(OBESITY & OVER WEIGHT) , (OVERWEIGHT, OBESITY, & DEPRESSION A

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META- ANALYSIS OF LONGITUDINAL STUDIES)

Overweight and obesity are increasingly common conditions. They are caused by the
increase in the size and the amount of fat cells in the body. Doctors measure body mass index
(BMI) and waist circumference to screen and diagnose overweight and obesity. Obesity is a
serious medical condition that can cause complications such as metabolic syndrome, high
blood pressure, atherosclerosis, heart disease, diabetes, high blood cholesterol, cancers and
sleep disorders. Treatment depends on the cause and severity of your condition and whether
you have complications. Treatments include lifestyle changes, such as heart-healthy eating
and increased physical activity, and Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved weight-
loss medicines. For some people, surgery may be a treatment option. Energy imbalances can
cause overweight and obesity. An energy imbalance means that your energy IN does not
equal your energy OUT. This energy is measured in calories. Energy IN is the amount of
calories you get from food and drinks. Energy OUT is the amount of calories that your body
uses for things such as breathing, digesting, being physically active, and regulating body
temperature. Overweight and obesity develop over time when you take in more calories than
you use, or when energy IN is more than your energy OUT. The amount of energy that your
body gets from the food you eat depends on the type of foods you eat, how the food is
prepared, and how long it has been since you last ate. The body has three types of fat tissue,
white, brown, and beige, that it uses to fuel itself, regulate its temperature in response to cold,
and store energy for future use. Some genetic syndromes and endocrine disorders can cause
overweight or obesity. Medicines such as anti psychotics, antidepressants, anti-epileptics, and
antihyperglycemics can cause weight gain and lead to overweight and obesity. Talk to your
doctor if you notice weight gain while you are using one of these medicines. Ask if there are
other forms of the same medicine or other medicines that can treat your medical condition,
but have less of an effect on your weight. Do not stop taking the medicine without talking to
your doctor. Several parts of your body, such as your stomach, intestines, pancreas, and fat
tissue, use hormones to control how your brain decides if you are hungry or full. Some of
these hormones are insulin, leptin, glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1), peptide YY, and ghrelin.
There are many risk factors for overweight and obesity. Some risk factors can be changed,
such as unhealthy lifestyle habits and environments. Other risk factors, such as age, family
history and genetics, race and ethnicity, and sex, cannot be changed. Heathy lifestyle
changes can decrease your risk for developing overweight and obesity. Lack of physical
activity, unhealthy eating patterns, not enough sleep, and high amounts of stress can increase
your risk for overweight and obesity. Lack of physical activity due to high amounts of TV,
computer, video game or other screen usage has been associated with a highbody mass index.
Healthy lifestyle changes, such as being physically active and reducing screen time, can help
you aim for a healthy weight. Some unhealthy eating behaviors can increase your risk for
overweight and obesity. Many studies have seen a high BMI in people who do not get enough
sleep. Some studies have seen a relationship between sleep and the way our bodies use
nutrients for energy and how lack of sleep can affect hormones that control hunger urges.
Visit our Sleep Deprivation and Deficiency Health Topic for more information about lack of
sleep. Acute stress and chronic stress affect the brain and trigger the production of hormones,
such as cortisol, that control our energy balances and hunger urges. Acute stress can trigger
hormone changes that make you not want to eat. If the stress becomes chronic, hormone
changes can make you eat more and store more fat. Childhood obesity remains a serious
problem in the United States, and some populations are more at risk for childhood obesity
than others. The risk of unhealthy weight gain increases as you age. Adults who have a
healthy BMI often start to gain weight in young adulthood and continue to gain weight until
60 to 65 years old, when they tend to start losing weight. Many environmental factors can
increase your risk for overweight and obesity. Genetic studies have found that overweight and
obesity can run in families, so it is possible that our genes or DNA can cause these conditions.
Research studies have found that certain DNA elements are associated with obesity. Did you
know obesity can change your DNA and the DNA you pass on to your children? Eating too
much or eating too little during your pregnancy can change your baby’s DNA and can affect
how your child stores and uses fat later in life. Also, studies have shown that obese fathers
have DNA changes in their sperm that can be passed on to their children. Overweight and
obesity is highly prevalent in some racial and ethnic minority groups. Rates of obesity in
American adults are highest in blacks, followed by Hispanics, then whites. This is true for
men or women. While Asian men and women have the lowest rates of unhealthy BMIs, they
may have high amounts of unhealthy fat in the abdomen. Samoans may be at risk for
overweight and obesity because they may carry a DNA variant that is associated with
increased BMI but not with common obesity-related complications. In the United States,
obesity is more common in black or Hispanic women than in black or Hispanic men. A
person’s sex may also affect the way the body stores fat. For example, women tend to store
less unhealthy fat in the abdomen than men do. Overweight and obesity is also common in
women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This is an endocrine condition that causes
large ovaries and prevents proper ovulation, which can reduce fertility. Children and adults
should be screened at least annually to see if they have a high or increasing body mass
index (BMI), which allows doctors to recommend healthy lifestyle changes to prevent
overweight and obesity. To screen for overweight and obesity, doctors measure BMI using
calculations that depend on whether you are a child or an adult. Talk to your doctor or your
child’s doctor to determine if you or your child has a high or increasing BMI. If your BMI
indicates you are getting close to being overweight, or if you have certain risk factors, your
doctor may recommend you adopt healthy lifestyle changes to prevent you from becoming
overweight and obese. Changes include healthy eating, being physically active, aiming for a
healthy weight, and getting healthy amounts of sleep. There are no specific symptoms of
overweight and obesity. The signs of overweight and obesity include a high body mass index
(BMI) and an unhealthy body fat distribution that can be estimated by measuring your waist
circumference. Obesity can cause complications in many parts of your body.   Another sign of
overweight and obesity is having an unhealthy body fat distribution. Fatty tissue is found in
different parts of your body and has many functions. Having an increased waist
circumference suggests that you have increased amounts of fat in your abdomen. An
increased waist circumference is a sign of obesity and can increase your risk for obesity-
related complications. Did you know that fatty tissue has different functions depending on its
location in your body? Visceral fat is the fatty tissue inside of your abdomen and organs.
While we do not know what causes the body to create and store visceral fat, it is known that
this type of fat interferes with the body’s endocrine and immune systems and promotes
chronic inflammation and contributes to obesity-related complications. Did you know
inflammation is thought to play a role in the onset of certain obesity-related complications?
Researchers now know more about visceral fat, which is deep in the abdomen of overweight
and obese patients. Visceral fat releases factors that promote inflammation. Chronic obesity-
related inflammation is thought to lead toinsulin resistance and diabetes, changes in the liver
or non-alcoholic fatty acid liver disease, and cancers. More research is needed to understand
what triggers inflammation in some obese patients and to find new treatments. Your doctor
may diagnose overweight and obesity based on your medical history, physical exams that
confirm you have a high body mass index (BMI) and possibly a high waist circumference,
and tests to rule out other medical conditions. To diagnose overweight and obesity, doctors
measure BMI using calculations that depend on whether you are a child or an adult. Your
doctor will ask about your eating and physical activity habits, family history, and will see if
you have other risk factors Your doctor may ask if you have any other signs or symptoms.
This information can help determine if you have other conditions that may be causing you to
be overweight or obese or if you have complications from being overweight or obese. During
your physical exam, your doctor will measure your weight and height to calculate your BMI.
Your doctor may also measure your waist circumference to estimate the amount of unhealthy
fat in your abdomen. In adults, a waist circumference over 35 inches for women who are not
pregnant or 40 inches for men can help diagnose obesity and assess risk of future
complications. If you are of South Asian or Central and South American descent, your doctor
may use smaller waist circumference values to diagnose your obesity. People from these
backgrounds often don’t show signs of a large waist circumference even though they may
have unhealthy amounts of fat deep in their abdomens and may be diagnosed with obesity. 
Treatment for overweight and obesity depends on the cause and severity of your condition.
Possible treatments include healthy lifestyle changes, behavioral weight-loss treatment
programs, medicines, and possibly surgery. You may need treatments for any complications
that you have. To help you aim for and maintain a healthy weight, your doctor may
recommend that you adopt lifelong healthy lifestyle changes. Making lifelong healthy
lifestyle changes, such as heart-healthy eating and physical activity, can help you modify your
energy balance to help you aim for and maintain a healthy weight. Your doctor may
recommend you enroll in individual or group behavioral weight-loss programs to treat your
overweight and obesity. In these programs, a trained health care professional will customize a
weight-loss plan for you. This plan will include a moderately-reduced calorie diet, physical
activity goals, and behavioral strategies to help you make and maintain these lifestyle
changes.

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