The health risks

The health risks of obesity increase with its severity. Although being overweight is relatively harmless, being obese or morbidly obese can cause long term health risks and reduce overall life expectancy.

Being obese increases the chance of developing:

    Diabetes
      Having a large amount of excess body fat can cause a build up of
      sugar in your body. This can develop into diabetes, a condition
      where a person's body is unable to control their sugar levels.
      Diabetes is aserious health condition and can increase the risk of
      kidney failure and blindness.

    High blood pressure
      High blood pressure is an increased pressure of the blood in the
      arteries. It is a major factor in heart failure.

    Heart attacks
      Obese people have a high proportion of body fat, and more fat
      deposits in arteries to the heart. This increases the chance of
      having a stroke and heart attack.

    Angina
      Being overweight contributes to angina which is a chest pain
      caused by decreased oxygen to the heart. Angina increases the
      chance of a heart attack and a stroke.

    High cholesterol levels
      Eating too many saturated fats can raise the levels of 'bad'
      cholesterol in your blood. Too much cholesterol in your blood can
      damage your blood vessels and lead to heart disease or a stroke.

Other health risks include the development of:

    Urinary incontinence
      Being overweight increases the pressure on the bladder and
      surrounding muscles. This weakens them and can allow urine to
      leak out when you cough or sneeze.

    Infertility
      Obesity is linked with infertility in both men and women. It has
      been suggested obesity in women creates hormonal imbalances
      andisruption of menstrual cycles. Whereas in men it can result in
      lower levels of the hormone testosterone, a diminished sex drive
      and a reduced ability to produce sperm.

    Osteoarthritis
      The extra weight that is carried on the body puts pressure on the
      joints, especially the knees, ankles and lower back. This can cause
      crippling pain even when walking.

    Asthma or breathing disorders
      Obesity can lead to narrowing of the airway and therefore
      difficulty in breathing. Such difficulty could restrict normal physical
      activity such as walking up stairs.

    Sleep apnoea
      Sleep apnoea is a very serious condition which can affect you
      when you are asleep. It is when you stop breathing during sleep,
      due to the weight of excess fat around the neck.

    Cancer
      In both males and females, obesity increases the risk of
      developing cancer of the large intestine and the rectum. In
      females the risk of cancer of the breast, uterus, cervix and ovary
      is increased.

As well as the medical problems caused by being obese it can also be hugely detrimental to your level of self-esteem, motivation and body image.

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What is Morbid Obesity

What causes morbid obesity

Glossary of Terms

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