Overweight: think for yourself, decide for yourself…

Should there be a lot of good people?

Svetlana Tonkikh, TELEPORT2001According to the survey of the national sample of the adult population of Russia, the prevalence of overweight and obesity varies from 45 to 56% in men and from 56 to 62% in women.

Overweight significantly reduces life expectancy: on average from 3-5 years with a small excess of body weight and up to 15 years – with severe obesity. According to the World Health Organization, only 60% of overweight people will be able to live to 60 years, and only a third – to seventy. Many underestimate the harmful effects of obesity and do not take timely measures to normalize body weight.

Dangerous ballastThe problem of overweight due to its wide spread has long been called a real epidemic.

"Ballast" in the form of extra pounds is very harmful to the body, forcing it to work in a stressful mode, as a result of which the risk of developing many serious diseases increases.

The cardiovascular system in obesity suffers earlier and more often than the rest in 80% of cases. Damage to the heart and blood vessels is associated with fatty infiltration of the vascular wall, deposition of fats in the area of the heart muscles, as well as with displacement of the heart as a result of high standing of the diaphragm.

It has long been proven that the greater the weight, the higher the blood pressure, the frequency of heart attacks and strokes directly depends on the jumps. Thus, the presence of overweight and obesity increases the risk of hypertension by 3 times, coronary heart disease – by 2 times.

Obese patients often have impaired respiratory functions, because of this they have a pronounced predisposition to inflammatory processes of the respiratory system: laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis, pneumonia. These processes are especially difficult for smokers.

Periodontal disease, caries and other diseases develop in the oral cavity, the stomach is often stretched and lowered, as a result, intestinal motility changes; as a result, bloating, constipation, gas formation. With significant obesity, dilation of hemorrhoidal veins may occur.

In addition, there is a violation of the function of the pancreas, changes in the composition of bile with the accumulation of cholesterol in it, obesity of the liver, which exacerbates dyslipidemia and contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. Diseases of the kidneys and urinary system in obesity are caused by violations of water-salt metabolism: signs of water retention in the body and edema.

Increased loads on the articular and ligamentous apparatus lead to changes in the musculoskeletal system (metabolic arthritis, osteochondrosis). Cellulite, varicose veins, and thrombophlebitis often develop. The probability of developing diabetes in overweight people is 9 times higher, in obese people – 40 times. Obesity leads to disorders in the reproductive sphere (dysfunction, polycystic ovaries), etc. Complications after childbirth and surgical interventions are frequent.

Know your BMI, or Life-saving IndexIt is believed that a person has an ideal body weight at the age of 25, and body weight should not increase with age.

The simplest formula for determining body weight for men = height (cm) -100; for women = height (cm) -105.

Proper body weight is the estimated body weight that is associated with the longest life expectancy and with the greatest health. The conformity of body weight to proper is most often assessed using the body mass index (BMI), or the Quetelet index.

BMI = body weight (kg) : height (in meters) squared.

For example, your weight is 60 kg with a height of 160 cm

BMI= 60 kg : (1.6 m x 1.6 m) = 23.4

With an increase in BMI, the risk of developing concomitant diseases increases (see the table).

Classification of overweight and obesity (WHO 1998) 

Depending on the excess of the optimal body weight , 4 degrees of obesity are classified:

• I degree – for 15-29%;
• II degree – by 30-49%;
• III degree – by 50-99%;
• IV degree – 100% or more.

With a body mass index of 25-29, initial develops, with 30-39 – clinical (I-II degree), with 40 or more – complicated forms of obesity (III degree). With the growth of the index, the risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases increases. It becomes extremely dangerous at an index of 40 and above.

At the same time, the risk of complications, especially cardiovascular and metabolic, depends not only on the degree of obesity, but also on its type (localization of fat deposits). There are two types of obesity: abdominal upper, or male type ("apple"), and lower, female type ("pear"). Abdominal obesity is characterized by the deposition of adipose tissue in the upper part of the trunk and abdomen. It is associated with a genetic predisposition, hormonal background and other factors, can be formed in both men and women.

With this type of obesity, metabolic disorders occur more often (metabolic syndrome, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia – increased blood sugar). Tissues, skeletal muscles and the liver poorly absorb glucose that accumulates in the blood, and synthesize fatty acids from it in large quantities, and then fats. This leads to an increase in insulin production. Thus, the level of glucose, insulin and fats in the blood increases. Fats are deposited in the body, which leads to an abdominal form of obesity, which is especially dangerous for the cardiovascular system.

One of the key parameters of abdominal obesity is the waist circumference. The upper value of the indicator for men is 102 centimeters, and for women this figure is 88 centimeters with ideal parameters less than 94 centimeters and less than 80 centimeters, respectively. 

Female obesity is associated with the deposition of fat in the lower part of the body (thigh, lower leg). Muscle development is weak. Typical complications of this type of obesity are degenerative changes in the musculoskeletal system, diseases of the pelvic organs.

There are a number of reasons that most often lead to the appearance of excess adipose tissue.

• Excess food. In more than 60% of cases, overeating leads to excess weight, or the discrepancy between the volume and calorie content of food to our energy consumption. This happens when a person does not move much, but eats "for two" or eats high-calorie foods. In such cases, the weight is adjusted by diet and a change in the usual rhythm of life.
• Heredity, family traditions. Doctors assign a certain place in the development of obesity to heredity, although it is believed that a genetically determined predisposition manifests itself only with the habit of excessive nutrition, traditional for families where there are already "big" people. And this means that a big role is played not so much by genes as by family traditions. For example, everyone knows such families well, where the "norm" is not a small or even an average portion of food, flavored with all sorts of goodies and pickles.
• Violations of vital processes in the body. They are the cause of excess weight in about 40% of cases and in turn provoke the development of other diseases. These are the so-called secondary disorders of fat metabolism, which usually accompany various endocrine disruptions. In this case, it is impossible to solve the problem only by changing the diet, at the same time, effective treatment of the underlying disease often leads to normalization of weight.

Feel the lightness!In order to prevent obesity, regardless of the cause of the problem, it is worth following simple rules.

• Meals should be frequent (5-6 times a day) and fractional (in small portions). Don't skip breakfast. Eat more low-fat dairy products and plant foods, exclude high-fat foods, fried, spicy, spicy dishes, fast food from the diet. Switch from a high-calorie diet to a low-calorie one, do not eat at night. Forget about snacks between main meals. 1-2 times a week, under the supervision of a doctor, spend fasting days.
• Daily sports activities. No matter where they take place, the choice is yours. Such workouts will not only help you lose extra pounds, but also charge you with energy for the whole day. Start the day with restorative exercises, gradually increasing the load. Stick to the most comfortable rhythm and do not give up positions. The loads should be regular, and the results should not be fast, but stable.
• Work out your own weight loss system together with a nutritionist. Make it a rule to keep track of any positive changes – rejoice in your successes, write down what helped you achieve the result.

And, of course, the psychological attitude is important here. You have to believe in yourself, and then the fight against excess weight will not be so difficult – you will only need to make a little effort to look and feel your best!

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru16.08.2012