Those extra pounds: So easy to put on, so hard to take off. It's tempting to just buy clothes in a larger size, or embrace the idea that "big is beautiful." But excess fat affects your body in ways that plus-size clothing or "body-smoothing" undergarments cannot cure. It could raise your risk for some serious health problems.
Chronic Ailments
If you're overweight or obese, you are more likely to develop certain chronic conditions that could make your life more painful and difficult -- or actually shorten it, in the case of type 2 diabetes. According to the National Institutes of Health, diabetes is a major cause of early death as well as of heart and kidney disease, stroke and blindness. More than 85 percent of those who develop type 2 diabetes are overweight. Excess weight also may contribute to sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, gallbladder disease, pregnancy complications and liver disease.
Cardiovascular Disease
Carrying excess fat makes you more likely to develop high blood pressure and high levels of triglycerides and LDL cholesterol, all of which are risk factors for heart disease and stroke. Those ailments, in turn, put you at risk for heart attack, congestive heart failure, chest pain, paralysis and death. In addition, merely being obese -- with no other risk factors -- may raise your risk for dying of a heart attack. That was the conclusion of a University of Glasgow study of about 6,000 men, as reported by the HealthDay News website in February 2011. The reason might be that obesity raises inflammation levels, researchers speculated.
Cancer Risks
Researchers also suspect that inflammation is a possible culprit in the link between obesity and some types of cancer. According to a 2009 report by the American Institute for Cancer Research, Americans experience more than 100,000 cancers every year tied to excess body fat. Another theory is that fat cells can release hormones that affect the cell growth typical of cancer. Being overweight raises your risk for cancer of the colon, esophagus and kidneys; it also raises the risk for uterine and breast cancer in women after menopause.
Recommendations
If gaining weight can cause so many health problems, can losing weight help you avoid them? Yes, according to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute. You can decrease your risk for coronary heart disease and some other conditions by losing just 5 to 10 percent of your current weight over the next six months. If you weigh 200 pounds, that means losing 10 to 20 pounds. The best strategy is a healthy diet and exercise plan that allows a gradual loss of a pound or two per week. If you're unsure whether you are overweight, check a body mass index table.
References
- National Institutes of Health Weight Control Information Network: Do You Know the Health Risks of Being Overweight?
- National Heart Lung and Blood Institute: Overweight and Obesity
- Health Day: Obesity Alone Raises Risk of Fatal Heart Attack, Study Finds
- American Cancer Society: Report: Over 100,000 Cancers Linked to Excess Body Fat
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