Obesity Overview
Obesity Causes or Contributes to Serious Medical Conditions
Obesity is a global health problem affecting over 300 million people, according to the World Health Organization. Obesity causes or contributes to numerous serious medical conditions including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, sleep apnea, and certain types of cancer.
Studies have shown that significant weight loss may reduce or completely reverse these obesity-related diseases. Several major studies published in 2007 and 2008 demonstrated that weight loss surgery leads to improvements in life expectancy and may be significantly better than diet and conventional therapy in curing or improving diabetes.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health has published a guide on the identification, evaluation, and management of obesity in adults, including assessing risk related to various levels of obesity and recommending treatment (The Practical Guide: Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. NIH Publication Number 00-4084. October 2000). Level of obesity is calculated using the body mass index, or BMI. Once a patient knows his or her BMI, they can determine the additional risk of disease and appropriate treatment options.
BMI=Weight (kg)/ Height (m²)
Learn more about calculating your BMI.
Source: The Practical Guide: Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. NIH Publication Number 00-4084. October 2000.
Treatment options offered to patients start with conservative therapies such as diet and exercise, and progress to weight loss drugs or surgery depending on severity of obesity and obesity-related diseases.
Source: The Practical Guide: Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. NIH Publication Number 00-4084. October 2000.
According to NIH, weight loss surgery is an option for patients with clinically severe obesity, i.e. a BMI > 40 or a BMI > 35 with comorbid conditions. Weight loss surgery should be reserved for patients in whom other methods of treatment have failed.
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