Modern methods of treating obesity
In our fast-paced age, obesity is gradually but persistently gaining the power of an epidemic, displacing other diseases that humanity has already coped with or the solution to problems is just around the corner. And only obesity has imperceptibly entered our lives, bringing with it a huge tangle of problems. These are problems of an aesthetic, physical, psychological and sexual nature, ranging from dissatisfaction with your body, unwillingness to appear in public – to loneliness, as well as problems of choosing clothes, discrimination in hiring to the appearance of pronounced health problems.
Do you think that the presence of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, coronary heart disease, varicose veins of the lower extremities, arthrosis-arthritis and many other diseases in obese patients are primary independent diseases? By no means, these are, as a rule, secondary diseases that have arisen against the background of obesity. Did you know that people with obesity suffer from cancer more often, and several times more often? Save a sick person from obesity – and many diseases in this person will disappear. And also the problems of the aesthetic and psychological aspects will go away. People who have lost weight change not only physically, but also psychologically – they start to communicate more, to be in public, to meet people of the opposite sex – and, as a rule, find a new, better life-create families, give birth to children, find new friends and interests.
Let’s try to figure out whether obesity has always been a problem for humanity? No. And in confirmation of this, historical facts-found ancient figures and images left over from our ancient descendants, they often depict people with “excessive” weight and they, as can be seen in these images, occupy a fairly high social position. In prehistoric times, when the extraction of food was considered hard physical labor and did not always bring success, a stout, portly person was considered rich, noble, as we now say – “successful”. How everything has changed! Now, in most developed countries, the abundance of cheap, fast-cooked, high-calorie food has led to an” epidemic ” of obesity in these countries. In the modern world, a full person is a person who is unhealthy, unsportsmanlike, unsexy, ugly, and many more ” not»…
Why is alimentary obesity, or simply put – overeating, today developing on the planet with giant steps? It would seem that a simple answer – in order to avoid obesity, you need to move more and eat less! But let’s not forget that food is a pleasure! In today’s world, where there are a huge number of problems, risks and stresses, food remains for many people the easiest, and most importantly affordable source of pleasure! And if a person can cope with the initial obesity of the 1st degree on their own, it is enough just to introduce the rule “eat less and move more”into their life. Then in people with a BMI of more than 35 kg / m2 (obesity of 2 or more degrees), it is almost impossible to lose weight on their own, and most importantly, not to gain weight back in the future! Scientists who deal with the problem of morbid (BMI greater than 40 kg/m2) obesity have statistically proven that only 5% of people with a BMI greater than 40 kg/m2 manage to lose weight on their own, and most importantly maintain success. The remaining 95% regain their weight back, and 37% continue to gain even more weight! This is explained simply: hunger is a very strong negative stimulus. And if you still achieved various diets, most often temporary, success in reducing body weight, then the body will be “on the alert” and will take advantage of any weakness of a person to regain the lost pounds, and there will be an opportunity – ” to stock up more…”. This is a normal physiological mechanism implemented at the genetic level. Our ancient ancestors ate enough when such a possibility existed, because it is not known when there will be such a joy – the availability of food. And in such a “food framework” humanity has lived for more than one millennium, and in a state of “food abundance” it lives for no more than a hundred years. Therefore, hunger is an irritant at the level of a strong, almost genetic instinct. It is known that the center of ” eating behavior “(hunger and satiety) is located in the” old brain ” – the hypothalamus, which confirms the importance of this process, at this level there are also centers responsible for respiration and sexual desire (reproduction of offspring). Today, it is already known that in people with a tendency to obesity, certain sections of genes are found that are specific only for people with alimentary obesity. Many congenital and acquired endocrine diseases are accompanied by obesity. All this speaks to the most complex mechanisms that lead to obesity. And the philistine expression: “You should eat less!”, in my opinion, does not quite correspond to the solution of this most complex modern problem of humanity.
Well, what does modern medicine offer for the treatment of obesity? At the present stage, there is a clear gradation: initial obesity (1-2 st), with a BMI of up to 35 kg/m2, is dealt with by doctors of therapeutic specialties – endocrinologists, nutritionists, psychologists, acupuncturists. In their arsenal: the development of diets, with the calculation of calorage, acupuncture, psychological work, as well as the use of drugs, such as xenical, sibutramine, which reduce appetite and reduce the absorption of fat. Morbid obesity is dealt with by bariatric surgeons and endoscopists in their arsenal, the installation of an intragastric balloon, operations, mainly laparoscopic for gastric banding – the installation of a restrictive ring, gastric resection – with a reduction in its volume to 100-150 ml and combined operations, including both reducing the volume of the stomach and creating such a design of the intestine, in which food passing through the stomach goes along a short path – parts of the small intestine into the large intestine, bypassing from 50 to 80% of the length of the small intestine the intestine, where it is absorbed by the body. In such operations, which have received such a name in modern medicine as “bariatric surgery”, the range of the degree of reduction of excess weight ranges from 30 to 90%. The stability of the retention of the obtained result directly depends on the complexity of the surgical intervention, and the more complex the surgical intervention, the more pronounced and stable the effect of weight loss over time, and vice versa, the simpler the operation, the greater the risk of returning to obesity.
In order to choose the right method of treating obesity, you need to be an informed patient who has basic information about their disease, with the mandatory choice of a specialist doctor who, together with the patient, will make the choice of treatment for obesity the most individual, effective and persistent.