It’s easy to ignore the health hazards of being obese. But it’s worth knowing the facts associated with carrying around significant amounts of extra weight. Did you know that obesity is one of the leading causes of death throughout the world, and that it kills three times more people than malnutrition? Here are seven of the most serious health conditions linked to obesity:
Type 2 diabetes: The risk of developing this serious disorder rises dramatically when you are severely overweight. According to the World Health Organisation, obesity is the cause of around 70% of type 2 diabetes in men and 75% of all cases in women.
Cardiovascular disease: Your waistline might make your BP look bad. Being obese is linked with having a high blood pressure and raised cholesterol. Your heart has to work harder to pump blood around a larger body. As a result, obesity doubles your risk of a heart attack or stroke. According to a Harvard Medical School report, controlling your weight is an important way to lower stroke risk. Excess pounds strain the entire circulatory system and can lead to other health conditions, including high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.
Osteoarthritis: Carrying excess pounds puts an increased strain on your joints, especially your knees and hips. This can lead to osteoarthritis, an inflammatory and degenerative condition in which the cartilage and bone within a joint wears away.
Cancer: Being obese is linked with an increased risk of developing cancer, especially those affecting the oesophagus, pancreas, bowel, breast (after menopause), endometrium (womb lining), kidney, thyroid and gallbladder. According to the National Cancer Institute in the US, for some types of cancer, obesity is thought to account for 40% of cases. A 2016 report published in the journal ‘Cell Metabolism’ titled ‘Obesity and Cancer: The Oil that Feeds the Flame’, says, “In the past decade, cancer has joined the list of chronic debilitating diseases whose risk is substantially increased by hypernutrition.”
Respiratory disease: Your risk of developing lung conditions such as asthma increase when you are overweight. Obstructive sleep apnea, where breathing is interrupted when sleeping, is also common, leading to disturbed, restless sleep, tiredness and an increased risk of daytime accidents as a result.
Reproductive and urinary problems: Women who are obese are more likely to experience difficulty conceiving and health issues during pregnancy, as well as problems with menstruation. The risk of urinary leakage as a result of stress incontinence also rises with weight in women, while overweight men are more likely to experience erectile dysfunction.
Liver disease: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) occurs when fats build up in liver cells. This leads to inflammation and can lead to fibrosis, cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer if not recognised and treated.
Knowing the health risks associated with being obese might be just the motivational trigger you need to start losing weight slowly and healthily. Losing one pound per week may not seem like much, but think how much that adds up to over six months or even a year! Awareness is one of the best ways to improve your physical and psychological health.
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