Obesity: the killer within

Benjamin Franklin once said that the only thing in life that was certain was death.

The silent killer. (Pic: Shutterstock)

Today, it is almost just as certain that your death will be caused by food -- at least, from the health complications caused by obesity, the consequence of eating too much food.

So what exactly is obesity and what can be done about it?

What is obesity?

In simple terms, obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health.

A person with a BMI of 30 or more is generally considered obese, while a person with a BMI equal to or more than 25 is considered overweight.

High BMI can result in cardiovascular diseases -- mainly heart disease and stroke -- diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders such as osteoarthritis, and cancers such as endometrial, breast and colon.

It's even more worrying for children.

Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of premature death and disability in adulthood. In addition, obese youngsters experience breathing difficulties, increased risk of fractures, hypertension, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and psychological effects.

Some interesting facts (Ref: WHO):

Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.

In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults were overweight. Of these, over 600 million were obese.

39 per cent of adults were overweight in 2014, and 13 percent were obese.

Most of the world’s population live in countries where death occurs more due to being overweight than underweight.

42 million children under the age of 5 were overweight or obese in 2013.

With this alarming information in mind, it is time to rid ourselves of the habit of unhealthy eating.

But first, we need to know what foods to avoid and circumstances that make us binge eat. Let me list a few for you:

Eating processed or fast foods, which are high in fat.

Not eating fruit, vegetables and unrefined carbohydrates, such as wholemeal bread and brown rice.

Drinking too much alcohol. Alcohol contains a lot of calories and heavy drinkers are often overweight.

Eating out a lot.

Eating larger portions than you need.

Comfort eating – if you feel depressed or have low self-esteem, you may comfort eat to make yourself feel better.

How do we control it?

I am not a dietitian. But as a person who was once overweight, here are a few tips that may help:

Control your appetite – don’t eat more than what you need.

Reduce your sugar intake – try natural substitutes like honey.

Exercise – the best form is running or cycling. I prefer running, since it is cost effective. Walking is great, too.

Try and have fruit every day. Or, lime juice with water every morning before breakfast.

Meditate. Try to be silent and not think of anything for a period of 10 minutes.

These tips have helped me, but that doesn't mean they'll be perfect for you. For expert advice, seek an appointment with a dietitian.

Got any tips or weightloss success stories you'd like to share? We'd love to hear them.

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