Obesity: the gateway to cardiovascular disease

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Extract from the article: Being overweight is an outward sign of affluence or opulence. However, far from being an expression of wealth or happiness, obesity is a signal that the body is on the brink of premature death through disease, particularly cardiovascular disease. Fac

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Being overweight is an outward sign of affluence or opulence. However, far from being an expression of wealth or happiness, obesity is a signal that the body is on the brink of premature death through disease, particularly cardiovascular disease. Faced with this unpleasant situation, it's urgent to take precautions to maintain a healthy weight.

The more overweight a person is, the more affluent they are considered to be. « Two years after my wedding, when my mom came to visit me, she wasn't happy because I hadn't put on any weight. She complained all the time. She said my husband didn't take good care of me.  My husband had to buy me medicine to make me fat », says Adzo, 27, a seamstress.

This testimony was confirmed by Jérôme, in his fifties, who went to a CMS in Lome for treatment. He said he had been encouraged by his parents and friends who liked him when he started to gain weight. In the end, he gave in and today, « I drag my overweight around like a cross », he bitterly admits.

A person's normal weight should be related to their height. To determine the Body Mass Index (BMI), the ratio of weight to height squared is the formula used by health specialists to determine whether an individual's weight is normal or not. This calculation enables doctors to detect obesity in an individual. This is considered a public health problem in Togo.

While obesity is a health problem for health specialists, it is considered an outward sign of affluence and opulence in Togolese society. For the most part, an individual's living conditions are measured by his or her weight.

Variants of obesity

According to the BMI calculation, there are several categories of obesity, depending on the results obtained. Obesity is defined as an accumulation of adipose tissue that impairs health, or more simply, an excess of body fat that impairs health. Classically, it is determined by the Body Mass Index (BMI), calculated using the formula: BMI=weight (kg)/(height(m)) ².

It then deduces the different categories of obesity that can be encountered. When BMI is between 19 and 24kg/m², the subject is of normal build. Between 25 and 29kg/m², we speak of overweight or overweight. Obesity is defined as a BMI of 30kg/m² or more, and here again we must distinguish between moderate obesity (30-34kg/m²), severe obesity (35-39kg/m²) and very severe or morbid obesity (40kg/m² or more).

For example, a man 1.75m tall and weighing 80kg. His BMI= 80kg/(1.75m)²=26.12kg/m² we would say that this man is overweight.

Factors favoring obesity

« When I first started taking the drugs, I ate more than I used to and slept a lot. After a few weeks, I became fat », explained lady Adzo. For his part, old Jérôme points to his work as the factor that contributed to his becoming overweight. « I used to work in the tax department. I spent more time in an air-conditioned office. I hardly had any time for sport », he says. These are just a few of the situations that may have encouraged obesity in these people.

Several environmental factors predispose to obesity: an unbalanced diet with excessive consumption of high-calorie foods such as fatty foods, refined white sugar, excessive salt consumption, certain medications, pathological eating behaviors such as uncontrollable bulimia and nocturnal polyphagia syndrome, i.e. the compulsive urge to get up and eat during the night, without being able to prevent this urge. Other factors include stress, depression and lack of physical activity. There are also hereditary factors that can favour obesity. Individuals with a family history of obesity have an approximately higher risk of obesity than those with no family history of obesity.

The consequences of obesity

Whether hereditary or behavioral in origin, obesity is a real danger to the body. It's an open door to cardiovascular disease and many other ailments. Carole, a 25-year-old patient at the CHU Sylvanus Olympio, links her diabetes to obesity...

Obese patients can suffer from respiratory problems such as breathlessness, sleep apnea and rheumatological pain. If left untreated, obesity can lead to cardiovascular complications, with the risk of hypertension, heart failure, stroke and arthritis.

In addition to these health risks, obesity can have other social repercussions for its victims. Obese people are often resentful of their shape. « I'm often ashamed to go out with my friends. The other thing is that I often have trouble finding my outfits on the market, especially my lingerie, frankly... » laments Adzo.

To avoid obesity, it's important to watch your diet and enjoy physical exercise. It's urgent to avoid a sedentary lifestyle.

William O.