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Obesity is a chronic (long-term) disease that develops when excess body fat builds up and begins to affects your health. There are a variety of causes and health risks that can impact women, men, and children, depending on their age, hormones, genetics, lifestyle, and medical history.
In this blog, we’ll explain how Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3 obesity are classified and what each stage impacts your health. Obesity can lead to serious health problems if not treated early, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and some types of cancer.
Body Mass Index (BMI) is used by healthcare professionals to determine if your weight is in a range based on your height. In simple terms, BMI compares how tall you are with how much you weigh. For adults, a healthy body mass index (BMI) falls between 18.5 and 24.9 kg/m2. Higher than this range is considered overweight or obese.
For example: Imagine two people who both weigh 200 pounds (91 kg). If one person is 6 feet tall and the other is 5 feet 4 inches tall, their BMI will be different because height affects how weight is distributed. The taller person may fall into the overweight range, while the shorter person is more likely to fall into the obesity range, even though they weigh the same. Here we see:
BMI Formula (Metric)
BMI = Weight (kg) ÷ Height (m)²
|
Person 1 |
Person 2 |
|
Weight = 91 kg |
Weight = 91 kg |
|
Height = 83 m (6 feet) |
Height = 1.63 m (5 feet 4 inches) |
|
BMI = 91 ÷ (1.83 × 1.83) |
BMI = 91 ÷ (1.63 × 1.63) |
|
BMI = 91 ÷ 3.35 |
BMI = 91 ÷ 2.66 |
|
BMI ≈ 27.2 (Overweight) |
BMI ≈ 34.2 (Class 1 Obesity) |
It’s important to remember that BMI is only a screening tool. It does not directly measure body fat or account for muscle mass, age, sex, or body composition.
Based on BMI:
Less than 18.5: Underweight
5–24.9: Healthy weight
0–29.9: Overweight
0–34.9: Class 1 obesity
0–39.9: Class 2 obesity
0 or higher: Class 3 obesity
Class 1 obesity is defined as a BMI between 30 and 34.9. It is the entry point into the obese range, and in many ways the most important stage to catch, because it is also the most responsive to intervention.
Insulin resistance with rising blood sugar, mildly elevated blood pressure and cholesterol, increased joint strain especially in the knees, early signs of fatty liver and reduced stamina are some early health risks.
Class 2 obesity is defined as a BMI between 35 and 39.9. At this point the health risks are no longer early or mild. They are active and significant.
At this stage chances of type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes are high. Some prevalent signs are elevated blood pressure, risk of cardiac arrest, hormonal disruption and joint deterioration.
Class 3 obesity, also called severe or morbid obesity, is defined as a BMI of 40 and above. This is the most serious level of the obesity classification system and carries the highest risk of life-threatening complications.
At this stage, there is high risk of heart attack and stroke, along with advanced type 2 diabetes with complications, significant liver damage, serious joint pain affecting daily mobility and substantial reduced life expectancy.
Obesity is a multi-factorial disease which is not due to one single cause but a combination of biological, behavioral, environmental and other factors. That is why sometimes healthy eating and regular exercise is not sufficient to prevent and/or manage this condition. An obese person may have these common causes of obesity.
Common causes of obesity are:
Women are affected by obesity at any stage of life. Hormonal shifts and reproductive health and life changes can impact body weight. It may also affect fertility, pregnancy and every day health. Some major factors that can cause obesity in women are:
Hormonal changes: There may be changes in appetite and metabolism hormones that affect weight gain and make it harder for the female to lose weight.
Pregnancy: Gaining weight while pregnant is normal, but gaining too much weight and having difficulties losing weight postpartum may result in becoming obese.
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS): Those who suffer from PCOS have insulin resistance and higher body weight which makes it harder to maintain healthy body weight.
Menopause: The decrease in estrogen leads to developing slower metabolism and body fat, increasing the risk of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases.
Emotional health: Stress, anxiety, depression, and emotional eating are other causes that may contribute to weight gain and long-term weight management problems.
At Southdale Physicians, we recognize that each woman’s journey towards weight loss is unique. Make an appointment today because our Medical Weight Loss Program offers personalized, physician-supervised care tailored to your health needs, lifestyle, and long-term goals.
Obesity affects men differently than women. Men are prone to excess weight around the waist and abdomen. Common risks associated with obesity for men are:
Many factors contribute to childhood obesity, just as they do in adults, but family routines and daily habits play an even greater role. By establishing a balanced lifestyle early can help children maintain a healthy weight as they grow.
Some Common Causes of Childhood Obesity are:
The journey to a successful weight loss program is more than just dieting. It begins with a plan tailored to your body, lifestyle and life goals. At Southdale Physicians, we understood that losing weight required a personalized approach to ensure you could reach your objectives with expert guidance and care all along the way.
Southdale offers five fundamental pillars of Medical Weight Loss Program:
The Medical Weight Loss Program at Southdale Physicians is designed in such a way to overcome obesity easily with personalized strategies intended to meet your health goals and lifestyle needs. By providing medically-supervised treatment, nutritional counseling, and evidence-based weight management approaches, we can help lower the health risks associated with excess weight and help achieve sustainable weight loss.
