What the COVID-19 pandemic has caused is a sedentary lifestyle. With almost half of the population working from home, the routines have been adversely affected and lifestyle has changed. Binge eating, not moving, and lazing out have caused weight gain in people, which is a major cause of concern. Dr. Sanjay K. Jain, MBBS, MD (Medicine), working with Apple Hospital, Indore says, “Obesity refers to being overweight and the parameter to determine it is the Body Mass Index (BMI), which is weight in kilograms divided by height in meter square (kg/m2). This way, we identify the class or grade of obesity, usually categorized into 3 grades”.
Causes of Obesity
Dr. Sanjay explains that the two major reasons that cause obesity are:
- Not following a proper diet or overeating
- Lack of physical activity
Other factors may include the role of genetics, i.e. family inheritance, certain other diseases, and medications or unhealthy lifestyle practices. “Today in these tough times, where most of us are working from home, we tend to wake up and directly sit in front of the screens. Also, while we are continuously at home, we have a temptation to eat more since there are no restrictions as compared to in offices. Apart from this, a stress-free life makes you feel completely relaxed and all this contributes to obesity in one way or the other” says our expert. “I too have come across patients who have gained a lot of weight after lockdown” he adds.
What Can It Lead To?
“Obesity is a source of many other diseases”. These diseases include:
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- Osteoporosis
- Osteoarthritis
- Heart diseases or strokes
- Kidney failure
- Certain types of cancers like liver cancer
Avoid Overeating
To avoid overeating, Dr. Sanjay says that one can make a proper schedule for the day and follow it. Include proper meal times in the 24hr schedule and restrict yourself from munching unhealthy snacks between two meals. You can also make a complete diet plan for the day or the whole week. You may also consult a dietitian if you are already overweight and wish to cut down unwanted calories from your daily diet. They can provide you with a proper diet chart.
Overeating in The Name of Building Resistance
Now that the health experts are stressing overbuilding the body’s immunity in order to fight the novel coronavirus, people tend to eat more proteins, fats, and foods that boost immunity. On this, our expert comments, “Excess of anything is harmful. Our body only accepts and absorbs what is required by it and throws out the rest. However, if you continue to take more and more, it can only harm the body.” Therefore, eating according to your body’s requirements is necessary. Also, avoid the intake of artificial supplements that are very easily available in the market these days. They can lead to certain complications and are not advisable.
Tips to Follow
Here are some of the tips as advised by our expert:
- Avoid intake foods high in fats, having a high glycaemic index, i.e. foods containing refined sugar like pizza, burger, etc. or those containing too much sugar
- Follow a balanced diet that contains 50-55% of carbs, 30% of proteins, 15% fat. If this balance is disturbed, the chances of obesity will be higher.
- Include more salad and green vegetables in the diet, since they contain fiber and have low-calorie content.
- Indulge in physical activities every day. A daily 45mins brisk walking is recommended. However, if you cannot step out, as in today’s scenario due to the COVID-19 pandemic, spot jogging, skipping, etc. can be done.
- One can also practice yoga, aerobics, or any other exercises for at least 30-45mins every day.
- Keep yourself away from bad stress and emotional eating
Therefore, people need to be very careful with their diet, lifestyle, and other factors that can be a cause of obesity. Controlling it from the very beginning is important. Especially now that we spend most of our time at home, caring about our physical health should be taken seriously, in order to be mentally fit too.
