Obesity is a complex health condition characterized by an accumulation of excess body fat that increases a person's risk for other diseases and health issues. When a person has a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, they are considered obese.
BMI is calculated using a person's weight and height. It approximates body fat and overweight or obese ranges. While not perfect, it is an accessible measurement tool. A normal BMI ranges from 18.5-24.9. Overweight is characterized as a BMI from 25-29.9. Obesity starts at a BMI of 30. From there, it's further classified into Class 1 (BMI 30-34.9), Class 2 (BMI 35-39.9) and Class 3 (BMI 40 ).
What causes obesity?
Obesity is often caused by multiple interrelated factors:
Managing obesity
Losing weight with obesity requires comprehensive lifestyle changes to diet and activity levels. Even a 5-10% reduction in body weight can produce major health benefits. Many find working with weight loss specialists at clinics like Harmony Hormone Therapy to be key. Their personalized programs analyze your unique hormone profile and barriers to fat loss. Then, caregivers provide customized nutrition and fitness guidance, accountability and hormone balancing solutions if warranted. This facilitates healthy, sustainable results over quick fixes.
Health risks
Struggling with excess weight and fat takes a toll on quality of life and elevates dangers like:
The health risks rise in tandem with increasing severity of obesity. Addressing the issue promptly leads to better outcomes long-term.
In summary, obesity represents high levels of unhealthy body fat caused by a variety of influences. A BMI over 30 meets the criteria. Customized lifestyle interventions and possibly hormone optimization from clinics like Harmony Hormone Therapy provide avenues to lose fat and mitigate associated health risks over time through incremental progress. Consistency remains vital when managing this prevalent and serious public health concern.