0_Wizard
I'm always surprised at how many people suffer from obesity in the US. It's so unhealthy to carry all that extra body fat!
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have a negative effect on health.
chosen_Obesity_0
Obesity
chosen_topic_0_Obesity
Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have a negative effect on health. People are generally considered obese when their body mass index (BMI), a measurement obtained by dividing a person's weight by the square of the person's height, is over , with the range defined as overweight. Some East Asian countries use lower values. Obesity increases the likelihood of various diseases and conditions, particularly cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea, certain types of cancer, osteoarthritis and depression. Obesity is most commonly caused by a combination of excessive food intake, lack of physical activity, and genetic susceptibility.
Childhood obesity
Childhood obesity is a condition where excess body fat negatively affects a child's health or well-being. As methods to determine body fat directly are difficult, the diagnosis of obesity is often based on BMI. Due to the rising prevalence of obesity in children and its many adverse health effects it is being recognized as a serious public health concern. The term overweight rather than obese is often used in children as it is less stigmatizing. Body mass index (BMI) is acceptable for determining obesity for children two years of age and older. It is determined by the ratio of weight to height.
Classification of obesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it has an adverse effect on health. Relative weight and body mass index (BMI) are nearly identical and are reasonable estimates of body fatness as measured by percentage body fat. However, BMI does not account for the wide variation in body fat distribution, and may not correspond to the same degree of fatness or associated health risk in different individuals and populations. Other measurements of fat distribution include the waist–hip ratio and body fat percentage. Normal weight obesity is a condition of having normal body weight, but high body fat percentages with the same health risks of obesity.
Body fat percentage
The body fat percentage (BFP) of a human or other living being is the total mass of fat divided by total body mass, times 100; body fat includes essential body fat and storage body fat. Essential body fat is necessary to maintain life and reproductive functions. The percentage of essential body fat for women is greater than that for men, due to the demands of childbearing and other hormonal functions. The percentage of essential fat is 2–5% in men, and 10–13% in women (referenced through NASM). Storage body fat consists of fat accumulation in adipose tissue, part of which protects internal organs in the chest and abdomen.
Body mass index
The body mass index (BMI) or Quetelet index is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of an individual. The BMI is defined as the body mass divided by the square of the body height, and is universally expressed in units of kg/m, resulting from mass in kilograms and height in metres. The BMI may also be determined using a table or chart which displays BMI as a function of mass and height using contour lines or colours for different BMI categories, and which may use other units of measurement (converted to metric units for the calculation). The BMI is an attempt to quantify the amount of tissue mass (muscle, fat, and bone) in an individual, and then categorize that person as "underweight", "normal weight", "overweight", or "obese" based on that value.
Leptin
Leptin (from Greek λεπτός "leptos", "thin"), "“the hormone of energy expenditure”", is a hormone predominantly made by adipose cells that helps to regulate energy balance by inhibiting hunger. Leptin is opposed by the actions of the hormone ghrelin, the "hunger hormone". Both hormones act on receptors in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus to regulate appetite to achieve energy homeostasis. In obesity, similar to resistance of insulin in type 2 diabetes, a decreased sensitivity to leptin occurs, resulting in an inability to detect satiety despite high energy stores. Although regulation of fat stores is deemed to be the primary function of leptin, it also plays a role in other physiological processes, as evidenced by its multiple sites of synthesis other than fat cells, and the multiple cell types beside hypothalamic cells that have leptin receptors.
Abdominal obesity
Abdominal obesity, also known as central obesity, is when excessive abdominal fat around the stomach and abdomen has built up to the extent that it is likely to have a negative impact on health. There is a strong correlation between central obesity and cardiovascular disease. Abdominal obesity is not confined only to the elderly and obese subjects. Abdominal obesity has been linked to Alzheimer's disease as well as other metabolic and vascular diseases. Visceral and central abdominal fat and waist circumference show a strong association with type 2 diabetes. Visceral fat, also known as organ fat or "intra-abdominal fat", is located inside the peritoneal cavity, packed in between internal organs and torso, as opposed to subcutaneous fat, which is found underneath the skin, and intramuscular fat, which is found interspersed in skeletal muscle.