By Dr. Shobha Gupta
Obesity is a chronic medical condition characterized by too much body fat. Obesity is diagnosed by a number called the Body Mass Index (BMI), which calculates the amount of body fat. Your BMI is calculated from your current height and weight. The higher the BMI the more body fat a person has.
We are all aware that being obese is not healthy. It's not a choice that one makes in life, contrary to popular belief. No one would want to suffer the problems caused by obesity. The reason for obesity can be anything from eating disorders to depression to lack of physical activities to hormonal imbalances etc. What is important is to take a step with determination and be a part of the fight against obesity.
Problems due to obesity:
Yet another growing problem in today’s time among the population is infertility caused due to Obesity. Weight problem cases are on increase everywhere, and so are infertility clinics. Almost 10% of couples in the country get affected by infertility and are hesitant to take medical advice. The obesity rates in India have been rising at an extensive rate, out of which quarter of the women’s population is defined as medically obese.
Experts believe obesity has to do with the lifestyle issues of the major population in urban India. The urban populace has easy access to high-calorie packaged foods such as burgers, chips and colas. Moreover, people in cities follow a sedentary lifestyle. Little or no physical activity and a predilection for gizmos such as video games, computers are to blame.
What Fertility Issues Are Caused By Excessive Weight Gain?
- Irregular or infrequent menstrual cycles
- Increased risk of infertility
- Less success with fertility treatments
- Increased risk of miscarriage.
- Obesity also increases the risks of high blood pressure and diabetes during the pregnancy
I see at least 10 to 25 patients in a day coming to me for infertility out of which 50 to 60% are obese”. Current figures in New Delhi indicate that every second person fulfills criteria of obesity or has excess abdominal fat.
Women who are obese are also at a greater risk for pregnancy complications like having a C-section, giving birth to a large baby or even developing gestational diabetes and hypertension.
Shilpi Sachdeva (name changed on request) 30, a patient of mine, a housewife, her world came to an end when she got to know that she can’t be pregnant. She was fat, Shilpi’s BMI was 35 before marriage and she is 5ft taller but she ignored. When the pressure from in-laws increases to have baby then she underwent Ovarian reserve testing which helps determining the quality and quantity of the eggs available for ovulation.
Her tests showed that she has developed abnormalities in her eggs that make them impossible to fertilize – and is suffering from infertility due to which she is now unable to conceive and the sole reason being her infertile is her fat.
We advised Shilpi to lose weight first and opt for IVF, many other obese infertility patients in our program wind up achieving successful IVF after they lose weight.
Less time and loose more:
On the other hand, with little or no time in hand of our young urban population, they need to loose weight on time and can shed any exorbitant amount to look good.
Patients undergoing massive weight loss after Bariatric surgery will need cosmetic surgery to remove loose overhanging skin from various body areas. The number of Indian patients seeking body contouring procedures after dramatic weight loss like Abdominoplasty, breast lift surgery, lower body lift, arm lift etc.
Hormonal Imbalance:
It is also one thing which is caused by Obesity. The obesity epidemic in teenage girls and also in men has led to increased insulin production and in some cases a hormonal imbalance called polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) can leads to heart disease, diabetes, and infertility.
Many young girls complaints about irregular periods, skin acne and abnormal hair growth on their body which appear to be caused by a higher than normal production of male hormones.
If overweight girls with PCOS can lose upto15 kgs they might resume their regular periods without medication. This would also improve their other PCOS related symptoms and also increases their chances of conceiving.
Peripheral fat deposition leads to conversion of male hormones into female hormones. This not only increases the deposition of fat in the breast region but also results in a reduction of sperm production in men.
LIFESTYLE CHANGES TO GET RID OF OBESITY:
Obesity needs to be managed long-term with a combination of diet, increased activity and lifestyle changes.
- Balanced diet
- Regular physical exercise and relaxation exercise
- Eat three meals everyday breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Reduce your intake of food or drinks that contain high level of sugar and fat
- Eat more fruits, green leafy vegetables and salads
- Quit smoking and drinking
- Go for brisk walking twice in a day for 30 minutes
Stay healthy and obesity free..!!
About the MOTHERS LAP IVF CENTRE
The Mothers Lap is a world class advanced fertility, IVF and Surrogacy centre based in Pitampura, New Delhi. This Center is the brightest ray of hope for all those couples who have been trying for years to conceive. The clinic provides the treatment to childless couples, also provides treatment for male and female infertility, diagnosis, counseling and many more under one roof. Mothers Lap gets all the investigations done; provide 4D Doppler studies, as well as all the drugs and injections are provided.
Dr. Shobha Gupta is the managing director of Mothers Lap IVF centre (MBBS (LHMC) DGO (MAMC), MD in OBS & Gynae, Trained in ART under Justus Leibig University (Germany), Member of FOGSI, AOGD, IFS, IMA). Mother's lap IVF center is dedicated to every aspect of infertility treatment to help the patients to achieve pregnancy in the shortest possible time.
Contact Mothers Lap IVF Centre for Surrogacy, Infertility treatments, Egg donation, Test Tube baby, IUI, ICSI and Freezing embryos.
 |
| Dr. Shobha Gupta |
Infertility is a condition which affects any couples mentally and physically both. But in this condition person or couple should be strong and meet your doctor and after diagnosis get the perfect infertility treatment accordingly your problem.
ReplyDelete