Obesity for "dummies"

Nine facts about obesity

Ekaterina Tarasova, MednovostiFact #1

Obesity leads to obesity

Regular overeating can lead to obesity, everyone knows that. However, many believe that it is worth returning to a healthy diet, and the body weight will return to its original positions. This rule, to put it mildly, does not work for patients suffering from obesity. The longer the body weight exceeds the norm, the more difficult it becomes to get rid of extra pounds.

Obesity is partly a self–progressive condition. With weight loss, for example, in the case of a successful diet, numerous compensatory mechanisms are automatically activated in the body, aimed at returning to the previous, overweight. The body itself of a person who has lost weight begins to actively counteract changes, initiating the process of hormonal changes, as a result, a feeling of hunger arises and the metabolism slows down. The reason for this, in particular, is a decrease in the level of the hormone leptin, which is a signal for the accumulation of calories. People struggling with excess weight also have to struggle with their own physiology. At a certain stage in the development of the disease, the body switches to a new mode programmed for a different weight category. The exact mechanisms that shift the arrows of these scales are still unknown and require further study.

Fact #2
Some people are genetically predisposed to obesityNewborns may be at risk of developing obesity, since this disease is not always provoked by an unhealthy diet and "lack of motivation", sometimes obesity is a genetically predetermined condition.

British researchers have found that mutations in the KSR2 gene can cause hunger attacks in obese patients, as well as slow down metabolic processes. These data will probably help explain the increase in the number of cases of childhood obesity over the past 30 years.

Another international study of childhood obesity revealed 2 genes that were more common in obese children: the first is a variant of the OLFM4 gene on chromosome 13, and the second is a variant of the HOXB5 gene on chromosome 17. The functions of these genes are unknown, but it is assumed that they play a role in the work of the intestine, as they can affect the populations of bacteria that inhabit it.

It turns out that although overeating and lack of physical activity contribute to the development of obesity, still some people are genetically predisposed to it. Perhaps this discovery will lead to the development of new pharmacological remedies for obesity that can regulate the activity of "guilty" genes.

Fact # 3
If you are very obese, it is better to go to a surgeonObesity can be treated in different ways, but the choice should depend not on the personal wishes of the patient, but on the indications.

For example, if diet and exercise did not help with a body mass index of 30-39, then the doctor may prescribe medications. With a body mass index of 40 or more, bariatric surgery may already be recommended. That is, longitudinal resection (removal of a part), gastric banding and other ways to reduce the "throughput" of this organ. In one of the large studies, it was shown that the operation greatly affected the mortality of obese people: these patients had fewer strokes, heart attacks, cases of diabetes mellitus than those who used non-surgical methods of treatment. In other words, it is necessary to treat obesity, especially severe, not only for aesthetic reasons.

Fact #4
Obesity of a pregnant woman can harm a childBritish scientists suggest that the health of a pregnant woman and child may be at risk due to the overweight of the mother.

Analysis of data from 110,000 pregnant women in Scotland has helped to establish that the risk of complications during pregnancy increases with an increase in a woman's body mass index. We are talking primarily about high blood pressure and the risk of developing gestational diabetes (diabetes of pregnant women, dangerous for both mother and child). The authors of the study claim that at the moment, the fight against overweight pregnant women has become the main problem of pregnancy management in the UK.

Another study has established a link between the presence of metabolic disorders in expectant mothers and developmental delays in children. In the case of morbid obesity in a pregnant woman, there is a risk of developing autism in a child. Morbid obesity is understood as a chronic, genetically determined disease in which the body mass index is more than 40.

Fact #5
In the intestines of slim people there are bacteria that fight obesityBacteria living in the intestines of slim people can become a new remedy for obesity.

Several groups of scientists are trying to establish the role of these microorganisms in weight control. One of the studies involved four pairs of twins, in each of which one twin was obese, and the weight of the second was normal. Fecal samples were taken from them, the bacterial composition was carefully studied and injected into mice that did not have their own intestinal flora. Scientists found that mice that got the bacteria of slender twins remained thin, and mice that had the bacteria of obese twins began to gain weight.

Also recently, other researchers from the UK studied the breathing of obese people and identified a special kind of intestinal bacteria that secrete methane. Those participants in the experiment whose breath contained more methane were overweight. It is assumed that by influencing populations of this type of bacteria, it is possible to reduce the weight of patients.

Fact # 6
Sugar is addictive Addiction to fatty and sugary foods can turn into addiction and lead to morphological changes in brain tissues similar to those that occur with prolonged drug or alcohol use.

The hormone leptin, which regulates appetite, works in the hypothalamus and in the ventral region of the brain, where dopamine neurons are responsible for the feeling of pleasure. Due to changes in these areas, dependence on alcohol, nicotine and drugs is developing. Now it turns out that regular abuse of sweets leads to loss of sensitivity of neurons and the formation of progressive dependence, as it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve a feeling of satiety and pleasure. Despite the fact that the study was conducted on rats, scientists believe that the same processes are going on in the human brain.

Now sugar will be called "the most dangerous drug of our time," scientists say. And the head of the Health Service of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) proposes to introduce restrictions on the sugar content in food and drinks, as well as glue warnings on packages, as on cigarette packs.

Fact # 7
Obesity can be contagiousObesity can be transmitted from person to person.

Close friends of someone who has gained excess weight may unwittingly follow the example of a stout person. Scientists point out that social connections form ideas about "normal" weight and make you adjust to them. In a large study, it was found that, as a rule, close friends of a person who has developed obesity gain weight. For neighbors, such an association is not visible, and family members were exposed to the "virus" of obesity, but to a lesser extent than close friends, whose chances of gaining excess weight after a friend increased by 3 times. Professor Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School, the author of the study, argues that friendship changes our perception and evaluation of overweight people. When one of your close friends is obese, fullness no longer seems unacceptable.

Fortunately, the same contagious effect is observed in the case of weight loss of close relatives and friends, the researchers note.

Fact #8
Lack of sleep leads to overweightApparently, a good night's sleep in sufficient volume is a protection against excess weight.

More and more scientific evidence is being found by the theory that insufficient sleep provokes the development of obesity. For example, during a long and large-scale study conducted in the United States, it turned out that women who spent 7-8 hours of sleep a day were 15 percent less at risk of gaining excess weight compared to those who slept 5 or less hours.

Researchers suggest that there are several reasons why lack of sleep affects weight.

• Relentless hunger. Lack of sleep can affect the production of hormones that awaken hunger. In the blood of adults who slept less than the daily norm, a higher level of the hormone ghrelin, which stimulates appetite, and a lower level of leptin, which is responsible for feeling full, were found.
• More time for food. People who are awake at night have more time to satisfy their increased appetite.
• Unhealthy food. Those who sleep little often have just as little time to choose a healthy diet. In addition, the body needs more and more calories, and sleep-deprived people often prefer high-calorie food.
• Reduced physical activity. Lack of sleep leads to fatigue during the day and unwillingness to exercise.

Fact # 9
Men underestimate their weightMillions of men put their health at risk without realizing one important thing: their weight is excessive.

According to a study by British sociologists, men are twice as likely to underestimate their weight, which means they are unaware of diseases that may be associated with it. Out of more than 300 thousand respondents, almost one in four estimated their weight incorrectly, with a tendency to understatement.

The women who participated in the survey, on the contrary, were too suspicious about their own weight. Only 8 percent "underestimated" him, while 27 percent attributed themselves to a category exceeding their actual indicators (among men, there were only 12 percent).

Thank you for your help in preparing the material
bariatric surgeons Badmu Bashankayev and Rashid Askerkhanov.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru05.02.2015