Links Between Obesity and Asthma
Obesity is a serious condition that is typically characterized by a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or above. BMI is a measurement chart that provides a comparison of height weight in order to determine whether you are obese, overweight or have normal weight. Obesity can have extremely negative repercussions on your overall health, affect your quality of life and is one of the biggest causes of preventable death worldwide. Asthma is a chronic disease that narrows and inflames the airways in the lungs. An asthmatic individual often experiences recurrent wheezing, tightness in the chest, coughing and shortness of breath.
Link between obesity and asthma
Now, new research has confirmed what doctors have long suspected – there are strong links between these two conditions. It has been discovered that higher the BMI, greater your risk of having asthma. In fact, your risk of suffering from asthma will be more than tripled if you also suffer from obesity. But the reasons for this have not yet been identified. Some researchers suggest that obesity causes a low grade system wide inflammation which might be a major factor in causing asthma. But others argue that obesity leads to insulin resistance and is therefore responsible for causing and aggravating asthma.
Control your obesity
Obesity also enhances the risk of a number of health conditions such as type-2 diabetes, heart disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and osteoarthritis as well as some kinds of cancer. That is why it is essential to control obesity with the help of weight loss treatments that include essential lifestyle changes such as a healthy diet and regular physical activity. These can be incorporated as a part of a holistic fitness program. Some cases of obesity need to be treated with prescription weight loss medications. This will help you keep obesity linked health conditions under control and reduce the severity of their symptoms.