OBESITY: THE DISEASE OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

04.03.2016

by Solène, Hugo

This disease is the most widely spread in the USA. Some treatments can be prescribed and campains to prevent obesity is widespread to prevent people, children and teens in particular to become overweight.

REASONS AND SYMPTOMS

Some factors can lead to this illness such as eating too fast, eating fatty, processed and unhealthy food, too often, between meals or just eating too much. People can become fat when they don't practice sports at all or when they are not physically active. Besides in some cases, obesity can be a genetic disease.

Because of obesity, you can feel breathless, suffer from increased sweating, snoring, insomnia, inability to cope with sudden physical activity, back and joint pains, high-blood pressure, diabetes and feeling very tired every day. There are social consequences as well, for example feeling isolated, feeling depressed and having low confidence level as well as low self-esteem. Obesity also concern children and teens a lot and they are at risk to develop other diseases. Besides, overweight teens are more likely to be bullying, to suffer from anxiety, and depression which may lead to committing suicide.

TREATMENTS TO FIGHT AGAINST OBESITY

There are few treatments to fight obesity. Dieting and exercising are the standard ones.

“Going on a diet” consists in reducing the consumption of energy-dense food, such as those high in fat and sugar (fast-food is a typical example). Increasing the intake of dietary fiber and practicing healthier eating habits are vital to fight against obesity. There is no best weight-loss diet, but unrealistic diet such as crash diets don't help, it may be successful in the first few months of a weight loss program, but 80 to 95% of people put the weight back on.

Calories are the key to weight loss: your doctor and you can decide how many calories you need to take in a day (typical amount: 1200-1500 cal for women, 1500-1800 cal for men).

Then, you can satisfy your hunger with the concept of energy density: a small volume of food high in energy density (desserts, candies...), and a large portion of other food such as fruits, vegetables... Eating this way, you reduce hunger pangs and feel better about your meal.

Health is important thing: your diet has to be healthier, so eat more plant-based foods (fruits, vegetables...). Lean sources of protein like beans and/or lentils and lean means are perfect, and you can include fish twice a week. Also, limit salt and added sugar.

Physical activity is an essential part of obesity treatment, even simply walking. People who are overweight or obese need to get at least 150min a week of moderate-intensity physical activity. You probably will need to gradually increase the amount of your exercise to maintain the loss.

Even regular aerobic exercise is the most efficient way to burn calories. Making simple changes can add up to big benefits.

Fight against obesity requires a healthy diet and regular exercise, but in certain situations, prescription weight-loss medication may help to reduce appetite or decrease fat absorption. That weight-loss medication is meant to be used with diet, exercise and behavior changes, not instead of them. It may not work for everyone, and there are possible side effects. When you stop taking a weight-loss medication, you may regain much or all of the weight you lost.

In some cases, if diet, exercise and medications are not effective, a gastric balloon or bariatric surgery is an option. It limits the amount of food you're able to eat or decreases the absorption of food and calories (or both).

Weight-loss surgery doesn't guarantee that you will lose all of your excess weight.

OBESITY IN THE WOLRD

Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980. In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults were overweight and over 600 millions of these were obese: about 13% of world population was obese (11% of men and 15% of women) and 39% of adults were overweight (38% of men and 40% of women). In 2013 the number of overweight children under the age of five is estimated to be over 42 million. Close to 35 million of these are living in developing countries. Obesity is sky rocketting in the world and especially in developing countries in urban environment.