People with obesity also deal with sleep problems
Hyderabad: Healthcare experts on Tuesday called on people to curtail sugar in-take to fight obesity as a study conducted by AIG Hospitals found that 80 per cent of IT professionals in Hitec City were overweight.
AIG Hospitals also announced the launch of a dedicated website for its Centre for Obesity and Metabolic Therapy, providing expert consultations and treatment information.
Speaking at a panel discussion organised by AIG Hospitals on the health risk caused by obesity, Dr Ramakrishna said: "In order to reduce weight, cutting down on sugars is essential. About 10-20 per cent reduction in weight can be seen if we stop eating sugars. It also helps prevent cardiovascular diseases. This includes all kinds of sugars, brown, jaggery, and artificial sweeteners."
The panel discussion was organised on the occasion of World Obesity Day.
With obesity being tagged as an epidemic and a multifactorial disease impacting all bodily functions, doctors talked about the causes, prevention, management and treatment of obesity. The panel featured specialists from gastroenterology, cardiology, pulmonology, psychology and others.
"The impact of obesity on lungs is huge as it increases the risk of immune disregulation. Obese people are more at risk of getting pneumonia, influenza, and other infections. The rate of mortality increased among obese people who get these diseases, as observed during Covid period," said Dr Vishwanath.
People with obesity also deal with sleep problems. With fat deposited in lungs and neck, people are unable to breathe while sleeping. With abdominal fat, the diaphragm is unable to move. It also causes a cascade of inflammatory problems. Therefore, it is important to get 6-8 hours of deep sleep.
Doctors also mentioned that obese people are more predisposed to get cancers. Additionally, 40 per cent of children in government schools have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), highlighting the urgency of action.
Maintaining a healthy, balanced diet is key to avoiding obesity and related diseases. Doctors mentioned that intermittent fasting, where people can have proper health meals during 8 hours in the day and then not eat anything for the next 16 hours, works better than fasting on alternate days.
A major discrepancy in nutrition is lack of fruits and vegetables in the Indian diet. While the recommendation is 500 gm of vegetables per day, an individual only consumes 50 gms of vegetables per day. Not knowing what to eat, people just end up going hungry to avoid gaining weight and lose out on nutrition as well.
The human body also needs at least one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. The psychological aspect of obesity is that most people are surrounded by a toxic food environment, where junk food is easily available and is encouraged. Avoiding such exposure is necessary.
Hyderabad police commissioner C.V. Anand stressed that obesity is influenced by more than just food choices. He also launched FitCop, an app with 18,000 enrolled officers. The initiative identified 300-400 officers at risk for lifestyle diseases.
