Obesity gets thrown around a lot these days. We hear about rising obesity rates in the U.S. all the time on the news and in the papers. Some people call it an epidemic. Over the past year, we’ve heard about how obese people are at higher risk of disease and other health conditions. But what exactly is obesity?

There is an actual definition of what obesity is. It’s not some obscure condition. In adults, a person is considered obese when they have a body mass index (BMI) of over 30. It’s typically classified as a medical condition where there is an excess of body fat to the point where it starts having adverse effects on one’s health.

How to Calculate BMI

It’s pretty easy to calculate BMI. Basically, all you do is take a person’s weight and divide it by the square of their height. Any BMI under 25 is considered normal. Between 26-30 is classified as overweight, and over 30 BMI is obese. Some countries use smaller numbers to classify obesity.

The Risks of Obesity

There are a lot of risks associated with obesity. Obese people are more likely to encounter health complications like type-2 diabetes, gallbladder disease, and heart disease. They also often have higher blood pressure, are at greater risk of stroke, arthritis, and chronic pain.

When you’re carrying around that much unhealthy weight, it’s hard for your body to be as resilient as it needs to be to fight off disease and keep you healthy. Obesity is linked to a higher occurrence of multiple types of cancer, infertility, and high cholesterol.

In addition to these clinical issues, obesity has a serious impact on a person’s quality of life. Anyone who has been obese or overweight can attest to how difficult life can be. Simple tasks like standing or walking short distances become more difficult. It’s harder to walk upstairs and exercise. Your joints are under a great deal of stress from the weight. Overall, obesity is a grave health risk that requires attention.

Dealing with Obesity

The approach to dealing with obesity is different given peoples’ various conditions. Some people are so obese that they can’t pick up jogging or join the local Crossfit gym. Now, there are surgical interventions that collapse or restrict the size of the stomach to prevent overeating. These people have to go on special diets to stay in good health and help their bodies cope with the changes.

Luckily, most of those situations are extreme. Obese people can typically see significant weight loss results with small but incremental changes in how they eat, exercise, and supplement. Even small calorie reductions can trigger significant weight loss because maintaining such a large amount of weight takes a lot of work. Once the eating stops and there is a shift toward healthy living, the weight starts to come off quickly.

Doing things like drinking a lot of water, getting better sleep, staying away from unhealthy foods like fast food and sugars, and other basic diet restrictions will have positive results. Weight loss won’t happen overnight, but as obese people move into a more healthy lifestyle, they reduce the risks of the adverse health conditions laid out above.

Peptides & Obesity

The peptide 5-amino-1MQ has shown incredibly promising results around treating obesity in tests done on mice. Essentially, the peptide blocks the NNMT enzyme that’s active in fat tissue and plays a critical role in regulating metabolism. Once inhibited, the mice given 5-amino-1MQ saw a large reduction in fat mass and the size of fat cells. In one particular study, the mice given the NNMT blocker saw a 30% reduction in fat mass in just ten days. Their other health markers also improved as they lost weight. What’s even more amazing is that this happened without any changes in food intake vs control groups. They also experienced reduced inflammation and saw higher stem cell activation in muscle tissue. More research is needed for future medical possibilities and possible FDA approval for human use.