What is Obesity?

In general terms a person can be considered obese if their weight is beyond usual levels, such that they have a very high amount of body fat in relation to lean body mass; or more scientifically, as defined by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, "an excessively high amount of body fat or adipose tissue in relation to lean body mass." For those familiar with the Body Mass Index (BMI), individuals with a BMI of 30 or above are considered to be obese. Worse yet, those with a BMI of 40 or above are considered to be morbidly obese, literally meaning the excess weight they're carrying is life-threating.

Obesity is a serious health problem in the United States and much of the western world. In fact since the last study it's estimated that 65% of the American population is overweight or obese. Putting much of the population at increased risk of serious health disorders attributed to obesity, including: stroke, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and some cancers. In fact obesity is already the 2nd highest leading factor in preventable deaths, second only to smoking cigarettes.

Unfortunately the number of obese individuals continues to increase year after year. While there are those who have a predisposition to being obese, the majority of cases are attributed to our societies generally low activity level and high calorie diets. Managing obesity as a society is going to take a significant change in attitude toward physical exercise and reducing calorie intake. But don't despair, for those individuals committed to losing weight through physical exercise and a healthy diet - ideal weight can be achieved!

October 28, 2004