Overweight
Being overweight does mean having more body fat than the amount actually needed by the body to function.
A healthy body requires a minimum amount of fat for the proper functioning of the hormonal, reproductive, and immune systems, as thermal insulation, as shock absorption for sensitive areas, and as excess energy for future use. But the accumulation of too much storage fat can impair movement and flexibility, and can alter the appearance of the body.
Being overweight is not the same as being obese.
Obesity is actually a clinical condition featuring a so excessive fat storage amount to be associated with certain health conditions or increased mortality.
The main causes of being overweight include:
- limited exercise and sedentary lifestyle
- overeating
- poor nutrition
- genetic predisposition
- a high glycemic index diet (i.e. a diet that consists of meals that give high postprandial blood sugar)
- hormone imbalances
- metabolic disorders
- an eating disorder
- alcoholism
- stress
- insufficient sleep
- psychotropic medications
- smoking cessation and other stimulant withdrawal.
As well as obesity may be caused by:
- excessive nutrient intake together with sedentary lifestyle
- strees
- insufficient sleep
- genetic abnormalities (such as Prader-Willi syndrome, Bardet-Biedl syndrome, MOMO syndrome, leptin receptor mutations and melanocortin receptor mutations)
- medical illness (such as hypothyroidism, Cushing's syndrome, growth hormone deficiency, etc.) smoking cessation
- certain medications (e.g. steroids, atypical antipsychotics, some fertility medication)
- mental illnesses (chiefly some eating disorders like bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder)
- neurobiological mechanisms
- certain alterations in bacteria colonizing the digestive tract
- social determinants.
Obesity can lead to:
- metabolic syndorme
- diabetes mellitus type 2
- hypertension
- high blood cholesterol.
Obesity is an important risk factor in the development of many disorders, such as:
- Cardiovascular: congestive heart failure, enlarged heart and its associated arrhythmias and dizziness, cor pulmonale, varicose veins, and pulmonary embolism
- Endocrine: polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), menstrual disorders, and infertility
- Gastrointestinal: gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), fatty liver disease, cholelithiasis (gallstones), hernia, and colorectal cancer
- Renal and genitourinary: erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence, chronic renal failure, hypogonadism (male), breast cancer (female), uterine cancer (female)
- Integument (skin and appendages): stretch marks, acanthosis nigricans, lymphedema, cellulitis, carbuncles, intertrigo
- Musculoskeletal: hyperuricemia (which predisposes to gout), immobility, osteoarthritis, low back pain
- Neurologic: stroke, meralgia paresthetica, headache, carpal tunnel syndrome, dementia
- Respiratory: dyspnea, obstructive sleep apnea, hypoventilation syndrome, Pickwickian syndrome, asthma
- Psychological: depression, low self esteem, body dysmorphic disorder, social stigmatization.
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