What is Diabesity™?
Bariatric Surgery in Los Angeles, California
Combine the words diabetes and obesity and you get the term Diabesity™. Trademarked in the U.S. by the non-profit group Shape Up America, the term fittingly describes the medical condition where a patient develops type 2 diabetes caused by excessive weight.
Also called cardiometabolic disease or metabolic syndrome, Diabesity™ is becoming more and more common:
- The American Diabetes Association estimates that 50 percent of all American adults are now at risk for developing type 2 diabetes because they have excess abdominal fat and insulin resistance (which is the predecessor of diabetes).
- Experts believe that 95 percent of all confirmed cases of type 2 diabetes can be linked to obesity.
The Connection Between Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes
Carrying excess fat around the abdomen leads to increased fat in the liver, causing insulin resistance.
That is why medical authorities now believe that a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI) can help predict whether or not a person will develop type 2 diabetes.
Consider this information from a 2006 American Diabetes Association meeting report:
- Compared to a normal-weight 18-year-old person whose lifetime risk of diabetes is just 17 percent, an obese individual’s risk of type 2 diabetes triples to nearly 55 percent.
Consequences of Diabesity™
The complications from Diabesity™ can be life-threatening. Here are just a few:
- Heart attack
- Kidney failure
- Nerve damage
- Limb amputations
- Blindness
How to Reduce Your Risk of Diabesity™
If you are obese, losing weight is the number-one way to protect yourself against Diabesity™. Weight loss surgical options such as gastric bypass, the LAP-BAND System® or REALIZE™ Band can have a tremendous impact on a patient with type 2 diabetes.
Approximately 95 percent of type 2 diabetes cases are cured after patients undergo weight loss surgery.
If you have type 2 diabetes or are on the path to developing this serious disease, please do not hesitate to contact weight loss surgery specialist Dr. Carson Liu. Located in Los Angeles, California, Dr. Liu has been honored by the American Diabetes Association for his research and clinical practice efforts to help patients conquer diabetes.
