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Obesity is a complex condition that is linked to several other health conditions. It is not the same as being overweight, which means weighing too much.
Obesity is defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a BMI of 30 or greater. An adult with a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.
While BMI is not a perfect measure of health, it is a useful tool for identifying individuals who are at increased risk for obesity-related health problems.
Obesity is associated with several serious health conditions, including:
1. Heart Disease: Obesity increases the risk of heart disease. This condition increases the risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, arrhythmia, and heart failure. It can also lead to Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
2. Stroke: Obesity increases the risk of stroke, a serious medical illness in which the blood supply to the brain is decreased.
3. Type 2 Diabetes: Obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, your blood sugar levels become too high. It’s because your body doesn’t respond well to insulin. This can happen over time when your body becomes resistant to insulin or can’t produce enough of it to control blood sugar levels. If your blood sugar remains high for a prolonged period, it can lead to other issues such as vision problems, infections, heart problems, and kidney disease.
4. Cancer: Obesity is linked to certain types of cancer, including colorectal cancer, breast cancer, pancreas, thyroid, and kidney cancer.
5. Sleep Apnea: When you have this sleep condition, the muscles in the back of your neck and throat collapse, blocking your airways as you sleep. This causes momentary pauses in breathing, which leads to snoring and interrupted sleep patterns.
You may be unaware of this problem, but being obese or overweight heightens the risk. Reduced breathing can deplete oxygen levels in tissues, resulting in heart disease. Sleep apnea has also been connected to atrial fibrillation and other cardiovascular issues.
7. Osteoarthritis: Carrying extra weight adds strain to your joints that bear weight. As you age, the cartilage, the protective tissue between your bones, wears down. This could all lead to osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease. It is painful and most often affects your hands, knees, spine, and hips. When you start to lose weight, you’ll feel and move better, and your joints will have less stress.
8. Fatty Liver Disease: Obesity is also linked to sleep apnea, which is a serious sleep disorder that happens when a person’s breathing stops during sleep.
9. Gallstones: Being overweight or obese increases the risk of getting gallstones. Gallstones form when your gallbladder’s bile contains too much cholesterol and hardens into painful “stones.” To avoid gallstones, steady weight loss is recommended. However, rapid weight reduction should be avoided because it may increase the chance of gallstone formation.
10. Metabolic Syndrome: Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions that increase the risk of other health issues such as heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Common indicators include being overweight high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, and elevated blood sugar.
Obesity, a complex ailment, is linked to several health issues. It is therefore important to maintain a healthy weight to reduce the risk of these conditions.
