Overweight and Obesity - Symptoms, Causes and Associated Health Problems
Overweight and obesity are considered serious health problems, especially in the US where more than half the adult population falls into one category or the other.
Obesity is now classified as a disease by the American Medical Association.
Worldwide, over a billion adults are either overweight or obese. Here, you can learn about the symptoms, causes and health problems associated with excess body fat.
Symptoms
Overweight and obesity and generally defined according to a person's BMI or "Body Mass Index". The BMI is determined by taking your weight in kilograms and dividing it by your height in meters squared, in symbols kg/m2. A BMI of 25-30 is considered overweight. A BMI over 30 is considered obese.
BMI is more accurate than simply looking at the weight on a scale and comparing that to what is considered "normal". However, BMI is not accurate for body-builders and other very muscular individuals. Measuring body fat is the most accurate method.
Excessive body fat is the main symptom, but there are a few others including:
· Difficulty exercising
· Becoming fatigued quickly during exercise
· Lack of energy
· Shortness of breath when climbing stairs
· Difficulty bending over
Causes
In most cases, the cause is a combination of excessive calorie intake combined with varying levels of physical inactivity. Other causes and contributing factors include:
· Genetics
· Insufficient or poor quality sleep
· Endocrine disruptors in the environment
· Side effects of medications
· Alcoholism
· Eating disorders (primarily binge eating)
· Hormonal imbalances (primarily hypothyroidism)
· Poor nutrient intake
· Metabolic disorders
· Stress
· Yo-yo dieting
Yo-yo dieting refers to the practice of severely restricting caloric intake in order to lose weight quickly, usually for a specific reason, such as a wedding. Once the desired weight loss is achieved, the person goes back to eating as he or she did before the diet. The result is weight gain, but the weight gained is only fat, while much of the weight loss was muscle.
Loss of muscle reduces the resting metabolic rate (the number of calories burned at rest). This means that if the person goes back to eating the same number of calories as he or she did before the diet, the weight gain will be even larger. Numerous studies have shown that yo-yo dieting causes people to become even more overweight than they were originally. It is obvious at this point that very low calorie diets are not the solution for overweight or obese individuals.
Associated Health Problems
Excessive body fat increases a person's risk of various diseases. In particular, type II diabetes is strongly connected to obesity. Other associated health problems include:
· Cardiovascular disease
· Obstructive sleep apnea
· Osteoarthritis
· Asthma
· Cancer
Research has shown that chronic inflammation accompanies excessive body fat. Fat cells inside of the body burst. This triggers the immune system response of inflammation. Excessive inflammation plays a definite role in cancer.
If you are overweight or obese, you need some real solutions that you can live with. My next article covers natural weight loss solutions that will help you become healthier. See the Lose Weight Solutions Link in the resource box below. You won't lose 5 pounds or 10 pounds a week, something often promised by the manufactures of diet pills, but you will gradually lose all of the weight you need without starving yourself. See the resource box below for more on lose weight solutions.
Overweight and obesity are considered serious health problems, especially in the US where more than half the adult population falls into one category or the other.
Obesity is now classified as a disease by the American Medical Association.
Worldwide, over a billion adults are either overweight or obese. Here, you can learn about the symptoms, causes and health problems associated with excess body fat.
Symptoms
Overweight and obesity and generally defined according to a person's BMI or "Body Mass Index". The BMI is determined by taking your weight in kilograms and dividing it by your height in meters squared, in symbols kg/m2. A BMI of 25-30 is considered overweight. A BMI over 30 is considered obese.
BMI is more accurate than simply looking at the weight on a scale and comparing that to what is considered "normal". However, BMI is not accurate for body-builders and other very muscular individuals. Measuring body fat is the most accurate method.
Excessive body fat is the main symptom, but there are a few others including:
· Difficulty exercising
· Becoming fatigued quickly during exercise
· Lack of energy
· Shortness of breath when climbing stairs
· Difficulty bending over
Causes
In most cases, the cause is a combination of excessive calorie intake combined with varying levels of physical inactivity. Other causes and contributing factors include:
· Genetics
· Insufficient or poor quality sleep
· Endocrine disruptors in the environment
· Side effects of medications
· Alcoholism
· Eating disorders (primarily binge eating)
· Hormonal imbalances (primarily hypothyroidism)
· Poor nutrient intake
· Metabolic disorders
· Stress
· Yo-yo dieting
Yo-yo dieting refers to the practice of severely restricting caloric intake in order to lose weight quickly, usually for a specific reason, such as a wedding. Once the desired weight loss is achieved, the person goes back to eating as he or she did before the diet. The result is weight gain, but the weight gained is only fat, while much of the weight loss was muscle.
Loss of muscle reduces the resting metabolic rate (the number of calories burned at rest). This means that if the person goes back to eating the same number of calories as he or she did before the diet, the weight gain will be even larger. Numerous studies have shown that yo-yo dieting causes people to become even more overweight than they were originally. It is obvious at this point that very low calorie diets are not the solution for overweight or obese individuals.
Associated Health Problems
Excessive body fat increases a person's risk of various diseases. In particular, type II diabetes is strongly connected to obesity. Other associated health problems include:
· Cardiovascular disease
· Obstructive sleep apnea
· Osteoarthritis
· Asthma
· Cancer
Research has shown that chronic inflammation accompanies excessive body fat. Fat cells inside of the body burst. This triggers the immune system response of inflammation. Excessive inflammation plays a definite role in cancer.
If you are overweight or obese, you need some real solutions that you can live with. My next article covers natural weight loss solutions that will help you become healthier. See the Lose Weight Solutions Link in the resource box below. You won't lose 5 pounds or 10 pounds a week, something often promised by the manufactures of diet pills, but you will gradually lose all of the weight you need without starving yourself. See the resource box below for more on lose weight solutions.
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