General Aspects
Obesity is defined as an increase in weight due to the storage of fat, generally caused by an imbalance between the energy that the organism receives from consuming food and the energy that it loses from physical activity and basic metabolic processes.
The changes that occur in the body as a consequence of an increase in weight mean that people undergo metabolic and functional alterations that bring on diseases such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension (high blood pressure), increase in blood cholesterol, heart attacks, lung problems and premature death, as a result of these and other diseases. Obesity is one of the conditions that has shown the greatest increase around the world. The scale of the problem has led the World Health Organization to consider obesity as a public health problem. It is currently the second highest cause of death after smoking.
The World Health Organization says that in 2000 there were 330 million obese adults around the world.
There is no doubt that obesity is the most common nutritional problem. In the United States of America, approximately 33% of adults are obese and the effect of obesity on people's health is so broad and the gravity of its complications so high, that the expenses directly attributable to obesity in the U.S.A. amount to approximately 68 billion dollars a year, in addition to the 30 billion dollars spent on weight-watching programs and special diets.
Twelve surveys have been conducted in Mexico that give us a general perspective of the problem. For example, the National Chronic Disease Survey (Encuesta Nacional de Enfermedades Crónicas) and the Urban Diet and Nutrition Survey (Encuesta Urbana de Alimentación y Nutrición) conducted in Mexico City reveal that around 60% of the Mexican population is overweight to some extent and that 49% of men are obese and 44% of women.
Obesity should be considered as a disease and not a consequence of a lack of will or character. Looked at in this way, people who suffer from this condition must admit that its treatment requires perseverance, time, dedication, and that the objective is not healing, but controlling the condition. Therefore, as in the case of many other chronic conditions, suspending treatment will only cause the condition to reoccur.
Although obesity on its own increases the risk of complications, not all obese patients are subject to the same risks. Research has shown that people who accumulate more fat in the abdomen are subject to greater risk than people who accumulate fat in their hips and thighs. In general, men are more prone to accumulate fat in the abdomen and, therefore, it has been called android; as women are more prone to the latter, it has been called gynecoid. An easy way of remembering this is to think of android obesity as an apple and gynecoid obesity as a pear.
You may find the following table useful for establishing the extent of your obesity, if any, and your risk, taking into account the extent of your excess weight and the distribution of fat. You also need to calculate your BMI and measure your waist.
You may find the following table useful for establishing the extent of your obesity, if any, and your risk, taking into account the extent of your excess weight and the distribution of fat. You also need to calculate your BMI and measure your waist.
