Symptoms and secondary diseases
The increased body weight often leads to the following symptoms and secondary diseases: Sleep apnoea syndrome: nocturnal pauses in breathing of more than 10 seconds, accompanied by daytime tiredness and sleep attacks during the course of the day Reflux disease: reflux of gastric acid into the oesophagus due to a reduced closure at the transition from oesophagus to stomach Damage to the musculoskeletal system: arthrosis (wear and tear of joints), particularly in the hip and knee, spinal diseases (e.g. slipped discs), gout Cardiovascular diseases Obesity increases the risk of developing high blood pressure (arterial hypertension), arteriosclerosis (calcification of arteries) up to heart attacks or cerebral infarction and vascular occlusion or changes in the legs (shop window disease) or eyes (deterioration of vision due to retinal changes). Metabolic disorders: Obese patients suffer more frequently from diabetes mellitus (diabetes) with all the diabetic secondary diseases (chronic kidney damage, chronic nerve damage, wound healing disorders, etc.). Blood lipids are also frequently elevated in obese people, which in turn influences the risk of certain secondary diseases.
Mental disorders: The brain vessels can also be damaged by excessive body weight, which can lead to certain forms of dementia. In addition, mental illnesses, such as depression, occur more frequently. If obesity (especially increased abdominal fat), high blood pressure, increased blood fat values and a disturbed sugar metabolism occur together, this is called metabolic syndrome.
This combination leads to an extremely high risk of cardiovascular disease. – Sleep apnoea syndrome: nocturnal breathing pauses of more than 10 seconds, which are associated with daytime tiredness and sleep attacks during the day
- Reflux disease: reflux of gastric acid into the esophagus due to a reduced closure at the transition from esophagus to stomach
- Damage to the musculoskeletal system: arthrosis (wear and tear of joints) especially in the hip and knee, spinal diseases (e.g. slipped discs), gout
- Cardiovascular diseases: Obesity increases the risk of developing high blood pressure (arterial hypertension), arteriosclerosis (calcification of arteries) up to heart attack or cerebral infarction and vascular occlusion or changes in the legs (window dressing) or eyes (deterioration of vision due to retinal changes). – Metabolic disorders: Obese patients suffer more frequently from diabetes mellitus (diabetes) with all the diabetic secondary diseases (chronic kidney damage, chronic nerve damage, wound healing disorders, etc.).
Blood lipids are also frequently elevated in obese people, which in turn influences the risk of certain secondary diseases. – Mental disorders: The brain vessels can also be damaged by excessive body weight, which can lead to certain forms of dementia. In addition, mental illnesses, such as depression, occur more frequently.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis of obesity is often made when the patient presents himself to the family doctor or specialist for a check-up or because of other symptoms. For this purpose, it is sufficient to determine the patient’s height and weight. It is also recommended to measure the abdominal girth.
If obesity is diagnosed, further examinations should follow in order to detect and treat any secondary diseases at an early stage. The diagnosis should also be the occasion for a consultation on how the patient can reduce his or her weight or what other therapy options are available. The goal of any therapy is always weight loss.
The cause of the overweight should always be clarified first in order to find the most sensible therapy method for the respective patient. Therefore, the eating habits and movement patterns must first be analysed in detail, certain preliminary examinations regarding other causes of disease must be carried out and the therapy goals must be defined. According to some professional societies, depending on the degree of obesity, it is recommended to reduce body weight by 5-30%.
The therapy always includes a permanent change in diet and exercise, often together with psychotherapy and all this always together with the life partner or family. Weight loss diet (reduction diet): body weight only decreases if the energy consumed is higher than the energy absorbed through food. It is recommended to eat at least 500 kcal less than what is consumed.
In addition, you should drink enough and take at least half an hour of exercise at least 3 times a week. It is also important to make a permanent and sustainable change in diet and exercise patterns to prevent the yo-yo effect. Here, a too low calorie intake during the diet leads to a change to the so-called hunger metabolism, which in turn can lead to weight gain.
Medication for weight loss: The medication options for weight reduction include 3 groups of substances: Appetite suppressants, swelling agents and fat blockers. Appetite suppressants are intended to suppress the feeling of hunger and thus slow down the intake of food. However, they are very controversial, as their non-specific effect throughout the body means that they also intervene in other systems (e.g. blood pressure regulation) and can thus cause serious side effects.
A doctor should therefore always be consulted before using appetite suppressants. Swelling substances, e.g. with cellulose or collagen, spread in the area of the gastrointestinal tract and thus reduce the volume for the intake of food. A possible side effect is intestinal obstruction, which is why it is essential to make sure that sufficient fluid is absorbed.
Fat blockers inhibit the absorption of fats from food, which is why they are excreted undigested in the form of fatty stools. A problem is the lack of absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, which then have to be replaced by medication. – Diet for weight loss (reduction diet): Body weight only decreases if the energy consumed is higher than the energy absorbed through food.
It is recommended to eat at least 500 kcal less than what is consumed. In addition, you should drink enough and take at least half an hour of exercise at least 3 times a week. It is also important to make a permanent and sustainable change in diet and exercise patterns to prevent the yo-yo effect.
Here, a too low calorie intake during the diet leads to a change to the so-called hunger metabolism, which in turn can lead to weight gain. – Medication for weight loss: The medication options for weight reduction include 3 groups of substances: Appetite suppressants, swelling agents and fat blockers. Appetite suppressants are intended to suppress the feeling of hunger and thus slow down the intake of food.
However, they are very controversial, as their non-specific effect throughout the body means that they also intervene in other systems (e.g. blood pressure regulation) and can thus cause serious side effects. A doctor should therefore always be consulted before using appetite suppressants. Swelling substances, e.g. with cellulose or collagen, spread in the area of the gastrointestinal tract and thus reduce the volume for the intake of food.
A possible side effect is intestinal obstruction, which is why it is essential to make sure that sufficient fluid is absorbed. Fat blockers inhibit the absorption of fats from food, which is why they are excreted undigested in the form of fatty stools. A problem is the lack of absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, which then have to be replaced by medication.
