Obesity means carrying more body fat than is considered healthy for a given height, and it is recognized as a chronic medical condition rather than simply a matter of willpower. Left unaddressed, obesity has been shown to increase the risk of several serious health conditions, so getting an evaluation from a primary care physician is a reasonable first step for anyone concerned about their weight.
Obesity develops from a combination of factors that can include genetics, metabolism, medications, hormonal changes, and lifestyle patterns such as diet and physical activity. For some patients, weight gain is also connected to stress, sleep problems, or major life changes such as pregnancy or quitting smoking. Because the causes vary from person to person, an individualized evaluation is often more useful than a one size fits all approach.
Obesity is generally identified through body mass index, or BMI, along with waist measurement and other individual risk factors, rather than through a single symptom. A primary care physician can assess these measurements along with your overall health history to get a clearer picture than weight alone provides.
Risk factors for obesity include family history, certain medical conditions, some medications, low activity levels, and diet patterns high in calories relative to activity level. Extra weight carried around the waist, sometimes described as an apple shaped body type, has been associated with a higher risk of certain conditions compared with weight carried elsewhere on the body.
Your primary care physician will typically calculate your BMI using your height and weight, and may also measure your waist circumference. BMI is a useful screening tool, but it does not diagnose body fatness or overall health on its own, which is why your provider will also consider your medical history and any related risk factors before making a diagnosis or recommendation.
Treatment plans are personalized and may include nutrition counseling, structured exercise recommendations, and in some cases FDA-approved medications, including GLP-1 medications, prescribed and monitored by your physician. Our primary care team can also refer patients to our medical weight loss program for a more structured approach when appropriate.
Maintaining regular physical activity, following a balanced diet, and scheduling routine checkups can help you and your physician catch weight changes early, before they progress. Because BMI alone cannot predict individual health risk, ongoing conversations with your primary care physician are often more useful than a single measurement.
Obesity has been shown to increase the risk of conditions including type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, gallstones, and certain cancers. These risks are one reason our primary care physicians recommend an evaluation rather than waiting for a related condition to develop first.
Obesity is often connected to conditions such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and joint problems, and treating obesity as part of an overall care plan can help address these related conditions at the same time.
