Russia is turning into a country of fat people: 80 million citizens are obese

60 percent of Russians (more than 80 million) are overweight. This is evidenced by impartial statistics. Every year, according to doctors’ forecasts, half a million will be added to the army of plump citizens. The top regions whose residents suffer from obesity the most are Omsk, Oryol, and Kurgan regions.

Experts discussed how psychological problems are associated with excess weight and what diseases threaten fat people at a conference at the National News Service.

“The number of people with problematic weight increases significantly every year all over the world,” says endocrinologist, member of the Russian Association of Endocrinologists Viktor Zhilyaev. – According to official statistics from the World Health Organization, which conducted the largest “cut” in 2016, 1.9 billion people, more than a quarter of the planet’s population, were overweight, of which 650 million were directly obese. If the trend continues, by 2030 62% of people in the world will be overweight.

In Russia, in 2016, already 60% of residents were overweight. The sad statistics also apply to children. The average annual growth rate of overweight young citizens under 13 is 8 percent, and 9 percent for adolescents. Over the past year alone, their number has increased by 108 thousand (the total number of obese children is 6 million).

“I had an appointment before the conference,” the endocrinologist continues. – 70% of my patients were treated with a weight problem, with type 2 diabetes mellitus, which is a direct consequence of this condition, 90% of cases are associated with obesity.

But in general, obesity leads to many other diseases. It has been proven that eleven types of cancer are associated with excess weight. Other ailments include strokes, heart attacks, atherosclerosis, obstructive apnea syndrome, when a person stops breathing during sleep, fatty liver disease, which is increasingly being diagnosed in children, which was not the case before. The danger also lies in the increased load on the joints of the legs.

Obesity needs to be treated in conjunction with endocrinology and psychology, to understand what the “plug” is, why a person seeks support in food, says psychologist Anastasia Kasyanenko: “When we eat problems, we do not understand that food should only be food. At that moment, it takes on much more functions than just saturating the body.”

– Each person has his own path to obesity. There are usually many factors,” continues Viktor Zhilyaev. – Diet and lack of physical activity are just the tip of the iceberg. The main reason lies in the psyche – a person eats emotions, boredom, worries. He sees food as a source of comfort, and it is very difficult to cope with gluttony on his own. Many people are left alone with themselves, because, in particular, the institution of neighborhood has been destroyed, and there is no one to help them right here and now.

“Food addiction is akin to drug addiction,” psychologist Anastasia Kasyanenko supports her colleague. “Mental health has a clear connection with weight,” continues Anastasia Kasyanenko. – I can admit that I myself suffered from an eating disorder for fifteen years, when in a short period of time you gain 30 kilograms, then lose 20 kilograms.

Our grandmothers always said: if you are 175 centimeters tall, then you need to weigh 75 kilograms, and in no case less. This is, of course, not true, doctors say. 75 kilograms at 175 centimeters is the limit above which a person can safely be diagnosed as “pre-obese.”

The “French” formula – height minus one hundred and ten minus another 10% – is suitable for girls and young women under 35 years of age. With the same height of 175 centimeters, having a weight of 58 kilograms is absolutely normal. After 35-38 years, the body, as a rule, takes its toll, and the last 10 percent can be ignored. With a height of 175 centimeters, for a 40-50 year old woman, a weight of 65 kilograms is ideal. Plus or minus three kilograms is also not scary.

– Women have several periods during their lives when the risk of weight gain increases: pregnancy and time after childbirth, premenopause and menopause. Many people do not change their lifestyle: they eat as before and do not increase physical activity. But if previously their weight was ideal, then during these very periods the situation changes, which causes misunderstanding and confusion among women, especially at first. And the answer is simple: body weight is growing rapidly due to hormonal changes, says Viktor Zhilyaev.

– It is much more difficult for women to feel at full weight than for men. Men usually accept themselves as they are. And women from adolescence set inflated demands on themselves, strive for incredible criteria, which leads to depression. You need to perceive yourself as you are, and then your mood will begin to improve, and then you will be able to cope with excess weight, concludes the psychologist.