Dr Khomotjo on how obesity can affect your health
Being overweight and obese can cause tremendous health implications and may result in life threatening illnesses.
POLOKWANE – Review spoke to local medical doctor, Khomotjo Tsebe from Moletjie to find out what implications one will be prone to if they become overweight or obese or even under weight.
“Many health conditions diabetes, hypertension, heart diseases as well as cancers are a result of being overweight. Now it is then important for people, women mostly, to keep and stick to healthy diets coupled with a active lifestyle so that they can help to prevent falling ill. One cannot be productive when they are not healthy,” she explained.
Dr Tsebe explained how and why when a patient is consulting a doctor, doctors perform all types of tests including BMI (Body Mass Index) to see if a person falls under the overweight category or below it, a person must weigh according to their height, he added. “Extra weight is unhealthy, it delays a persons from being active and productive because the extra weight hinders being active and thus people who are overweight have rather lazy lifestyles, which lack physical activity such as walking or even jogging,” she said.
The doctor says that people need to look out for the following signs to check if they are overweight:
• Constantly running out breath even when taking a brisk walk
• Overwhelming or increased sweating
• Snoring
• Feeling very tired every day
• Back pains and joint pains
• Low self esteem
Obesity and being overweight is not only a problem that is faced by adults, explained the doctor, children and teenagers are also at risk of being overweight and obese which will result in them suffering from a number of diseases which include: asthma, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart diseases, liver problems, menstrual problems, sleeping disorders and many other. “It is very common in children nowadays than in the past mainly because children of today are not physically active and would rather stay glued to gadgets and television sets,” said Dr Tsebe.
She advises parents to enroll their children in extra mural activities, which include sports activities so that they can get used to keeping active from a young age. “Also parents need to enforce healthier diets or meals at home, as well as ensure that they prepare and pack healthier lunches for their children for when they go to school. This must introduced and implemented as early in children as possible so that it becomes a lifestyle that they adhere to lifelong,” she concluded.
Brisk walks, jogging are just some of the light exercises or ways that people can follow to boost and lead a active lifestyle, not forgetting keeping hydrated with water.
