Obesity: The Heavyweight Champion of Health Problems
This is a discussion about obesity and weight loss doctors because they are largely sought after all over the world.
Are you tired of being mistaken for a boulder or a sumo wrestler?
Do you want to be able to see your toes again without the help of a periscope?
Well, fear not! Help is here in the form of bariatric healthcare providers, also known as bariatricians. This discussion goes into details about obesity and weight loss doctors that are trained to make it happen for us all.
Many of them are found in tertiary healthcare centers like the Mayo Clinic and John Hopkins. But there are some in your very neck of the woods too. Below is a brief discussion of the need for these obesity and weight loss doctors and what they can do for you.
What are Bariatric Doctors?
These superheros of the healthcare world specialize in treating obesity and weight-related health problems. They’re basically the Batman and Robin of weight loss. Some of them even have the power to perform bariatric surgery, a surgical procedure that helps patients lose weight.
What is Obesity?
Obesity is like a big, fluffy cloud that follows you everywhere. It’s when your body fat is above a certain level, which is determined by your BMI, or Body Mass Index. If your BMI is between 25 and 29.9, you’re considered overweight. If it’s over 30, you’re officially obese. But don’t worry, your healthcare provider can calculate your BMI for you or you can learn how to do it yourself using apps or websites.
How Can Doctors for Obesity Help?
Obesity can cause health problems like diabetes and sleep apnea, which can make you feel like you’re carrying a whole elephant on your back. But with the help of bariatric healthcare providers, you can lower your risk of developing these health problems by losing weight. They have more training and expertise in treating obesity than general healthcare providers, and can offer a variety of treatments like nutrition, exercise, behavior changes, and medicines. And if necessary, they may even recommend weight loss surgery.
Doctors for Obesity and Weight Loss
Bariatric Treatment Plans
A bariatric healthcare provider will create a tailored treatment plan that takes into consideration your culture and traditions, especially around food choices and types of exercise. They’ll use a holistic approach that covers all aspects of weight loss, including nutrition, exercise, behavior, and medication. With their guidance, you’ll be on your way to a healthier, lighter you in no time.
The Weight of the Problem
Obesity has become a common, serious, and costly problem in the U.S. In fact, approximately one third of adults in the U.S. are obese. But with the help of bariatric healthcare providers, we can fight this heavyweight champion of health problems and come out on top.
Key Points:
- Bariatric healthcare providers specialize in treating obesity and weight-related health problems.
- Obesity is determined by your BMI, which can be calculated by your obesity doctor for weight loss or using apps and websites.
- Bariatric healthcare providers have more training and expertise in treating obesity than general healthcare providers.
- Bariatric treatment plans cover all aspects of weight loss and are tailored to meet individual needs and preferences.
- Obesity is a common, serious, and costly problem in the U.S., but with the help of bariatric healthcare providers, we can overcome it.
Why You Might Need to See a Healthcare Provider Who Specializes in Obesity:
- Obesity can lead to a number of serious health conditions, including diabetes, arthritis, hypertension, stroke, sleep apnea, diseases in heart, liver, lungs and cancer.
- Treatment – It’s important that you get the right treatment and plan it.
- What to Expect at Your First Visit During your initial visit, your weight loss healthcare provider may take a medical history, physical exam (including BMI, waist circumference, and blood pressure), look at your health problems related to obesity, look for other medical problems that might cause weight gain, look at how ready you are to start an exercise program, find out if you need tests, help you make realistic weight loss goals, give you a nutrition plan, tell you to keep a food diary, and find out if you need a weight-loss medicine.
- Information – Your weight loss healthcare provider should also give you information about healthy eating habits, exercises, how to change health behaviors, how mental health affects obesity, complications of obesity, and benefits and risks of medicines.
- Follow-Up Visits – At each follow-up visit, your healthcare provider will check your progress. He or she will make changes to your treatment as needed. If you aren’t losing enough weight, your healthcare provider will suggest that you make other changes. As you lose weight and your health gets better, your healthcare provider might change some of your medicines.
- Changing Needs – Your healthcare provider will also talk with you about your changing needs. For example, if you try other treatments and your weight loss stops, your healthcare provider might talk with you about weight-loss surgery.
Overall, it’s important to work with a healthcare provider who specializes in obesity (obesity and weight loss doctors) to ensure you receive the best possible treatment and care for your health.
Basic Weight Loss tests
What tests might your obesity doctor order? If you’re struggling with obesity or your weight is affecting your health, your healthcare provider may want to check some factors related to your condition.
Here are some tests they may order:
- Fasting blood glucose and hemoglobin A1c tests to check for diabetes
- Lipid and cholesterol level tests
- Thyroid-stimulating hormone level tests
- Liver blood tests to check how well your liver is functioning
- Kidney function blood tests to check how well your kidneys are functioning
- Vitamin D level tests
- Electrocardiogram (ECG) to assess your heart rhythm
- Exercise testing to see how well your heart works during physical activity
- Resting metabolic rate tests to see how many calories you burn while at rest
Depending on your specific medical needs, your obesity doctor may decide to order other tests.
How can you find a healthcare provider who specializes in obesity?
If you’re struggling with obesity, your primary healthcare provider may be able to refer you to a bariatric healthcare provider (weight loss , obesity doctor). You can also search for healthcare providers who specialize in obesity through the Obesity Medicine Association’s online listing of healthcare providers.
Another option is to visit the American Board of Obesity Medicine’s website, which has a list of healthcare providers who are credentialed in obesity medicine, as well as additional information on obesity treatment.
Let Us Define Body Mass Index
- When someone eats too much or doesn’t eat healthy food, they can become overweight or obese.
- Being overweight or obese can make a person sick with diseases like diabetes, heart disease, certain types of cancer, and stroke.
- It’s not good for your health to be overweight or obese, and it can even cause death.
- Even though it’s not healthy, more people today are overweight or obese than ever before.
- A funny word for it is a “modern epidemic,” because it’s happening a lot in the world now.
- Doctors use a tool called BMI to see if someone is overweight or obese.
- BMI uses a person’s weight and height to figure out if they are healthy or not.
- If a person has a BMI of 18.5 or less, they are too thin.
- If a person has a BMI between 18.5 and 25, they are healthy.
- If a person has a BMI between 25 and 30, they are overweight.
- If a person has a BMI between 30 and 35, they are in class 1 obesity.
- If a person has a BMI between 35 and 40, they are in class 2 obesity.
- If a person has a BMI of 40 or more, they are in class 3 obesity, also called morbid obesity.
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