Obesity

Overweight and obesity are defined by the WHO as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to an individuals health.

Overweight and obesity are major risk factors for a number of chronic diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer and while it was once an issue only in high income countries, overweight and obesity has now dramatically risen in low- and middle-income countries.Such countries are now facing a "double burden" of disease, for while they continue to deal with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, they are also experiencing a rapid upsurge in chronic disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in urban settings.

What is Obesity?

Obesity and overweight have in the last decade become a global problem - according to the World Health Organization (WHO) back in 2005 approximately 1.6 billion adults over the of age 15+ were overweight, at least 400 million adults were obese and at least 20 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight.

Causes of Obesity and Overweight

Obesity, What Can be Done?

What is Body Mass Index (BMI)?

Obesity and Fast Food

Obesity and Exercise

Obesity Management

Obesity and Blood Pressure

Obesity and Diabetes

Obesity and Cancer

Obesity and Depression

Obesity and Autism

See more featured articles »

Obesity and Sleep

Obesity and Hormones

Obesity and Genetics

Obesity in Adults

Obesity in Pregnancy

Obesity and Infertility

Obesity and Sexual Health

Obesity and Stress

Obesity and Fractures

Obesity and Arthritis

Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome

Obesity Epidemiology

What is Obesity Paradox?

Obesity and Periodontitis

Obesity in Children

Obesity and Respiratory Disorders

Obesity and Heart Disease

Obesity and Anesthesia

Obesity and Skin Problems

Fat Mass and Obesity-Associated Gene (FTO)

What does Sleeve Gastrectomy Involve?

Dieting for Obese Children

Abdominal Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome

Why is Visceral Fat Dangerous?

Latest Obesity News and Research

Study shows how non-alcoholic fatty liver disease causes Alzheimer's-like neuroinflammation

Research from University of South Carolina associate professor Saurabh Chatterjee's laboratory in Environmental Health Sciences, Arnold School of Public Health, and led by Ayan Mondal, a postdoctoral researcher from the same lab, has revealed the cause behind the previously established link between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (i.e., NAFLD, recently reclassified as metabolic associated fatty liver disease or MAFLD) and neurological problems.

6 Jul 2020

Short, frequent walks in blue spaces may have a positive effect on well-being and mood

Short, frequent walks in blue spaces--areas that prominently feature water, such as beaches, lakes, rivers or fountains--may have a positive effect on people's well-being and mood, according to a new study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, a center supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation.

6 Jul 2020

Obesity and BME status may place individuals at high-risk of contracting COVID-19

Obese people among black and minority ethnic communities (BME) are at around two times higher the risk of contracting COVID-19 than white Europeans, a study conducted by a team of Leicester researchers has found.

6 Jul 2020

Asthma does not appear to increase the risk of contracting COVID-19, shows study

Asthma does not appear to increase the risk for a person contracting COVID-19 or influence its severity, according to a team of Rutgers researchers.

6 Jul 2020

New guidelines on assessment and management of type 2 diabetes in children, adolescents

A team of paediatric specialists, including an expert from the University of Adelaide, has produced new guidelines regarding assessment and management of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Australian and New Zealand children and adolescents.

6 Jul 2020

Research suggests protective effect of influenza vaccine against COVID-19 severity and mortality

A new study involving over 92,000 patients with COVID-19 in Brazil shows that the odds of severe disease, ventilatory support requirement, and death are reduced with a recent trivalent flu vaccine. This seems to indicate that these vaccines should be used as widely as possible to reduce the risk of severe COVID-19, especially among high-risk groups. The study is published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020.

5 Jul 2020

Newly discovered endometrial cancer biomarker enables early detection and treatment

A newly discovered endometrial (uterine) cancer biomarker and diagnostic method will enable detection of the tumor type that is likely to spread and recur so that clinicians can initiate treatment early and stop the cancer from attacking other parts of the body.

3 Jul 2020

Common chemotherapy drug may be less effective in overweight, obese breast cancer patients

Breast cancer patients who are overweight or obese might benefit less from treatment with docetaxel, a common chemotherapy drug, than lean patients.

2 Jul 2020

New Android application helps identify signs of sleep apnea at home

Sleep apnea is a very common sleep disorder characterised by breathing pauses and periodic snoring. According to some studies, as much as ten percent of the population suffer from it, but up to nine out of ten cases remain undiagnosed because symptoms are sometimes mild and there are a lack of resources in diagnostics.

2 Jul 2020

Study: Oats and rye brans reduce weight gain, hepatic inflammation

In a newly published experimental study, the consumption of dietary fibre from oat and rye brans supported the growth of beneficial gut microbiota, which in turn ameliorated cholesterol metabolism, enhanced gut barrier function and reduced hepatic inflammation.

2 Jul 2020

Study: East Germany has more hospitalizations for heart failure compared to West Germany

East Germany has many more hospitalisations for heart failure compared to West Germany despite a nationwide healthcare system, according to research presented today on HFA Discoveries, a scientific platform of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

1 Jul 2020

Repeated sampling of FIB-4 score can increase the prediction of future liver cirrhosis

Repeated measurements of the biomarker FIB-4 in the blood every few years can predict the risk of developing severe liver disease, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in the Journal of Hepatology.

1 Jul 2020

Alzheimer’s drug could be re-purposed to reverse blood vessel damage in diabetes

Drugs that were developed to treat Alzheimer’s Disease could be re-purposed to prevent - or even reverse - the damage done to the blood vessels in people who are obese or suffer from type 2 diabetes, according to new research.

1 Jul 2020

Menopause can increase risk of metabolic syndrome, shows study

Perimenopause is a time when women become more vulnerable to a number of health problems. A new study based on data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging identified menopause as a risk factor for the development of metabolic syndrome or some of its components, including hypertension, central obesity, and high blood sugar. Study results are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

1 Jul 2020

BMI should be assessed in management of COVID-19 patients

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 reports that obesity is a risk factor of composite poor outcome of COVID-19 disease. On the other hand, COVID-19 patients with 'composite poor outcome' have higher BMI. Therefore, BMI should be assessed in the management of COVID-19 patients, and special attention should be given to patients with obesity.

1 Jul 2020

Oral hygiene and severity of COVID-19 – the connection

Their study titled, “Could there be a link between oral hygiene and the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infections?” was published in the latest issue of the journal British Dental Journal.

30 Jun 2020

Study explores time trends in pregnancy-related outcomes among women with type 1 diabetes

Researchers from the Joslin Diabetes Center investigated time trends in pregnancy-related outcomes among women with type 1 diabetes between 2004 and 2017, and found that the percentage of mothers with excess weight gain during pregnancy as well as the use of insulin pumps and CGMs increased significantly, while the prevalence of nephropathy fell dramatically to zero.

30 Jun 2020

COVID-19 triggers changes in blood platelets

Changes in blood platelets triggered by COVID-19 could contribute to the onset of heart attacks, strokes, and other serious complications in some patients who have the disease, according to University of Utah Health scientists.

30 Jun 2020

Novel vaccine that removes aged immune cells mitigates metabolic disorders in obese mice

Aging is a multifaceted process that affects our bodies in many ways. In a new study, researchers from Osaka University developed a novel vaccine that removes aged immune cells and then demonstrated an improvement of diabetes-associated metabolic derangements by vaccinating obese mice.

30 Jun 2020

Breast milk even more beneficial for baby if mother exercises regularly, finds study

A new study from the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Centre shows that if breastfeeding mothers exercise regularly, they may end up providing more beneficial breast milk. Exercise is known to benefit individuals in various ways, and this new study shows that there are probably more advantages to exercising than previously known.

29 Jun 2020