what is obesity definition? - Obesity is an abnormal condition. It can happen if the body keep more accumulation of body fat. Obesity has been defined as a weight at least twenty percent above the weight corresponding to the lowest death rate for persons of a particular age, gender, and height (ideal weight). Obesity is always associated with increased risk of disability, illness, and even death.
There is a part of medicine that deals with the study and also treatment of obesity. It is known as bariatrics. The Bariatrics has become a separate medical and surgical speciality because obesity has become a major health problem in the United States.
Most of the recent guidelines for obesity use a measurement called BMI (body mass index). The body mass index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to characterize overweight and obesity condition in adults. It is defined as an individual's weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/ m2).
Knowing The Obesity Definition Using Body Mass Index
You can calculate your BMI by yourself. The results of your calculations can be categorized to:
- If your BMI score is less than 18.5, it is within the underweight range.
- If your BMI score is 18.5 to < 25, it is within the normal.
- If your BMI score is 25.0 to < 30, it is within the overweight range.
- If your BMI is score 30.0 or higher, it is within the obese range.
Obesity is usually subdivided into some classes, i.e.:
- Class 1: BMI score of 30 to < 35
- Class 2: BMI score of 35 to < 40
- Class 3: BMI score of 40 or higher. Class 3 obesity is sometimes categorized as severe, or morbidly obesity.
There is another way to find your BMI. You can determine your BMI by looking your height and weight in this BMI Index Chart.
Important Note: You should know that BMI may be used as a screening tool at an individual level, but it can not be used as a diagnostic of the health of a person especially as diagnostic the body fatness. A trained healthcare worker should do some appropriate health assessments to evaluate an individual's health status and risks.
BMI does not assess body fat directly, but the study has shown that BMI is moderately correlated with other direct measures of body fat obtained from bioelectrical impedance, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), skinfold thickness measurements, underwater weighing, and other methods. Furthermore, BMI appears to be strongly correlated with various adverse health outcomes consistent with these more direct measures of body fatness.
The Comparisons or ratio of hip and waist circumference can also show some information about risk factors associated with weight. The higher the ratio, the bigger the chance for weight-associated complications. Calipers can be used to measure skin-fold thickness to determine whether the tissue is muscle or fat (adipose tissue).
Much concern has been issued about the increasing incidence of obesity among American people. Some research has noted an increase from 12% to 18% happening between 1991 and 1998. Another research has actually estimated that a full fifty of all American people are on overweight condition. The World Health Organization terms obesity a worldwide epidemic.
Excessive weight can cause many serious health problems. It may potentially life-threatening problems. The problems including type 2 diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, increased the chance of coronary disease, increased risk for unexplained heart attack, infertility, and also may cause a higher prevalence of colon, prostate, and breast cancer.
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