What is Obesity?

According to the definition, obesity is the technical term for severe overweight or pathological overweight, also known as obesity or obesity. The meaning comes from the Latin term "adeps", which translates as "the fat". According to the treatment guidelines, obesity is a "chronic disease".

If you consume more energy in the form of food in the long term than you can burn off through exercise, you will become overweight or obese. Hormonal or genetic factors can also lead to pathological obesity (more information in the section " Obesity: Causes & Risk Factors "). The point at which doctors start talking about the diagnosis of obesity depends on the body mass index (BMI) . The BMI is a guideline that puts body weight in relation to body size. It is calculate as follows : body weight in kg / (height in m) ². A person who is 1.75 meters tall and weighs 100 kilograms would have a BMI of 32.7 and thus grade 1 obesity.

Depending on the BMI, doctors differentiate between obesity 1, obesity 2 and obesity 3. From when the three different obesity levels begin, you can see in this table:

With this definition of obesity, doctors do not differentiate more precisely according to gender - the same classification applies to men and women.

The main symptom of obesity is being very overweight, which can be very detrimental to health . There are also some side effects that can be traced back to being overweight - such as problems in everyday life . Those affected lack stamina, become short of breath, tire quickly or sweat profusely. If you are less overweight, these signs occur when the person is doing physical activity - for example, walking up stairs or quickly running to the bus. If you are very overweight, the symptoms can also occur when you get up, tie your shoes or walk.

Many of those affected also struggle with stigmatization from their environment. Obesity also increases the risk of numerous diseases (see the chapter “ Obesity: Consequences ”).

Obesity: Treatment

The goal of obesity therapy is always that the patient lose weight sustainably. That means they shouldn't just lose weight . It is just as important that you then maintain the reduced body weight. Seen in this way, obesity cannot be cured with a single therapy.

There are many different therapeutic approaches available to doctors and patients to treat obesity. Often several are used at the same time and coordinated with one another. The basis is usually a mix of nutrition therapy, exercise therapy and behavior therapy - a combination of all three approaches has proven to be more effective than pursuing one of the approaches alone. In addition to this combination approach, surgery or certain medications can also be considered for some sufferers .

Obesity: OP

A prerequisite for an operation as part of obesity therapy is that nutritional therapy, exercise therapy and behavioral therapy have not helped you lose weight for at least six months.

There are different type of surgery that can be used in the case of obesity. Often a stomach reduction is the goal. Doctors can put a gastric band around the stomach, for example. This divides the stomach into a small forestomach and the larger rest. If the first, smaller part fills up while eating, a feeling of hunger sets in early on.

Alternatively, the entire stomach can also be made smaller. A gastric bypass is often an option. The stomach is re-divided so that food only gets into a small front pocket and most of the stomach does not pass through. As a result, those who have been operated on feel full more quickly.

Obesity: medication

Medicines are also occasionally used to treat obesity. However, only when weight loss through diet therapy, exercise therapy, and behavior therapy has failed. The drugs are supposed to curb the appetite , but also have side effects.

Only a few drugs are approve for the treatment of obesity in Germany. Because of possible side effects, those affected should in any case discuss exactly what they are taking for obesity with their doctor.

Diet for obesity

A change in diet is an essential part of obesity that can contribute to weight loss. In the best case scenario, those affected receive individual nutritional advice . In this way you can analyze your personal eating habits and check where you can change something. A new nutrition plan should always fit the circumstances (everyday life, job, etc.) so that those affected can implement it.

In order to lose weight, the goal is always that the body uses more energy than it absorbs. According to the treatment guidelines, doctors should try to ensure that obese patients consume about 500 kcal less per day. Affected people manage this by consuming less fat, sugar / carbohydrates .

Behavioral Therapy Obesity

Behavioral therapy can help obese people restructure their everyday lives. It is often difficult to change common behaviors - for example, to break the negative spiral when someone eats after setbacks, negative thoughts or frustration in order to feel better (for a short time) , but then increases, feels worse again and again begins to eat.

In behavior therapy, the person concerned analyzes their own behavior together with the therapist (alone or in groups). Both discuss negative thoughts, deal intensively with critical situations, practice problem-solving strategies, agree on common treatment goals and possible rewards if the goals are achieved.

Exercise Therapy Obesity

Moving burns more energy than not moving. This is why exercise, when possible, is an important part of obesity therapy. It doesn't always have to be endurance sport. Instead of exercising, it can help to take the stairs instead of the elevator or ride a bike instead of the car. You can also discuss with your doctor which sports you can do despite your obesity. The World Health Organization (WHO) regards 150 minutes of endurance sports per week as optimal for health .