Information about obesity
Obesity is a chronic disease in which weight becomes excessive and the body stores too much fat.
High weight and fat percentage gain can cause health risks such as diabetes (Diabetes Mellitus) or hypertension (Hypertension). Actually, all the organs and tissues in your body suffer from it. Moreover, those extra pounds cause you to have to lift more and be out of breath faster. Your joints wear out faster and movement is often more difficult. There is never just one cause for obesity. Often there is a combination of factors including: diet with too many calories, not enough exercise, stress, not enough sleep, medication use, previous diets. Importantly, obesity is actually never the result of too little perseverance. It is not a lifestyle choice but should be seen as a disease. And that includes medical treatment. Surgery seems like a big step but in practice is often not so bad. Inpatient admission is usually less than 24 hours. After that, you are already going home. Your new life can begin.
Watch the video explaining the causes of obesity.
What is your BMI anyway?
BMI stands for Body Mass Index. It is a math trick to see if someone is at a healthy weight. The calculation links your weight to your height. A BMI above 25 is referred to as being overweight. If the BMI exceeds a value of 30 it is Obesity or severe obesity. In fact, at a BMI over 40, there is very severe obesity. Your risk of additional diseases is then greatly increased. Therefore, on average, you live shorter lives. To the right you can see what different variations of obesity fit a particular BMI.
With our check, you can see how your BMI is and whether you may qualify for a stomach reduction. The eligibility criteria for reimbursable gastric bypass surgery are a BMI >40, or a BMI >35 with certain concomitant diseases.
Information about obesity
It is too easy to attribute overweight and obesity only to improper eating and lack of exercise. Obesity should be seen as a disease with multiple causes.
In the Netherlands, as in all other Western countries, the number of overweight people is increasing. Meanwhile, more than half of the Dutch are overweight. The causes of obesity are not so easy to give.
Everyone knows that the development of obesity is related to improper or excessive eating and insufficient exercise. But there are many more factors at play, including predisposition, stress, hormones and sleep. You have the best chance of losing weight permanently with gastric bypass because it immediately reduces your sense of hunger and satiety.
Obesity is not a matter of one cookie too many or some unwise lifestyle choices. The World Health Organization (WHO) and also our Dutch Health Council have considered obesity a disease for years. Isn’t that an exaggeration?
We don’t think so. Characteristics of a disease are:
- There is an abnormal structure and function of the body that causes symptoms.
- There is a distinctive pattern of symptoms.
- Organ and tissue damage occurs
Count on Obesity meeting all these criteria. And so when you talk about illness, it is also not surprising to think about the best medical treatment to cure you: surgery.
Watch the video explanation of obesity below:
Information about health problems
A lot of people are a little overweight without really suffering. But severe obesity does eventually affect your health. As a result, you are at greater risk of disease and live a shorter life.
In the Netherlands, as in all other Western countries, the number of overweight people is increasing. Meanwhile, more than half of the Dutch are overweight. The causes of obesity are not so easy to give.
Everyone knows that the development of obesity is related to improper or excessive eating and insufficient exercise. But there are many more factors at play, including predisposition, stress, hormones and sleep. You have the best chance of losing weight permanently with gastric bypass because it immediately reduces your sense of hunger and satiety.
Perhaps a little excess weight is not so bad. In fact, most people are not bothered by this at all. However, unnoticed excess fatty tissue can cause harm. Actually, there is no organ that does not suffer from obesity. Even if you don’t notice it right away, the excess fat in your body produces an ongoing inflammatory response. This causes damage to tissues: from heart and blood vessels to nerve tissue and liver.
Over time, the risk of getting a disease increases. On average, you live shorter as weight increases. Depending on the severity of the obesity, that could be as much as 15 years less life expectancy. But more importantly, it makes people less happy. You can measure that with a “quality of life” score.
The conditions that overweight and obese people are at increased risk for:
Do you want to know if you qualify for gastric bypass surgery?
Follow these steps:
