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Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems. Obesity increases the likelihood of various diseases, particularly heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breathing difficulties during sleep, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.
The primary treatment for obesity is dieting and physical exercise. Obesity is a leading preventable cause of death worldwide, with increasing prevalence in adults and children, and authorities view it as one of the most serious public health problems of the 21st century. In children, a healthy weight varies with age and sex. Obesity in children and adolescents is defined not as an absolute number, but in relation to a historical normal group, such that obesity is a BMI greater than the 95th percentile.
Obesity increases the risk of many physical and mental conditions. Obesity occurs when a person has too much body fat. A person has traditionally been considered to be obese if they are more than 20 percent over their ideal weight. That ideal weight must take into account the person's height, age, sex, and build. The BMI (body mass index), a key index for relating body weight to height, is a person's weight in kilograms (kg) divided by their height in meters (m)squared. Since the BMI describes the body weight relative to height, it correlates strongly (in adults) with the total body fat content. Some very muscular people may have a high BMI without undue health risks.
Obesity is caused by a variety of factors, all of which result in an excess of caloric intake relative to the body's expenditure of energy (calories) at rest, during activity, and, in childhood and adolescence, for growth. Calorie intake in excess of these needs is converted to fat. Less than 2 percent of obesity in childhood is due to endocrinologic conditions, such as thyroid disease.
Obesity Definition
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems. Obesity increases the likelihood of various diseases, particularly heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breathing difficulties during sleep, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.
The primary treatment for obesity is dieting and physical exercise. Obesity is a leading preventable cause of death worldwide, with increasing prevalence in adults and children, and authorities view it as one of the most serious public health problems of the 21st century. In children, a healthy weight varies with age and sex. Obesity in children and adolescents is defined not as an absolute number, but in relation to a historical normal group, such that obesity is a BMI greater than the 95th percentile.
Obesity increases the risk of many physical and mental conditions. Obesity occurs when a person has too much body fat. A person has traditionally been considered to be obese if they are more than 20 percent over their ideal weight. That ideal weight must take into account the person's height, age, sex, and build. The BMI (body mass index), a key index for relating body weight to height, is a person's weight in kilograms (kg) divided by their height in meters (m)squared. Since the BMI describes the body weight relative to height, it correlates strongly (in adults) with the total body fat content. Some very muscular people may have a high BMI without undue health risks.
Obesity is caused by a variety of factors, all of which result in an excess of caloric intake relative to the body's expenditure of energy (calories) at rest, during activity, and, in childhood and adolescence, for growth. Calorie intake in excess of these needs is converted to fat. Less than 2 percent of obesity in childhood is due to endocrinologic conditions, such as thyroid disease.
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