Kazivah Rashi
How do we know if our body is overweight?
We can determine whether our body weight is normal or overweight or if it is obesity, this can be done by this formula: "Weight is divided by the height squared in meters"; if the result is between 18 to 24, your weight is normal, if the result is between 25 to 29 you are overweight and if the result is between 30 to 39, you have obesity.
What are the causes of obesity?
The main reason for gaining weight is to get more calories than we use in our daily activities. Over time, this amount of excess energy gathers and causes obesity; in addition to this there are a number of other factors that cause obesity and weight gain:
1. Genetics or family background: Some overweight individuals have this issue due to genetic factors that are genetically transmitted to them and affect the rate of hormones, the condition of digestion, and the amount of food they consume.
2. Overeating, or the kind of food that contains high levels of fat, sugar, and carbohydrates such as rice and white bread.
3. A number of medications that cause obesity such as antidepressants, pills, some diabetes medications, high blood pressure, corticosteroids, and medication used to prevent childbirth.
4. Lifestyle or lack of physical movement or lack of exercise.
5. Psychological reasons. Some people resort to excessive eating when they are depressed or stressed.
6. Pregnancy: Most of the women who are pregnant gain weight and do not return to normal weight after childbirth.
7. Lack of adequate sleep which can end in changes in your hormones that make you feel hungrier and want to eat more.
What are the diseases caused by obesity?
Heart diseases:
Losing just 5 kilograms of weight can decrease the risk of heart disease.
Type 2 diabetes:
Due to the development of resistance against the insulin hormone which is responsible for maintaining the balance of sugar levels in the blood, the blood sugar level will be damaged if the cells resist the insulin.
Cancer:
Obesity increases the risk of a range of cancers including artery, pancreas, colon, rectum, uterus, kidney, bile, and breast cancer in women who are old, especially for those with high belly fat.
Arthritis:
Weight gain is a major cause of chronic pain and inflammation in the knee joint. This increases inflammation and pain with age and weight gain which leads to lack of movement and more obesity. Obesity also causes muscle weakness and damages the body's balance during movement.
Fatty Liver and Liver inflammation:
Obesity and excessive amounts of fat in the blood cause the accumulation of fat in the liver, so the first treatment for this disease is to reduce the problem. If this fat accumulation is prolonged, it can cause inflammation of the liver and become waxy which is a dangerous and deadly condition if it continues.
How to treat obesity?
The main treatment for obesity is your desire to lose weight, but there are several other ways to lose weight:
First, change your lifestyle and adhere to a diet-specific method to lose weight; this includes increasing daily activity with specialized training and dieting under your doctor's supervision.
Second, using medications to treat obesity and to regulate food consumption, but this must be consulted with a specialist.
Third, using surgery to treat obesity. Some patients cannot succeed in these two methods so they seek treatment via surgery. Nowadays, surgery to treat obesity is very advanced and most of the previous conditions and deficiencies have been improved.
