Obesity is defined as the accumulation of excess fat within the body of an individual. It can affect people of all ages, ethinicities and socio-economic backgrounds and is fast emerging as a major health risk in today’s world.
The causes of obesity are multifactorial and complex. There has been an increasing incidence and prevalence of obesity in the last 3-4 decades especially amongst the developed countries of the world. This has majorly because of increased affluence amongst the people and the related lifestyle changes which have led to increased caloric intake with decreased caloric expenditure. The resultant effect has been progressively increasing body weight and BMI in the general population. Besides lifestyle factors, there are a number of other causes of obesity
Body fat can accumulate in different parts of the body including beneath the skin( subcutaneous fat), around and within the internal organs like liver, kidneys, pancreas and intestines (visceral fat).
The accumulation of excess subcutaneous fat is also known as peripheral obesity whereas the excess of visceral fat is called as central obesity. Of these two types, visceral obesity imposes a greater health risk to an individual because it is linked to increase in blood sugar and cholesterol and greater risk of diabetes
There are different parameters to define and measure obesity. These include skin fold thickness, body composition analysis by electric impedance, body mass index (BMI) and whole body MRI.
Besides the health risks, it is associated with social stigmatisation and a poor quality of life. Obese people are often looked down upon and get alienated from society and suffer from poor self esteem and depression.
The treatment of obesity depends upon causative factors and the severity of obesity. If an underlying cause is identified, it needs to be corrected first either by medication or lifestyle modification. The treatment involves a multidisciplinary approach with the help of physicians, psychologists, Dieticians, endocrinologists and fitness trainers. Most cases of mild to moderate obesity can be managed by this approach but it requires dedicated effort by the patient as well as the team. Severe or morbid obesity is usually not treatable by such measures alone. It requires a more invasive treatment in the form of Bariatric surgery for long term sustainable weight loss.
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