What is Diabesity™?
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.
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