If you thought being obese is being the target of fun, it only tells the part of the story about the dangers and predicaments obesity exposes you to. Obesity is no more a simple result of overeating-lead-to-overweight cases.
To quote the American Obesity Association’s words, “It is now recognized that obesity is a serious, chronic disease. No human condition — not race, religion, gender, ethnicity or disease state — compares to obesity in prevalence and prejudice, mortality and morbidity, sickness, and stigma.”
Obesity is a trojan horse. It brings a battalion of ailments, which are most detrimental to our health. To name a few, the following are the complications that could arise from being obese.
1. Hypertension
2. Diabetes (Type-2)
3. Coronary heart disease
4. Stroke
5. Gallbladder disease
6. Osteoarthritis
7. Asthma
8. Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
9. Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
10. High levels of cholesterol
This is an unending list, where each of the above ailments is capable of creating other complications, where no medication without side effects, could be comfortably used. Prevention is the best cure for obesity. How to achieve this?
Shake Your Head
A doctor once told my friend, who is obese that it is very easy to lose weight. My friend became very interested and asked him to suggest a way. The doctor calmly replied that just shake your head from left to right, maybe ten times a day! My friend became very curious.
What is the idea behind this? He asked. The doctor calmly replied, “Whenever anyone offers you something to eat, shake your head from left to right”. Simple, isn’t it? It is simple, but it requires discipline, which is not simple. But then, habit makes discipline. Avoiding junk food and fast food must be done with discipline.
Is Being Overweight Obesity
Obesity is not just due to eating disorders unlike overweight. Obesity is hereditary and it is measured by Body Mass Index or BMI. Adults over the BMI of 30 Kg/m2 is considered are considered obese and anyone with a reading between 25 and 29.9 kg/m2 is overweight, not obese.
Obesity is posing the biggest threat to Americans and the numbers are rising each year. There are around 35% obese Americans according to a survey. This is also draining the state exchequer heavily to the tune of $25 billion a year.
What Causes Obesity
There are more reasons than one. Having an obsession with eating more calories than you can burn off, how active are you, what you eat, and whether you have an inherited streak in your genes, all determine your chances of becoming obese. In any case, it is due to the over-accumulation of fats.
Is There An Anti-Obesity Plan?
Many quick-fix plans are being promoted by the so-called dieticians which are not regulated by FDA. However, burning fat through increased physical activity and a changed lifestyle in addition to changing eating habits to healthier foods must gradually show results.
Although fat at the hips is not quicker to harm you than the accumulation around the waist, there is no guarantee that you are safe. Talk to your trainer and dietician, pull up your socks, and get going. After all, it’s your life.
