Considered a life style problem once, obesity is now classified as disease growing by frightening proportions

Obesity, in simple terms, refers to having a high proportion of body fat. Though fat is essential for storing energy, and insulating the body, beyond a certain point it starts interfering with an individuals health and for this reason, it becomes much more than a cosmetic concern.

International guidelines classify a person with a body mass index (the ratio of the weight in kilograms to the height in meters squared) between 25 and 30 as overweight, and greater than 30 as obese.

Obesity is the second leading cause of preventable death (after smoking), and is associated with various chronic diseases like type II diabetes, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, arthritis and gallstones. Certain cancers – colon, rectum and prostate in men; uterus, biliary tract, breast and ovary in women – are more prevalent in the obese.

The fundamental cause of obesity and over weight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended. How ever, a shift in diet towards increases intake of energy dense foods high on fat and sugars but low in vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients is also responsible. Decreased physical activity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of our works, convenient modes of transportation and increasing urbanization also add to the reasons.

Genetics: Though genetic makeup doesn’t guarantee that you will be obese or not, your genes do affect the amount of body fat you store and how that fat is distributed. Your genes play a role in how efficiently your body can convert food into energy and how the body can burns calories during exercises.

Family History: If either of your parents is obese, it puts you at a greater risk. This might occur due to shared genes or a shared environment, which encourages high calorie foods.

Age: Older people are at a greater risk of being obese, as they tend to be less active. Also, the amount of muscles in the body tends to decrease with age, which consequently leads to a decrease in metabolism. All this lowers the calorie requirement. In such case, calorie rich foods also lead to weight gain.

Sex: Women are more likely to be obese than are men as they have less muscle mass and tend to burn fewer calories at rest than men do.

Certain Medications: Corticosteroids and tricyclic antidepressants, in particular, can lead to weight gain. Medication for high blood pressure and antipsychotic medications can also do so.

Medical Problems: Sometimes, obesity is traced to a medical cause, such as low thyroid function or excess production of hormones by the adrenal glands (Cushing’s syndrome). Medical problems like arthritis can lead to decreased activity, which may result in weight gain.

Lifestyle Changes recommended for obesity

• Avoid eating excess sweets and salt. Have low fat dairy products.
• Consume non-vegetarian food like chicken, red meats and fish in moderate quantity.
• Remove fat from meat and skin from chicken.
• Use a non-stick pan for cooking to avoid excess oil.
• Roasts grill or bake food, instead of frying it. Vegetables can be steamed or boiled.
• Avoid sleeping in daytime.
• Do any form of mild exercise including brisk walking, running or swimming everyday.
• Shun alcoholic drinks.
• Avoid following up meals with water and aerated drinks.

Ayurvedic Ways

According to Ayurvedic, obesity referred to as Stoulya occurs due to an imbalance as Vata, Pita or Kapha, the doshas. First analyse causative factors. The reasons could typically range from unhealthy food habits, sedentary lifestyle, heavy body frame or heredity to more medical one like hypothyroidism or any other hormonal imbalance. Following the analysis, weight loss plan including therapies, diet regulations, exercise and medication is then chalked out.

A set of appropriate Panchakarma treatments are will be given depending on there individual requirements. Starting with Dhyanamladhara. In this process warm medicated oil is massaged in opposite direction of hair follicles. This increases blood circulation and metabolism and helps combat the problem of water retention in the body.

Yogic Cures

Obesity in yoga is not just referred to in context of the physical body, but all aspects of our being. For obese, the aim of yoga is not shedding the kilos, this is bound to happen as a outcome of increased self-awareness. In therapeutic yoga, it is not just the techniques that are important, but also the attitude with which obese carried and how disciplined and regular with the regime.

Pranayam in combination with asanas namely Pawanamuktasana (Wind liberating pose), Utthanpadasana (raised leg pose), Chakra Padasana (leg rotation), Pada Sanchalanasana (bicycling), Naukasana (boat pose), Chakki Chalanasana (churning the mill), Udarakarshanasana (sleeping abdominal stretch pose) and Gatyatmak Meru Vakrasana (dynamic spinal twist).

Techno fixes for Obesity

The concept of surgery for obesity is not new. The last resort for treating the problem, it has become quite common these days. The surgeries are generally priced in the range of $4500 to $8000 (INR 2 to 4 lacks) and are extremely effective.

Weight loss surgery falls into three main categories. The first being Malabsorption surgery based upon the principal of allowing the patient to continue to eat normally and then rerouting food through the digestive system so that the body is able to absorb only a small fraction of the calorific value of the food eaten. The second is referred to as Gastric Restrictive Surgery in which the size of the stomach is reduced. The third category of surgery is simply a combination of the first two, providing for both a restricted intake and poor calorific absorption. The surgical methods however are only adopted in case of a Body mass index (BMI) more than 40.