Overweight in the past decade has become a common problem in many countries. Some experts even warn about the obesity epidemic, and statistics show that a growing number of diseases related to being overweight.

Causes

The main reason for obesity - a violation of the energy balance. In normal energy balance of a person consumes as much energy as it spends. If he consumes more than it spends, it will inevitably lead to the emergence of excess weight, and if the opposite happens, he loses weight. Man spends energy not only to move, but also on the process that we almost do not notice - respiration, digestion, and so on. Just calculate how much you spend and expend every day is difficult, and at times the energy balance may be slightly disturbed in one direction or another - this is normal. Excess weight appears only if a person regularly consumes more energy than it is able to spend.

The reasons for the imbalance of power are:

• Sedentary lifestyle - is the scourge of modern humans. We spend in front of screens of computers and televisions enormous amount of time - with their help, we are working, learn, relax, and often communicate with other people. Experts say that the likelihood of obesity is greatest in those who watch television more than two hours a day. Important role played by the fact that modern technology reduces the level of daily physical activities: with washing clothes, washing dishes handle special machine to work and shop, many people travel by car, and the floor in many homes have washing robot vacuum cleaners. Free time, not all people are spending on sports and other hobbies that involve physical activity.
• Habitat, in the broadest sense of the word, also contributes to the appearance of excess weight and obesity. Tight schedule, because of which there is no time to sport, the high cost of training in the gym, the lack of parks or special areas where you can walk or exercise (or a high crime rate, because of which these places are unsafe), the high cost of health food obsessive, omnipresent advertising of food - all these and many other features of modern human environment leads to the fact that even children nowadays often suffer from excess weight.
• Genes and family history. Studies in twin pairs showed that genes have a significant impact on the weight of people. A person close relatives who are overweight, with high probability he is also faced with this problem. Genes affect the way in what quantities and where the person will be deposited fat. In addition, children often adopt the eating habits of their parents. If parents spend the evening absorbing huge quantities of high-calorie foods while watching TV, it is likely that children will spend their leisure time in a similar way.

Other causes of violation of the energy balance can be certain diseases (eg, hypothyroidism Hypothyroidism , Cushing's syndrome, and polycystic ovarian syndrome), taking certain medications (eg, antidepressants, corticosteroids and antiepileptic drugs), cessation of smoking, age-related changes, pregnancy, lack of sleep regularly.

What is dangerous excess weight

Excess weight can lead to such health problems as high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes Type II diabetes: what you should not do if you do not want to worsen its healthy , Cholesterol Cholesterin , Metabolic syndrome, osteoarthritis, reduced fertility, cancer (found that in people with overweight and obese are at increased risk of developing cancer of the colon, breast, endometrial and gallbladder). Moreover, obesity may be associated with the appearance of various psychological problems, such as teenagers, and adults.

How do you know that you are overweight

At the present time to determine the presence of excess weight, as well as for the diagnosis of obesity is commonly used body mass index (BMI). To calculate BMI, a person's weight in kilograms divided by his height in meters squared.

It is normal for a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9. 25-30 - is overweight, 30-30.9 - obesity and a BMI over 40 - a severe form of obesity. Obesity is considered to be any more weight than the norm, even though he does not always have serious consequences for the person, for example, with a BMI of about 26-28 people can live a full life, and a BMI of 30-35 usually appear serious health problems that can significantly reduce quality of life.

Fighting obesity

In general, the fight against obesity - a separate, and a very broad topic, which is not as straightforward as it seems. It is not always enough to start a person eat less and move more, to lose weight. If the appearance of excess weight you have associated with the disease or, or with medication, you must first talk to your doctor.

Adults who are overweight, and it is not caused by any medical reasons, it is recommended as soon as possible to begin to reduce the calorie content of your diet and increase physical activity. It does not matter what kind of diet you stick and what sport prefer; most importantly, that you are constantly spending more calories than you consume.

Weight loss even at 5% to 10% significantly reduces the probability of developing many cardiovascular diseases. Try not to lose weight by more than 0.5-0.8 kg per week - so health risks would be minimal.

Patients with obesity, especially - with severe obesity, it is better to lose weight under the supervision of a physician: this will help to avoid some health problems.

If you are overweight there is a child or a teenager, it is generally recommended to just start to eat right and exercise regularly. Low-calorie diets for weight control among minors should be avoided. If the child obesity and / or have health problems related to excess weight, you need to see a doctor.