Is Obesity a Disease?
Recent research has shown that obesity isn’t just an excess of adipose tissue or a lack of willpower. Obesity is a complex, multifactorial, chronic disorder involving genetic, environmental (social and cultural), behavioral, psychological, physiological and metabolic components.
Once a person develops obesity, the body has adapted to identify this higher weight as normal, establishing and then attempting to maintain a metabolic “set-point. For patients with obesity, the result can be a prolonged battle with their own bodily regulatory mechanisms — a vicious cycle in need of intervention.
Many serious illnesses are associated with obesity. Some of them are:
Type 2 Diabetes, High Blood Pressure (Hypertension), High cholesterol, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Osteoarthritis, Gallstones, Fatty Liver disease, Coronary Artery Disease( heart disease), Stroke, Cancer such as breast, pancreatic, endometrial etc, Infertility, Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)Depression, Migraines, Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD),Urinary Stress incontinence ( leakage of urine when you cough or sneeze) etc.