Fighting obesity is important

Obesity, like heart attack, diabetes, dementia and cancer, is a disease that destroys lives. Speaking out against it isn’t intended to shame anyone, but rather, to save them. It’s just like when we talk about diet, exercise and stress management as ways to avoid American’s No. 1 killer, heart disease.

From 1999/2000 through 2017/2018, the prevalence of obesity in U.S. adults increased from 30.5% to 42.4%; severe obesity increased from 4.7% to 9.2%. Obesity is a disease that’s linked to a whole menu of other health problems. For example:

— Dementia: A study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology indicates that if you are obese in your 50s and beyond, you have a 31% increased risk of dementia.

— Diabetes: Studies show that women with a body mass index of 30 (signifying obesity) are at a 28 times greater risk of developing diabetes than women of normal weight. Their risk of diabetes is 93 times greater if the BMI is 35. For men, the risk is also increased.

— Osteoarthritis: One study reported that a BMI of 30+ led to a seven-fold increase in the risk for knee osteoarthritis. And for every five units’ increase in BMI (say, from 30 to 35) the risk of knee osteoarthritis goes up 35% and the risk of hip osteoarthritis by 11%.

— Heart disease: In the Nurses’ Health Study, obesity was associated with a nearly 100% increased risk of coronary heart disease in men and women. In another review and meta-analysis of 1.2 million participants and 37,488 cases of coronary heart disease, obesity was associated with a nearly 60% higher risk.

Fortunately, you can achieve a healthy weight. The first step: Tell yourself you’re worth the effort it takes to get healthier. That will help you revise your lifestyle so that you’re getting much more physical activity and eating a plant-based diet with no fried or highly processed foods, red meats or added sugars.