Why Obesity Patients Have Coronavirus More Severe?

It is known that obesity is not just a physical problem caused by eating too much, but a disease that needs to be treated on its own.

During the pandemic period we are in, the vital risk brought about by obesity, which is already preparing the ground for many health problems, scares many people. General Surgery Specialist Assoc. Dr. Murat Çağ warned that obesity patients are much more vulnerable to Covid-19 and gave important information about the relationship between coronavirus and obesity.

Don't let obesity shorten your life span 

A person's body mass index (BMI), ie height-weight ratio, above 30 is a diagnosis of obesity, so this is a disease. A BMI of over 35 and accompanying diseases such as infertility, Type 2 diabetes, respiratory, joint and heart problems necessitate surgical treatment. If the BMI exceeds 40, it is a disease that requires urgent surgical intervention. Even if the BMI exceeds 35, human life is considerably shortened. The difference between the actual age and the actual age of metabolism determined during the dietician examination is the time from life.

Respiratory system can be significantly damaged

Obesity; It is caused by increased fat deposits in the neck, abdomen, stomach and heart. Therefore, the lungs cannot be sufficiently ventilated and breathing becomes insufficient. It is difficult to breathe when walking or moving a little. Lungs cannot be cleaned sufficiently and cannot clear the blood adequately. In summary, your respiratory system works insufficiently, you cannot be oxygenated. It causes snoring at night. Snoring is caused by the compression of fat in the neck. The cause of the condition called sleep apnea that causes waking like drowning is also obesity.

Fatigue and weakness can become permanent

Obesity is not just a disease of gravity. Adipokines, cytokines, hormones (estriol) are produced in the accumulated fat reservoir. These cause rheumatism pains in humans. A continuous inflammation in the body, ie infection, creates a pre-inflammatory state. Fatigue, exhaustion, edema in the body, and respiratory insufficiency such as asthma are prepared. Studies show that; Because of all these processes that reduce the quality of life, the psychology of people with a BMI above 40 is as sensitive as those who have undergone organ transplantation. While obese individuals fight all these problems, Covid-19 causes this vital risk to increase much more. In addition to all these, diabetes is also a result of obesity. The fat that surrounds the heart and penetrates the cells is a result of obesity. Adipokines produced in the body due to obesity cause immune suppression. As is known, cytokine storm is a lethal phase of Covid-19. In the body of obese individuals, there are already abundant cytokines.

As a result of the research conducted at the National Institute of Health of the United States of America, groups at risk of life in terms of Covid-19 are listed as follows:

1. Men
2. Over 65
3. Obesity
4. Chronic lung diseases
5. Heart diseases
6. Diabetes
7. Those receiving active chemotherapy
8. Organ transplant patients using immunosuppressives

Obese individuals caught with Covid-19 are 1.5 to 3 times more likely to die than those without weight problems. However, if they get Covid-19 and go to intensive care, they are 1.5 times more likely to be intubated than other people. The prone posture, which can be applied to everyone if intubated, cannot be applied to these patients. Blood thinners should be given more to these patients. Because the drug dose is calculated according to body weight. However, the higher the amount of medication, the higher the risk of bleeding. Therefore, treatment becomes more difficult. People who survive all this difficult process and have a longer contagion period than non-obese people. In other words, obesity is one of the biggest enemies of humanity, which causes the person to experience the most difficult process in Covid-19, as it causes many health problems by reducing the quality of life of the person. Knowing all of these, seeing obesity as still a fate and accepting it only as a physical problem is the greatest damage to the integrity of one's soul and body health.

Why do obesity patients have coronavirus more severe?

• Lung ventilation is restricted in obese patients due to abdominal and abdominal fat tissues.
• Just like asthma patients, there is a narrowing of the airways. Thus, it causes damage to other organs due to both lung disease and lack of oxygen.
• Fats; It accumulates in organs such as liver, spleen, lymph nodes and thymus, weakening the immune system. In particular, intraabdominal adipose tissue secretes inflammation-triggering cytokines and chemicals, facilitating cytokine storm.
• In obese patients, diseases such as cholesterol, hypertension, vascular damage and blood clotting feature are more intense.

Follow these tips to avoid obesity.

• Make regular physical activity a part of your life. For example, walking for 40 minutes every day or 3 hour 1 days a week can meet your physical activity needs.
• Eat a Mediterranean type of diet.
• Give up the fast food diet altogether.
• Consume homemade products instead of ready-to-eat foods with a long shelf life.
• Do your grocery shopping weekly or monthly.
• Choose olive oil instead of animal oils.
• Consume low-fat milk and dairy products.
• Choose healthy cooking techniques.
• Do not consume unnatural sugar and limit your daily salt intake.
• Regularly consume fish, but not by deep-frying; Bake by grilling, oven or steaming methods.
• Avoid ready-made juices, carbonated, acidic and sugary drinks.
• Realize that obesity is not a problem that can be solved with random diets and do not hesitate to seek treatment support.

Personalized method selection is important in obesity surgery

Individuals with obesity disease and accompanying health problems should definitely consult a specialist. If the person has not been able to get rid of their excess weight despite diet and sports until that day, obesity surgery is a suitable option. If the Body Mass Index is within the appropriate range for surgical operation, it is possible to permanently lose weight and achieve a healthy life with the most appropriate bariatric surgery method.