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The Disease Called ‘Obesity’

Gone are the days when fat belly stood for good health. Today, obesity is regarded as a disease. Research data reveal that 25% of the European population is overweight. It is an even uglier picture in American where 50% of the people are overweight. No such study has ever been conducted in Nepal and it is anyone’s guess where we stand on the obesity scale. However, thanks mainly to television, the Nepali people are beginning to realize the importance of regular exercise and also the fact that a moment on the lips is a lifetime on the hips

Obesity has been prevalent in various societies for thousands of years. Statues of obese Stone Age humans have been unearthed and evidence of obesity in Egyptian monuments and Greek sculptures are also available.

What causes obesity is a very common question. Basically, people gain weight because there is an imbalance between calorie intake and calorie expenditure. In other words, individuals consume more calories than they expend (positive calorie balance). A positive calorie balance of just 300 calories a day can result in 1 kg gain in body weight in 25 days. Continual positive calorie balance world result in approximately 13 kg of weight gain per year.

So is it a matter of consuming too many calories or a problem of expending too little energy? Data from the US indicate that Americans are eating the same amount of calories – or even less – than they did at the turn of the 20th century, while at the same time obesity has more than doubled. Thus it appears that decrease in calorie expenditure is the crux of the problem.

The diet we take is also a factor. For example, Americans derive 35% of their nutritional energy from fat and 25% from sugar. Fast food establishments are becoming more and more popular around the world and so is the kind of diet.

Genes could also be a contributory factor. Studies have revealed that when one or both parents are obeses, chances of the child becoming obese increase markedly – 40% if one parent is obese, 80% if both are obese.

Weight reducing essentially comes about by increasing calorie deficit and allowing the energy needs of the body to be derived from endogenous fat stores. There are several ways of achieving this including:

- Increasing calorie expenditure by increasing exercise

- Decreasing calorie intake through dietary restrictions

- Reduction of digestion

Obesity is indeed a true disease and not a temporary condition like cold or flu. It could in fact give rise to diabetes, cancer, gall bladder disease and pulmonary disease.

It is estimated that Americans spend other US$ 30 billion a year on diet books, exercise tapes and other weight – loss aids. Everyone is looking for the magic pill that will cure obesity. Perhaps it will be available in the future, as of now it does not exit. And the most prudent approach and the one with least amount of risks would certainly be dietary restrictions and increased physical activity.

-By: N. S.
(Based on Robert N. Girandola’s story in Asia Fit magazine)

In the 20th century, the incidence of obesity has increased to a remarkable extent. In Europe, over the past 25 years, obesity has risen from 10 to 20 percent for men and from 10 to 25 percent for women. The greatest increment has been in US where obesity has doubled since 1980. In France, Germany, Italy and the UK, at least 25% of all individuals are overweight. Figures in Spain are close to US levels with over 50% of the population overweight. Data also shows an increase in obesity in Asia. In Japan, while the number of obese men has doubled since 1982, the number has remained constant in women. In China, where incidence of obesity is low, the obesity rate has doubled for both men and women in the last 15 years. Recent research has shown that children in Singapore and Hong Kong have become more obese over the last 10 to 15 years.