Fat, chubby, or a little bit of everything, a bit flabby, or maybe a bit too much. These are descriptions or expressions that we refer to a person who is fat or overweight. But the more alarming issue is when someone goes beyond the overweight status and be called "obese".
The more prominent type of obesity is central obesity or abdominal obesity.
"Nearly four out of ten people will become obese within 5 years if they keep packing on pounds at the current rate. 31% or about 59 million people are obese, which is defined roughly over 30 or more pounds over a healthy weight. Almost 65% are either obese or overweight, 10 to 30 pounds over a healthy weight, which increases their chances of developing diabetes, heart disease, some types of cancer and a host of other health problems." as stated by Anne Collins.
"Abdominal obesity" is defined as the accumulation of visceral fat which contributes to the increase in waist size. Visceral fat means the fat tissues found deeper in the peritoneal cavity where the internal organs are located such as the small and large intestines, and the kidneys as examples. They are different from the muscular fat that is located between the muscles. Breaking down these layers and layers of adipose tissue will take days and months of exercise and proper diet.
There is no exact confirmed cause of the obesity factor but experts say that this is due to a net energy imbalance where in the person consumes more calories than he can use, or discard through voiding or elimination. Others attribute it to heredity or genetic factors. There is also the evidence of overeating while having a sedentary lifestyle. A victim of Cushing's syndrome is also a target of obesity.
Health Dangers:
- greatly increases the risks of heart disease
-hypertension
-insulin resistance
-contributes to acquiring diabetes mellitus type 2
-symptoms of metabolic syndrome
-lipodystrophies
-obesity inherited through the use of protease inhibitors,an anti AIDS drug
-dyslipidemia
-glucose intolerance
-Cushing's syndrome common in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
The Relationship between Abdominal obesity and Diabetes:
According to research, the adipokines, a group of hormones secreted by the adipose/fat tissues, is said to impair the absorption of sugar thus it renders the glucose useless, and causes the glucose to remain in the bloodstream.
How to Know if you are obese?
There is a formula that we call waist-hip ratio. It is the waist's circumference divided by 0.9 in men and 0.85 in women. The result is your BMI (body mass index) or simply saying, the ratio of weight over the height. Although it does not measure directly the percentage of body fat, it is a useful tool in determining proportionate weight and height or any abnormalities like being overweight. If you fall under 35, then you are prone to obesity or are already obese. Optimal BMI range is 20-25. Females, during their puberty stage, their fat cells are evenly distributed in the buttocks, thighs, and hips. This distribution is strongly influenced by the hormone estrogen. When they reach the point of menopause, the estrogen levels decline until the ovaries stop secreting the hormone. Because of this event, the fat tissues then go to the waist which later on, settles in the belly and contributes to abdominal obesity.
Prevention and Treatment options?
There is a medication named thiazolidinediones which, although has a weight gaining side effect, the pathological development of abdominal fat is significantly reduced. Doctors also prescribe Orlistat or more popularly known in our country as Xenical. This drug binds with the fat cells and helps to eliminate it through elimination. For severe cases of abdominal obesity, people resort to surgery such as Bariatric surgery and or liposuction.
But one of the preventions, which I believe, is proper diet, no overeating, and doing regular exercise. You can tailor your own exercise needs and even best to consult a dietitian or nutritionist for that matter. So that's it, I have shown to you a glimpse of this alarming truth.
Help me inform everyone about this article so that we can stop the deadly abdominal obesity. Have a peaceful and a healthy day ahead!
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