obezite

Obesity

Obesity is a disease that occurs due to excess fat accumulation in the body and must be treated. Because obesity does not only concern appearance, it is also a serious health problem due to the diseases it causes.

What is Obesity?

Obesity occurs when the amount of energy taken from food is more than the amount of energy consumed through metabolism and physical activity. Individuals with a body mass index over 35 are defined as obese. Body mass index is calculated by height and weight. It is a value independent of factors such as age and gender.

Obesity is a disease that reduces the quality of life, causes cardiovascular, respiratory, hormonal and digestive system diseases and shortens life expectancy.

Factors Causing Obesity

To put it briefly, obesity is a problem that occurs as a result of disruption of energy balance. Energy balance is disrupted when energy intake is greater than energy consumption. Especially individuals who eat excessively fatty foods cannot achieve the feeling of hunger and have a constant desire to eat. In this case, the individual takes in and stores more energy than necessary.

Another cause of obesity is sedentary life. Especially today, increasing office work and a lifestyle of constantly sitting in front of the computer are another factor that triggers obesity. Genetics also appears as one of the causes of obesity.

The main risk factors that cause overweight and obesity are physical activity, eating habits, increasing age, gender (female), racial reasons, education level, number of births, quitting smoking, alcohol, psychological disorders and metabolic and hormonal disorders.

Diseases Caused by Obesity

Some diseases may occur due to obesity. In this case, when obesity is treated, the disease or illnesses it causes naturally disappear.

Some diseases that obesity can cause include:

  • Diabetes
  • Hypertension
  • coronary artery
  • Respiratory
  • breathing problems
  • Sleep apnea
  • Depression
  • Infertility
  • Increased chance of miscarriage

How to Treat Obesity?

The most effective solution for patients who cannot lose weight with years of diet and similar treatments is obesity surgery. Obesity surgery can be applied to individuals between the ages of 18 and 65. However, it should not be forgotten that obesity surgery is not a plastic surgery. Not everyone who wants to lose weight can undergo this surgery. In order to undergo bariatric surgery, the person must be obese, that is, his body mass index must be over 35, and he must not be able to lose weight despite a long-term diet. Diet, sports and other side treatment areas are preferred in patients with a body mass index below 35.

Gastric sleeve surgery is preferred for those who have been obese for at least 5 years. In addition, the general health conditions of people who will undergo obesity surgery must be suitable for the surgery.

Obesity surgery cannot be applied to patients with alcohol and substance addiction, those who have recent pregnancy plans, and patients whose obesity is caused by hormonal imbalance.

What is Gastric Sleeve Surgery?

Gastric sleeve surgery is the surgical removal of a large part of the stomach (about 80%) and the stomach becomes a long thin tube. Thus, the smaller stomach can feel full with less food, thus consuming fewer calories than before.

Gastric sleeve surgery is among the most commonly performed surgical methods in the world. It takes 1 hour in total and the risk of complications is very low. One of the biggest advantages of this surgery is that no foreign body is inserted into the stomach.

After surgery, the patient must be careful about what he eats and drinks to prevent re-expansion of the stomach. For this reason, after sleeve gastrectomy surgery, the patient must follow a diet under the supervision of a doctor. With this diet, the patient should actually make new eating habits a lifestyle. In other words, one should have a healthy and balanced diet and include sports and/or exercises in his/her life.

What is Gastric Bypass?

It is a type of surgery that is older than gastric sleeve surgery. However, they are also the most commonly performed obesity surgeries in the world before sleeve gastrectomy surgery. In this surgery, the stomach is divided into two, with the upper part being small and the lower part being large. The smaller part of the stomach is the size of a walnut.

Thus, the reduced stomach feels full with less food, and fewer calories enter the body, just like in sleeve gastrectomy surgery. In addition, a part of the intestine is also excluded from absorption. Thus, the patient's absorption of calories, protein and other nutrients is reduced.