is not easy to say what any one person should weigh. Typically weight tables show how weight varies with sex and height. But these are usually average figures, taken from people’s actual weights. They are likely to be higher than “ideal” because more people in Nigeria are overweight than underweight despite the economic downturn.
Some insurance companies have produced figures for “desirable weights” for each height and build, by noting which weights are associated with low death rates. But, though useful, the range of figures is still quite wide.
Obesity is a complex disorder involving an excessive amount of body fat. Obesity isn’t just a cosmetic concern. It increases your risk of diseases and health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Being extremely obese, means you are especially likely to have health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Obesity is best defined by using Body Mass Index (BMI).
The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a statistical measurement derived from your height and weight.
Although it is considered to be a useful way to estimate healthy body weight, it does not measure the percentage of body fat. The BMI measurement can sometimes be misleading – a muscle man may have a high BMI, but has much less fat than an unfit person whose BMI is lower. However in general, the BMI measurement can be a useful indicator for the “average person”.
Obesity is from the Latin “obesitas”, which means “stout, fat, or plump.” “ESUS is the past participle of edere (to eat), with “ob”(over) added to it. The oxford English Dictionary documents first usage in 1611 by Prof. Randle Cotgrave.
Ancient Greek medicine recognises obesity as a medical disorder and records that the Ancient Egyptians saw it in the same way. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine wrote that “Corpulence is not only a disease itself, but the harbinger of others.”
The Indian Surgeon Sushruta (6th century BCE) related obesity to diabetes and heart disorders. He recommended physical work to help cure it and its side effects.
For most of human history, mankind struggled with food scarcity. Obesity has thus historically been viewed as a sign of wealth and prosperity. It was common among high officials in Europe, in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, as well as in Ancient East Asian civilisations.
In the 17th century, English medical author Tobias Venner is credited with being one of the first to refer to the term obesity, as a societal disease, in a published English language book.
The current epidemic of obesity has been reported in several, but not all regions globally. The higher rate of obesity has been reported in the pacific- islands and America. And the lowest rates have been seen in Asia.
The rates of obesity in Europe, and North America are generally very high, while the rates in Africa and Middle Eastern Countries are variable. The prevalence of obesity around the world is monitored by WHO through the “Global Database on BMI”. The survey data included in the database are identified from the literature or from a wide network of collaborators.
However, high quality data from systematic nationally representative samples is sparse. As of November 2004, the database has compiled data covering approximately 1.6 billion people worldwide, were overweight and that at least 400 million adults were obese.
They further projected that, by 2015, approximately 2.3 billion adults will be. Overweight. And that at least 700 million will be obese. According to the data from the Global Database on Body Mass Index, there are wide variations in prevalence of obesity throughout the world ranging from India, where 1% or less of the population is obese, to the Pacific Islands, where the prevalence of obesity can reach up to 80% in some regions.
Change over time in adults. Obesity prevalence was calculated for 28 countries that have two or more nationally representative surveys recorded in the Global Database on BMI.
Overall, most countries have rising trends of obesity. Only two of the 28 countries showed a falling trend in the prevalence of obesity in men (Denmark and Saudi Arabia), and five of 28 countries showed a falling trend in the prevalence of obesity in women – Denmark, Ireland, Saudi Arabia, Finland and Spain.
The risk factors for obesity include genetics, family lifestyle, inactivity, unhealthy diet, medical problems, certain medications, social issues, economics, age and pregnancy.
Quitting smoking is often associated with weight gain. And for some, it can lead to enough weight gain that the person becomes obese. In the long run, however, quitting smoking is still a greater benefit to your health than continuing to smoke.
Not getting enough sleep or getting too much sleep can cause changes in hormones that increase your appetite. You may also crave foods high in calories and carbohydrates, which can contribute to weight gain.
If you are obese these are the things you might experience: trouble sleeping; sleep apnea, a condition in which breathing is irregular and periodically stops during sleep; shortness of breath; varicose veins; skin problems caused by moisture that accumulates in the folds of your skin; gallstones and osteoarthritis in weight bearing joints, especially the knees.
Obesity increases your risk of high blood pressure; high level of blood sugar (diabetes); high cholesterol and high triglycerides level.
Your doctor may diagnose overweight and obesity, based on your medical history physical exams that confirm you have a high body mass index (BMI) and possibly a high waist circumference, and tests to rule out other medical conditions.
A healthy weight for adults is usually when your BMI is 18.5 to less than 25. Usually underweight BMI ranges below 18.5; overweight is a BMI of 25 to 29.9, while obesity is a BMI of 30 and above.
Weight reduction is achieved by consuming lower calories and increasing your activity and exercise.
There are a lot of both prescription and non-prescription pills for losing weight. I am not an advocate of pills for loss of weight. I prefer structured discipline in moderate consumption of diet.
Surgery is occasionally used in weight control. The surgery called “bariatric surgery” may be considered if your BMI is 40 or greater, or your BMI is 30 to 35 or greater, and you have at least one medical condition directly related to obesity. In addition before you go in for surgery, you must have participated in a structured weight loss program without success.
The more common types of surgical procedures include gastroplasty, laparoscopic – adjustable – gastric – banding and gastric bypass.
Whether you are at risk of obesity, currently overweight or at a healthy weight, you can take steps to prevent unhealthy weight gain and related health problems.
Not surprisingly, the steps to prevent weight gain are the same as the steps to lose weight: via daily exercise, a healthy diet, and a long-term commitment to watch what you eat and drink.
People who weigh themselves at least once a week are more successful in keeping off excess kilograms .
Monitoring your weight can tell you whether your efforts are working and can help you detect small weight gains before they become big problems.
Always be medically guided.
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