Weight Loss - Why Lose Weight?

You probably picked up this book because you want to lose weight as a way of looking better. But the simple fact is, your weight is more than a matter of taste or aesthetics. It's a matter of health. I encourage you to read this chapter because it is, quite literally, the heart of the matter. Many of the problems associated with overweight affect your heart, and because of that, they affect your life. In this chapter, we discover why it is unhealthy to carry around excess weight.

The medical perils of being overweight

Being over weight increases your risk for many serious medical problems. The vast majority of overweight people suffer from one or more of the following conditions: diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, gall bladder disease, and arthritis. If that isn't bad enough, obesity is the second most important factor contributing to death in the United States. (It should come as no surprise that smoking is the first.)

Diabetes

Nearly 16 million Americans have diabetes, a metabolic disorder in which the body does not make enough insulin or cannot use it effectively. About 95 percent of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes, which is closely tied to being overweight. Each year, more than 190,000 people die from diabetes or its many complications. For people who live with diabetes, it is a frequently disabling disease.

Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in people between 20 and 74 years of age.

It is a major cause of kidney disease, requiring dialysis or kidney transplant.

People with diabetes are as much as four times more likely than others to have heart disease or suffer a stroke.

Diabetes causes nerve damage, which may require amputation of a toe, foot, or lower leg.

In men, diabetes is a frequent cause of erectile dysfunction.

There is no cure for diabetes, and it requires lifelong management and medication. All diabetics require a controlled diet to regulate blood sugar levels, and regular checkups to detect damage to the eyes, nerves, and blood vessels. There are ways to lower the risk of developing it, however. Although type 2 diabetes tends to run in families, people who are overweight and inactive are at much greater risk of contracting the disease.

Losing weight, controlling blood cholesterol levels, and engaging in some form of regular exercise are the best ways to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.