Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition where excess
body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have a negative effect on
health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems. In
Western society, people are considered obese when their body mass index (BMI), a
measurement obtained by dividing a person's weight by the square of the
person's height, exceeds 30 kg/m2, with the range 25-30 kg/m2 defined as
overweight. On the contrary, some East Asian countries use stricter criteria.
Obesity may increase the possibility of
various other diseases, like heart disease, diabetes, sleep apnea, cancer,
osteoarthritis, etc. The factors which cause obesity include a combination of
excessive food energy intake, lack of physical activity, and genetic
susceptibility. However in a few cases, it is also caused primarily by genes,
endocrine disorders, medications, or psychiatric. On average, people who have
obesity have a greater energy expenditure than thin counterparts because the
energy is required to maintain an increased body mass.
For
obese people, dieting and exercising are the main treatments. Diet quality can
be improved by reducing the consumption of energy-dense food and by increasing
the intake of dietary fiber. With a suitable diet, anti-obesity drugs may be
taken to reduce appetite or decrease fat absorption.
A gastric balloon may also assist with
weight loss, or surgery may be performed to reduce stomach volume and/or bowel
length, leading to feeling full earlier and a reduced ability to absorb
nutrients from food.
In
modern society, obesity is considered as one of the most serious public health
problems of the 21st century by authorities. It attracts more and
more concern of people in recent years. So there are increasing number of
people, especially in western countries, doing exercise to enhance the health
of their body and to prevent obesity.
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