Diet Digest.net

More than thirty percent of American adults are considered obese. If you find this hard to believe because you don’t see a lot of big people walking around town, you may want to look closer. Obesity doesn’t only mean having a lot of fat distributed all over your body. There is such a condition called central obesity in which fat is concentrated on the abdomen and upper body of the individual. Does this sound more familiar?

You probably know one or two people who are suffering from this condition although they are not even aware that it’s actually obesity. It’s actually a common condition and interestingly, there aren’t a lot of people who are concerned about doing something about it.

The problem of central obesity should also merit a certain degree of concern just as morbid obesity does. After all, studies show a link between this condition and an odd number of other more serious health issues including heart disease, hypertension, insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus. When it is left untreated, it can cause more than just a destruction of self-confidence. It can even lead one to develop health problems that can be life-threatening.

Diagnosing this condition is done through a waist-hip ratio – that is, taking the ratio of the circumference of the waist to the circumference of the hip.

Treatment for Cental Obesity

This type of obesity is usually a sign of underlying metabolic disorders such as an inability to break sugar down properly. It can also be hormonal as in the case of hyperthyroidism. The first step for treating the ailment is to identify its cause or that which makes a person develop love handles. From there, a weight loss regimen is recommended.

Weight loss treatment usually takes the form of simple methods such as changing one’s diet and getting enough exercise to shed off the excess fat. However, this will take a certain degree of discipline from the person so it’s important to also throw in counseling support in the treatment. It’s important to identify the factors that may lead the person to stray from the pre-determined weight loss regimen designed for him.

Medications such as orlistat and sibutramine are also prescribed to patients to aid in weight loss. When medical conditions such as diabetes are also present, the doctor may recommend different drugs such as anti-diabetic medicines and metformin among others.

Central obesity may not look like a threatening condition at first but if you look close enough, you’ll find that you’re better off working on losing weight if you’re suffering from this problem if only for health reasons.