Obese individuals often suffer from anorexia, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and coronary heart disease.

Why does anorexia occur even among obese individuals?

People often associate obesity with overeating, binge eating, and gluttony. Obese people often have a crazy pursuit of food, some even eating five meals a day: morning tea followed by lunch, then afternoon tea, dinner is a must, and a late-night snack before bed.

Of course, such people are bound to be obese. However, some obese individuals lose their appetite, refuse all meat and fish, and gradually become thin. It's important to clarify here that this thinness is not the result of dieting. These people suffer from anorexia nervosa. This disease generally affects obese young women, and its clinical manifestations include a significant reduction in food intake and severe calorie deficiency. Although there is no diarrhea, weight loss is substantial, and amenorrhea may occur in the early stages. Some may also experience cold hands and feet, low body temperature, low blood pressure, and a weak pulse. But these patients have another significant characteristic: despite losing weight and frequently feeling hungry, they always try their best to deny hunger and weight loss. The cause of anorexia nervosa is quite simple; it is mainly the result of overly strict dieting by obese individuals, especially obese young women.

Once anorexia nervosa develops, mild cases can likely see some improvement through psychological counseling. For severe cases, hospitalization is recommended if possible to improve the condition.

Why are obese people so likely to develop diabetes?

Diabetes is a common metabolic endocrine disease, which is divided into two main categories: primary diabetes and secondary diabetes. The vast majority of cases are primary diabetes, accounting for more than 90%.

The key to the development of diabetes is insufficient insulin in the body. Insulin deficiency can be caused by genetic factors, viral infections, autoimmune diseases, and other reasons. After developing diabetes, disorders occur in glucose metabolism, protein metabolism, lipid metabolism, acid-base balance, and electrolyte metabolism. Patients experience elevated blood sugar and increased plasma osmotic pressure, leading to glycosuria and lactic acidosis. In severe cases, symptoms such as dehydration, hypotension, and coma may occur.

The close relationship between diabetes and obesity stems from the fact that both are metabolic diseases, inextricably linked. Obese individuals are more prevalent among diabetics, and a higher incidence of diabetes is found among obese individuals. Statistics show that the incidence of diabetes in obese patients is approximately four times that of those of normal weight. Among non-insulin-dependent diabetes patients over 40 years of age, 70-80% have a history of obesity, and the greater the excess weight, the higher the risk of developing diabetes. A well-established statistic illustrates this relationship: the incidence of diabetes in the normal population is only 0.7%, while the incidence rises to 2% when overweight by 20%; and if the weight exceeds 50%, the incidence can reach as high as 10%.

Diabetes is mainly caused by a decrease in insulin secretion and dysfunction of other nervous and endocrine systems, leading to impaired glucose metabolism. Because the amount of insulin that can break down glucose is reduced, the body's utilization rate of glucose decreases, resulting in high blood sugar levels. Unused glucose is excreted in the urine, hence the name diabetes.

So why are obese people particularly prone to diabetes? It turns out that the fat cells in obese individuals are not sensitive to insulin. However, to meet the body's metabolic needs, the pancreas has to secrete large amounts of insulin. This leads to a new problem: increased fat synthesis, making people even more obese. The obesity, in turn, increases the stress on the pancreatic cells, which over time can lead to incomplete pancreatic function.

Harmful Section

Insufficient insulin secretion prevents the breakdown and utilization of sugar, leading to the production of blood sugar and urinary sugar, thus trapping diabetic patients in a vicious cycle.

Diabetes is a very difficult disease to treat and there is no cure. The best way to prevent it is to prevent obesity and thus prevent the onset of diabetes.

Why do almost all obese people suffer from hyperlipidemia?

Hyperlipidemia is a condition where the concentration of cholesterol or triglycerides in the blood exceeds the normal range. Hyperlipidemia is divided into primary and secondary types. Primary hyperlipidemia is very rare, while secondary hyperlipidemia is quite common. The latter is often caused by uncontrolled diabetes, atherosclerosis, nephrotic syndrome, hypothyroidism, and obesity. Obese patients usually have lipid metabolism disorders, specifically manifested as increased triglycerides and cholesterol in the blood.

Both triglycerides and cholesterol are fat-soluble substances. In order to circulate in the blood, they must bind to proteins called apolipoproteins, and their binding products are called lipoproteins. Elevated blood lipids mean an increase in the level of lipoproteins in the blood.

The dangers of hyperlipidemia are well-known. The key is to prevent its occurrence. The best way to do this is to control calorie intake, increase exercise, and boost calorie expenditure to maintain a balance between calorie intake and expenditure, preventing obesity and significantly reducing the chances of developing hyperlipidemia. If you do develop hyperlipidemia, there's no need to panic. Through dietary and exercise therapies, weight loss can reduce body fat to a certain extent, potentially alleviating or even curing hyperlipidemia.

Why is obesity linked to dangerous coronary heart disease?

The mere mention of coronary heart disease sends shivers down people's spines. Its rapid onset and high mortality rate naturally instill fear. Coronary heart disease, also known as ischemic heart disease, is clinically classified into five categories: (1) primary cardiac arrest; (2) angina pectoris; (3) myocardial infarction; (4) heart failure in ischemic heart disease; and (5) arrhythmia. Coronary heart disease is a dangerous disease with an extremely high mortality rate that can strike unexpectedly.

It is widely recognized as the number one killer of humankind.

So how does obesity become associated with the number one killer? There are several main reasons: First, excessive adipose tissue increases the burden on the heart and leads to hypertension. Second, excessive intake of high-fat, high-sugar, and high-salt foods causes hyperlipidemia, leading to coronary artery atherosclerosis. Third, obese individuals tend to have less physical activity, resulting in insufficient collateral circulation in the coronary arteries. Fourth, excessive adipose tissue deposited in the pericardium severely affects the heart's diastolic and systolic functions. Furthermore, if a large amount of fat exists between the myocardial fibers in obese individuals, it can cause separation and atrophic degeneration of the myocardial fibers. The adipose tissue expands into the epicardium and invades the myocardial interstitium, resulting in red myocardial fibers but milky-white adipose tissue, forming what is known as a "tiger-skin heart." In severe cases, parts of the ventricular wall can be completely replaced by adipose tissue. Because adipose tissue has low blood flow, it causes myocardial ischemia, hypoxia, and cardiac instability, and can even lead to sudden death.

Nationwide survey data shows that the prevalence of coronary heart disease (CHD) is 7.84% in overweight individuals, compared to only 3.15% in non-overweight individuals, a significant difference. Meanwhile, authoritative international data demonstrates that the incidence of CHD is 5:1 in obese individuals compared to underweight individuals, and the sudden death rate in obese individuals is four times higher than in their age group. Therefore, obesity is not only a major cause of CHD, but it also significantly increases the risk of sudden death from CHD. To avoid developing CHD, the best approach is to avoid obesity.

5. Why is it said that stroke is caused by obesity?

Besides causing serious coronary heart disease, obesity can also lead to a variety of other diseases that seriously affect human health, the most notable being stroke and cerebral infarction. These two brain-related diseases are collectively referred to by doctors as cerebrovascular diseases.

So, is there a relationship between cerebrovascular disease and obesity? Extensive clinical practice has clearly answered this question: not only is there a relationship, but it's an extremely close one. It's already known that obesity leads to hypertension and atherosclerosis. These two diseases are the most potential dangers for cerebrovascular disease. Domestic authoritative cardiovascular experts have conducted statistics showing that when a hypertensive patient's systolic blood pressure exceeds 25 kPa (190 mmHg), the risk of cerebral hemorrhage increases sixfold; when the diastolic blood pressure exceeds 15 kPa (110 mmHg), the risk increases fivefold, and the mortality rate doubles. Through numerous studies on cerebral hemorrhage patients...

Harmful Section

Observations have shown that the risk of cerebral hemorrhage gradually increases with rising blood pressure. Therefore, authoritative doctors have concluded that obesity leads to hypertension, and hypertension can induce cerebral hemorrhage.

Furthermore, obesity can also cause cerebral infarction because obese patients have elevated cholesterol levels in their blood, increased vascular permeability, and lipid deposition on the blood vessel walls, leading to arteriosclerosis in the brain. Additionally, obese patients generally have higher blood viscosity and increased platelet aggregation; these two factors combined accelerate the formation of cerebral infarction. Therefore, obesity not only causes cerebral hemorrhage but can also induce cerebral infarction.