The share of overweight people in Bulgaria has been steadily increasing over the past 15 years and it is expected that by 2025 every fifth man will suffer from obesity. The forecast comes from the Bulgarian Association for the Study of Obesity. These are yet another alarming data that show that the problem of overweight in our country is deepening more and more. In 2014, 42.5% of men and 28.7% of women were overweight. Their share will increase to 43.2% for men and 28.5% for women by 2025. In 2014, 16.8% of men and 14.4% of women suffered from obesity, and it is predicted that the share they will grow to 19% and 15.4% respectively in 2025. Severe obesity affected 4.2% of men and 6.6% of women in 2014. Their share will grow to 5.4% and 7.8%, respectively, in 2025. People with a body mass index (BMI) in the range of 25 to 29.9 kg/m2 are overweight. Obesity is observed in people with a BMI of 30-34.9 kg/m2, and severe obesity is found in people with a BMI > 35 kg/m2. It is even more worrying that Bulgaria is in one of the leading places in Europe in terms of childhood obesity. In 2019, one in five children was overweight or obese. In this regard, Bulgarian doctors proposed that obesity be recognized as a chronic disease in our country as well. Indeed, it is related to the presence of a chronic inflammatory process in the body and burdens the body not only physically, but also with changes in metabolism and immunity. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity is a chronic relapsing disease characterized by excessive accumulation of adipose tissue, which poses a health risk. Obesity is not only a disease of “rich” countries, because it is prevalent in poorer and more vulnerable societies. The causes of this disease are numerous: biological, mental, health, genetic, environmental factors, access to medical care or ultra-processed foods. Obesity is not the result of a lack of willpower. People who live with obesity are at risk of developing other chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer. In addition, obesity is a risk factor for a more severe course of Covid-19. Weight stigmatization is dangerous and leads to the perception that obesity is solely the individual’s responsibility. This can impair mental health and lead to reluctance to seek timely medical help. Obesity is the result of factors beyond a person’s control, according to the Bulgarian Association for the Study of Obesity. Biological and genetic factors play a huge role, as do environmental factors.
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