THE cardiovascular health It is the factor that influences men the most when it comes to taking care of their weight (34% of them), while emotional health is the factor that influences women the most (33%) . This arises from Survey on knowledge and attitude of Spaniards towards obesitycarried out with 3,078 people and promoted by Novo Nordisk with technical support from GAD3.
The doctor Mar Malagon, president of the Spanish Society for the Study of Obesity (SEEDO), however, draws attention to the impact of weight and the cardiovascular aspect at certain stages of a woman’s life, such as menopause . Even though only 5% of those surveyed responded that the effect they most associated with menopause is a higher cardiovascular riskbehind hot flashes (49%), weight gain (30%) and mood changes (16%), the expert specifies that “in women, and more particularly in men menopause periodthere is a drop in estrogen levels which, among other things, can contribute to abdominal fat gain, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Among the more than 200 comorbidities associated with obesity (cardiovascular diseases, heart disease, joints, fatty liver, different types of cancer, infertilityd, etc.) those that worry Spaniards the most are cardiovascular diseases (33%), cancer (19%), joint pain and damage (12%) and depression and anxiety (12%). For Dr. Malagón, “in addition to being a disease in itself, obesity is also a risk factor for the development of other diseases.” comorbidities or associated illnesses. Hence the importance of the population being aware that obesity or overweight is not only a question of weight, but of health in general.
Self-diagnosis
Another problem reflected in the survey results is that 75% of the population recognize now obesity as a diseaseeven if the level of ignorance remains high and the lack of information is indicated by 2 out of 10 people questioned as one of the main causes of obesity and overweight.
Thus, the reasons which trigger obesity are still poorly understood: only less than half of the sample (45%) knows the influence of genetic factor and 76% think that an inadequate lifestyle (poor diet and sedentary lifestyle) is the main cause. This is a popular belief which contrasts with the explanation of the president of SEEDO, who specifies that “Obesity is a disease in which, beyond lifestylemany other factors are also involved, such as genetic, biological, psychological, socio-economic or environmental factors, as well as hours of sleep and stress level. Hence the importance of going to the doctor to lose weight.
Exercising (65%) and dieting (60%) are the steps most respondents would take to lose weight as their first option and only 13% would be willing to receive it. pharmacological treatmentless than those who would opt for other alternatives, such as intermittent fasting (18%). In this regard, the president of SEEDO recalls that “maintaining a healthy lifestyle is essential, but it is not always sufficient”, emphasizing as an appropriate formula for obese people to achieve weight loss that actually makes a difference for their health “a balanced diet, physical exercise, psychological motivation if necessary and treatment, if indicated.
Although 8 out of 10 Spaniards say they have exceeded their ideal weight at some point, there is still a lack of knowledge about when a weight situation overweight or obesity (2 in 10 people do not know what their healthy weight would be). In fact, even though 93% of people surveyed say they know what body mass index, or BMI, is – a standardized formula that helps identify whether you’re above a healthy weight based on your height – and could explain what this means, the reality is that only 55% of those who They claim to know the concept and explain it correctly.. On the other hand, less than 4 in 10 people (37%) have measured their abdominal circumference on one occasion or another, despite the close link it has with cardiovascular health.
“With this investigation, since Nordisk We have studied a social reality that we must know to face what the WHO calls Ithe great global crisis obesity. We feel the responsibility to promote better knowledge of associated comorbidities, the causes of this disease and the value that comes from relying on health professionals to deal with it, which we do through information spaces such as www.la Verdaddesupeso.es», concludes Alba Ruiz, director of communications and CSR at Novo Nordisk Spain.
