Obesity - How obesity affects your life

Obesity

How obesity affects your life

Being obese can also affect your daily life and how you feel about yourself.

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines (accessed 20 April 2009).

Source:
Fontaine KR, Barofsky I.
Obesity and health-related quality of life.
Obesity Reviews. 2001; 2: 173-182.

Many people who are obese say they aren't happy with their bodies and feel life is harder because of their size. These negative feelings make it harder to summon up the will to lose weight. Eating is comforting, so feeling this way can lead to eating even more.

People deal with their size in different ways. But even people with a "strong character" can find it painful if they feel they don't conform to the "right" look.

Life can be difficult in practical ways. It can be hard to find clothes that fit, for example. And seats are often not designed for larger body sizes.
You might also find it uncomfortabl e or even painful to do everyday things such as driving, walking, climbing stairs or carrying groceries.
Many people with obesity say they feel bad about themselves. They don't like the way they look. They might not give themselves credit for the good things they've done. Or they might feel worthless. This is called low self-esteem. Other people feel ashamed or guilty.
You might be more likely to suffer from mental health problems such as depression or anxiety disorder. You might also have a condition called binge eating disorder, when you eat more at once than most people would.
Feeling bad can affect your social life or your work. For example, you might not feel able to make friends, go to college or even go shopping. Perhaps you don't apply for jobs because you don't think you'll be good enough to get one.
Other people can make life harder. In a perfect world, nobody would be judged by how they look. But people often have set ideas about what overweight people are like and why they "allowed" themselves to put on so much weight. Other people might think you are greedy, sloppy or lazy.

Sources for the information on this page:

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines (accessed 20 April 2009).

Fontaine KR, Barofsky I.Obesity and health-related quality of life.Obesity Reviews. 2001; 2: 173-182.

This information was last updated on May 01, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

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