Healthcare related topics(Example: MRSA, Obesity, TB) - Essay Example

Obesity Obesity Obesity 2 Obesity is one of the main health problems in the modern world. Because of the advanced facilities and indifferent life styles, compared to ancient people, the modern public experiences lack of physical activities which may be one of the main causes of obesity. This article briefly analyzes the reasons of obesity and possible precautions one can take to avoid obesity.IntroductionObesity or over weight is a condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that health may be negatively affected.

Excessive body weight can cause various diseases such as cardio vascular diseases, diabetes, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis. As a result of obesity the life expectancy of the modern people has been reduced considerably compared to ancient people. Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health. A crude population measure of obesity is the body mass index (BMI), a person’s weight (in kilograms) divided by the square of his or her height (in meters).

A person with a BMI of 30 or more is generally considered obese. A person with a BMI equal to or more than 25 is considered overweight. (Obesity, WHO 2009) “The prevalence of obesity (BMI≥30) continues to be a health concern for adults, children and adolescents in the United States. Data from the most recent NHANES Obesity 3survey1 shows that among adult men the prevalence of obesity was 31.1% in 2003—2004, and 33.3% in 2005—2006, a small but not statistically significant change. Among adult women, the prevalence of obesity in 2003—2004 was 33.

2%, and in 2005—2006 was 35.3%, again a small but not significant change. (Overweight and Obesity,2009) Reasons for obesityLike many other medical conditions, obesity is the result of interplay between genetic and environmental factors. A large number of physical and mental conditions have been cited as reasons for obesity by medical experts. But all medical experts are unanimous in their opinion about the role of excessive calorie consumption and indifferent life styles for the primary cause of obesity.

Excess food consumption may be due to medical or genetic reasons for which treatment is required. Another major reason for obesity is the excess usage of vehicles for travel, mechanized manufacturing and cooking habits, etc. Because of excess reliability on vehicles, people often forgot to walk enough to reduce the fat contents in the body. Human efforts in the house and the society has been reduced considerably because of over dependence of machineries and hence the physical activities which is required to melt the excess fat contents from the body, has been lacking from the daily life.

Insufficient sleep, Hypothyroidism, growth hormone deficiency, eating disorders, increased use of medication; pregnancy at a later age, mating association of heavier people etc are some other reasons of obesity. Obesity 4Treatment or precautions to avoid obesity Dieting and physical exercises are the main treatment for obesity. In some cases sometimes the genetic factors or mental factors can contribute to obesity. In such cases medications may be required to solve the over weight problem. Obese persons found to be less active compared to their same age group counterparts with normal weight.

Over weight persons may experiences problems in their sleeping also. “New research now suggests that even modest weight loss can yield substantial sleep dynamic improvements in severely obese individuals”. (The Obesity Society, 2009) The most effective treatment for obesity is the removal of fat from the body through surgery. But because of high risk factors and cost, doctors may not go for surgery unless all the options are tried and failed. ConclusionObesity is one of the prominent challenges the modern generation is facing as far as human health is concerned.

The changing life habits, genetic and environmental factors are the main causes for obesity. Physical exercises and the consumption of less calorie food habits are the main treatment to avoid obesity. Obesity 5References1. Obesity, WHO- 2009, Retrieved on 22/1/09 2. Overweight and Obesity, January 7, 2009 , Retrieved on 22/1/09 3. The Obesity Society, Retrieved on 22/1/092009