World Health Organization (WHO); It defines obesity as abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat in adipose tissues to the extent that it impairs health. Normally, 15-18% of body weight in an 18-year-old man and 20-25% in women is fat tissue. If these rates are more than 25% in men and 30-35% in women, it causes obesity. While obesity is common in low-income segments in industrialized countries, it is more common in middle and high-income segments in developing countries. It is more common in cities and is higher in women than men. As a result of studies conducted on the prevalence of obesity in our country, we see that the prevalence of overweight and obesity, which was around 30% in the early 2000s, has increased up to 50% in some regions today. In America, it is predicted that 84% of the entire population will be overweight or obese in 2014. As in adults, obesity in the childhood age group has increased every year and reached frightening levels. Sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical activity (it has been determined that spending more than 2 hours a day in front of the TV and computer increases overweight by 52% and obesity by 28%), excessive consumption of complex carbohydrates and fatty foods are the most important reasons for the increase in obesity. In the formation of obesity; In addition to genetic and environmental factors, some medications and hormonal reasons (such as underactivity of the thyroid gland - hypothyroidism, Cushing's syndrome, polycystic ovary syndrome, growth hormone deficiency) may also be factors.
It is very difficult to understand whether a person is overweight or obese. A simple formula can be used. If we divide our body weight by the square of our height, we can evaluate our weight according to the result. If the result is between 25-30, we understand that we are overweight. If the result is above 30, this indicates that we are obese. For example, if we are 1.75 m tall and weigh 82 kilos; 82/1,722=27.7, which shows that we are overweight and we need to be careful.
Obesity; It may cause an increase in diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, deterioration in lung functions, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis and gout, and an increase in the incidence of some cancers. When approaching an obese patient, the first priority is eating habits. Health and lifestyle should be improved, an exercise program should be made, if there is a hormonal disease, it should be treated, psychosocial and environmental factors should be corrected, genetic factors should be eliminated as much as possible, and a very restrictive diet should not be applied. Under the age of two, fat restrictions should not be made and sweet dishes should not be completely eliminated from the diet. The habit of eating slowly should be encouraged, the whole family should eat together as much as possible, the child's participation should be ensured in shopping and meal preparation, snacking should be avoided, eating and snacking while watching TV should be prevented, food should not be used as rewards and punishments, and a balanced meal should be provided outside the home as much as possible. If necessary, changes should be made in the family's eating and exercise habits, behavioral changes should be carefully observed, and sedentary lifestyles should be prevented.
Read: 0
