Obesity: A Growing Concern
Obesity refers to a medical condition where there is an excess accumulation of body fat within the body, thereby, increasing one's body mass index to over 30kg/m2. Today, this health status has become a concern as it has tripled since the year 1975. In fact, the latest statistics by World Health Organization indicate that about 650 million, 13% of people aged 18 suffer from this condition. Additionally, approximately 150 million children and adolescents are obese. Obesity is a dangerous state of health that is caused by energy imbalance between the consumed calories and the ones expended by one body. Obesity mostly leads to numerous adverse health and social-related impacts on the victims because of the excessive weight.
Health Impacts of Obesity
Regarding health, those suffering from obesity are at high risk of contracting cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure and stroke. Such illnesses often come as a result of blocked blood vessels. Those who are obese are faced the risks because they have a lot of fat that could block the arteries, thereby, preventing blood from the smooth flow and eventually forcing the heart to increase its work rate (Amarya, Kalyani, Manisha 65). Also, they often undergo breathing difficulty given the occasionally limited supply of blood in the body that comes about when the fats within the blood vessels forcefully hinder the flow of blood.
Joint Problems and Sleep Apnea
This condition can also cause joint problems and osteoarthritis on the knees and hips given the stress that is placed on such areas by the extra weight. There is also the risk of sleep apnea that results from short temporary moments of stoppage in breathing due to the weighty chest wall that squeezes the lungs (Dawes 65). In such cases, the victims fail to have a sufficient sleep at night and would frequently fall asleep during the day.
Social Impacts of Obesity
Socially, the obese also find it hard to engage in physical activities that require a lot of strength such as outdoor sports because of their substantial body. Besides, it can lead to discrimination of someone due to the physical unattractiveness of the body (Djalalinia et al., 240). Typically, most people value the physical body outlook and would consider those who are obese as individuals who are lazy and not worthy of associating with. This condition also undermines the productivity of individuals especially in employment, thereby leading to other problems such as reduced wage rate among such people by their employers. For instance, those who are obese would work slowly and not for many hours. The society as a whole through the government also incurs many funds in trying to take care of the health needs of the obese in the hospitals (Djalalinia et al., 241). For example, the national government does include the cost of medication that would cover those suffering from the obesity-related illnesses.
In Conclusion
Overall, obesity is a dangerous state of health that is caused by energy imbalance between the consumed calories and the ones expended by one body. This condition mostly leads to numerous negative health and social-related impacts on the victims because of the excessive weight. Healthwise, it results in several cardiovascular diseases that include high blood pressure and stroke, breathing difficulty, joint problems and osteoarthritis, and sleep apnea. On the other hand, the social effects comprise difficulty in engaging outdoor sports, discrimination of the victims, reduces the productivity of individuals and rise on the national health budget.
Works Cited
Amarya, Shilpa, Kalyani Singh, and Manisha Sabharwal. "Health consequences of obesity in the elderly." Journal of Clinical Gerontology and Geriatrics 5.3 (2014): 63-67.
Dawes, Laura. Childhood Obesity in America: Biography of an Epidemic. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London, England: Harvard University Press, 2014. Print.
Djalalinia, Shirin, Mostafa, Qorbani, Niloofar, Peykari, and Roya Kelishandi. "Health impacts of obesity." Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences 31.1 (2015): 239-242.
