how to contain obesity

How to Contain Obesity

Introduction

Obesity is a medical condition whereby the body accumulates excess fats which may be hazardous to one’s health. Though often confused with overweight; obesity is characterized by a body mass index (BMI) of above 30 as opposed to 25 BMI of an overweight person. Obesity has been associated with various health problems such as cancer, respiratory problems, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and also psycho social issues.

Effects of obesity

Hypertension:the accumulation of fats in the body may result into the narrowing of the arteries hence straining the heart to pump blood at a high pressure. Also, the general mass of the body has more capillaries thus blood has to be pumped at a high pressure so as to reach all the cells. If not controlled, high blood pressure may result to death because of over exhaustion of the heart muscles.

Diabetes type 2:  This is a medical condition that results from production of insufficient amounts of insulin to control the blood sugar levels. Research has shown that obese and overweight people are susceptible to this condition because their bodies may not be able to produce the required amounts of insulin to counter sugar levels. If not controlled, diabetes type 2 can lead to skin degradation, blindness and even death (Kolata, 2009).

Apnea and Respiratory problems: obesity results into accumulation of a lot of fats in the chest cavity which hinders the expansion and contraction of the chest muscles. This causes breathing problems hence the patient may suffer from shortage of oxygen in the cells. Therefore, respiratory problems limits a person’s survival in regions of low oxygen hence may lead to collapsing in crowded places.

Coronary heart disease: Obesity has been associated with the development of abnormalities of arteries supplying blood to the heart. These abnormalities results into suffocation of the heart cells hence the heart would not be able to pump blood properly (Bacon, 2010). Coronary heart disease may lead to a state of a coma, heart failure hence death.

Gynecological problems:Various medical researchers have linked obesity to some gynecological issues such as irregular menses and infertility. This is because the accumulation of fats indirectly affects the balance of hormones in the body. However, this area is still under debate has solid evidence is yet to be agreed upon.

Cancer: obesity exposes the body tissues to harsh conditions with minimal removal of wastes due to limited flow of blood. Long term exposure to these conditions may result into abnormal multiplication of cells hence resulting into cancer(Bacon, 2010).

Joint problems: the extra weight on a person’s body tends to exhaust the joints and the leg muscles which may result into fatigue and joint pains. The person would therefore become unproductive as he/ she cannot be able to move freely over a long distance.

Psychosocial issues:in today’s world, a slim body is considered to be ideal and attractive to human beings. Thus, the obese people are often psychologically affected because of the feeling of alienation from the society. In this regard, obese people are bound to have a low self-esteem which in essence prevents them from exploring their potential fully.Also, such alienation has a long term effect as one may not be able to recover from the obesity stigma (Farrell, 2011).

Controlling obesity

Nutrition: eating a balanced diet is an essential key in maintaining a natural body weight. Obese people should therefore reduce the intake of dairy fats, limit intake of sugary foods and also avoid saturated fats. Excessive consumption of saturated fats forces the body to store them hence contributing to unhealthy weight gain. In addition, intake of a lot of water and vitamins would help in reduction of excess fats.

To consume proper nutrition as per the requirements, obese patients are encouraged to have a qualified nutritionist or a trained nurse to foresee their nutrition intake. This would help in the controlling of the patients’ food intake so as to achieve the required body size without compromising the health standards of the patient.

Body exercise:Over the years, exercise and keeping the body fit has helped to burn excess fats in the body. During the exercise, excess fats are converted into energy hence they are not able to accumulate in the body. Obese people should therefore participate in various sporting activities such as athletics and soccer.

Medical treatment: obesity can also be medically controlled using specific drugs that reduce one’s appetite or increase the body’s metabolic rates. The type of drugs administered depends on a person’s health and also allergic reactions to such drugs. In addition, the development of modern technology has assisted the process of losing weight; for example, the invention of the weight loss machine.

Economic Analysis of containing and controlling obesity in the society

In the provision of healthcare to patients with obesity, several factors have to be considered. These factors are also known as economic principles and they include the availability of resources, the availability of finance, the society’s perception, the government policies, costs, efficiency, equity etc.

Production, resources and opportunity cost

Production

In health care, the production process involves the delivery of quality service by the stakeholders to the patients. It incorporates proper medical examination and analysis, proper diagnosis and good nursing interventions that would help in containing the ailment. For obese patients; they require well trained medical practitioners who are conversant with the diseases that affect them. However, many medical institutions may lack such an expertise hence resulting to improper care to the patient. If present, the specialized medical practitioners charge highly for their services thus some patients may not be able to afford. This is according to the great economist Adam Smith who articulated that the production cost is directly proportional to the level of labor expertise.

Resources and opportunity cost

Obese patients require various resources such as exercise equipment, medication and also access to quality nutrition. These resources are specifically designed to help them loose weight faster and also to help them have a healthy life style. However, the resources are limited to most people due to their expensive costs thus hindering the process of losing weight. The limited resources forces the obese patients to skip some exercise programs and in some instances abandon the medical prescriptions of their weight reduction therapy; thus they remain exposed to the dangers of obesity.

Market, demand and supply

Market

Market can be defined as a platform for buying and selling of products. In healthcare, the presence of obese patients creates a market for provision of proper healthcare through issuance of medications, professional counseling and also nursing care. In addition, the presence of quality service by a specific healthcare provider tends to attract more patients.

Demand and supply

Both demand and supply affect the market prices for healthcare products both in hospitals and private firms. Due to public sensitization on the negative effects of obesity, there would be an increase in demand of the exercising equipment, medical consultations and also obesity controlling drugs hence resulting to increase in their market prices. The companies producing this equipment would be forced to produce more so as to offset the demand deficit created. However, before the demand and supply equilibrium; the obese patients would have been exploited though high costs charged for the exercising equipment, medications  and services.

Efficiency and equity

Efficiency

Efficiency is the use of minimal resources to achieve a required specific goal. In this regard, it ensures the delivery of quality services to patients within the shortest time possible. The healthcare system should embrace efficiency because it would allow the obese patients to be given quality care hence fastening their weight reduction process. This can be achieved through employment of more personnel who are qualified thus proper care to the patients.

Equity

The principle of equity in economics ensures that every customer is subject to equal and non- partisan treatment from the management. In provision of healthcare, there should be equal treatment of patients regardless of their race, gender, body weight, etc. However, equal provision of healthcare in the society has been hindered by the presence of different social classes; hence the rich have access to quality healthcare compared to the poor.

Marginal costs and marginal benefits

Marginal costs are additional costs incurred with an increase in the production unit while marginal benefits are additional profits resulting from additional production. In the provision of health care for obese patients; the marginal costs are bound to increase if the hospital has reached its maximum capacity. The additional costs may result from setting up new buildings, employment of new personnel etc. Also, the nurses attending to the patients would be few hence reduction in the quality of service given to the patients. Therefore, increase in marginal costs would result into decrease in marginal benefits of the hospital or clinic.

Proposed Solutions

From the economic analyses of obesity control, the following solutions can help in improving of the provision of healthcare in the society:

Government policies

The government should set up policies that control the market prices for healthcare products of obese patients. This can be done through issuance of tax reliefs, subsidies, import duty cut offs and provision of a favorable environment for manufacturers of these products.

Subsidies: The manufacturers and suppliers of the exercise equipment and the obesity drugs can be financially supported by the government so as to reduce the production costs of these products. In addition, the government can also issue some allowances to medical practitioners in the private sector so as to reduce the costs of their services. Therefore, the subsidies would help in the provision of cheap products hence assist in containing of obesity.

Tax reliefs:The government can reduce the taxation of exercise equipment, special foods meant to control obesity and also drugs meant for obese patients. This would lower the market prices thus allowing individuals to exercise fully, consume important nutrition supplements and take proper medication for weight reduction.

Import duty cut offs: In the event of importation of products that are meant to combat obesity; the government can relax the import duties thus assisting in reduction of the market prices of such products. These would allow the citizens to have access to these components at a fare price thus assist in the containing of obesity.

Provision of a favorable environment: the government should provide a favorable environment for the companies that produce the exercise equipment, manufacture the medication and also produce the foods that assist in the containing obesity. This favorable environment can be achieved through provision of security, proper infrastructure and also good trading policies.

Medical insurance:the government should ensure that every citizen has a proper medical insurance cover. This would be beneficial in the issuance of equity in the service delivery to the patients.

Public sensitization

The community should be sensitized on the effects of obesity to one’s health through the media and also in public gatherings. In addition, the school curriculum should include certain sub-topics that discus the health effects of obesity. Through such sensitization efforts, the public would be aware of these negative effects hence take measure to control obesity.

Private sector investment

The private sector should be encouraged to invest more in the treatment and containing of obesity. This can be achieved through establishment of more gymnasiums and also private clinics. With the help of the private sector, more obese patients would have access to quality medical treatment thus obesity would be contained

Education of the nurses and other medical practitioners

The nursing training should be able to deliver qualified personnel who are well conversant with the diseases faced by obese people. They should be well trained on how to handle patients and the various nursing interventions that would assist them in the reduction of weight.Moreover, the medical practitioners should be able to constantly attend seminars and workshops whereby the new developments in research are to be discussed. These efforts would deliver competent medical practitioners who are able to give full care to the patients (Mankiw 2011).

Strengths of the Proposed Solutions

Prevention of obesity

The sensitization of the public about the effects of obesity would be able to prevent its occurrence at an earlier stage. Through such education, the students would be able to grow up knowing excessive fats and body weight may lead to high blood pressure, diabetes, respiratory problems, joint pains etc. In addition; the medical insurance policy by the government would help to facilitate more medical checkups hence prevention of obesity.

Control of inflation through control of costs

The government policies such as the use of subsidies, tax reliefs and import duty cut offs help to reduce the costs of the obesity medication and equipment’s; hence reduce the inflation of prices in the market. Moreover, the prevention strategies at an earlier stage help in to offset the demand of obesity medication that would have resulted into inflation due to increased costs.

Boosts efficiency in the healthcare sector

The investments in the private sector encourage the provision of quality medical care to the public. The involvement of the private sector would help to reduce the congestion often experienced in government clinics and hospitals. In addition, the private hospitals create a competition among themselves thus resulting to issuance of good quality medical care to the public.

Quality workforce

The proper training of medical practitioners in colleges and institutions ensures that the public are served with a qualified work force. Also, a favorable nurse to patient ratio created by the involvement of the private sector would be beneficial in ensuring quality care for the patient. Quality work force ensures proper care for the patients hence good service delivery.

Weaknesses of the proposed solutions

Use of tax payers’ money

The project of issuing medical cover to every individual is too expensive for the government to fund. This would result to increased taxation to the general public hence contributing to overall inflation. In addition, the medical insurance policy is subject to corrupt dealings hence leads to loss of tax payers’ money.

Exploitation by the private sector

The dominance of private firms that provide medical services would result to over exploitation of the public. Since private clinics and private hospitals are profit making institutions; they are bound to exploit the civilians through overcharging.

Conclusion

In conclusion, obesity is a medical condition that may result into high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes type 2, coronary heart disease, joint problems,breathing problems etc. It can be controlled by regular exercises, proper nutrition and also medical treatment. In the analyses of economic principles in healthcare; containing of obesity involves the consideration of opportunity cost, availability of resources, marginal costs, marginal benefits, efficiency and equity of the healthcare system. In order to deliver proper healthcare; there should be proper government policies, good training for medical practitioners, public sensitization and the investment by private sector. However, consideration has to be made to prevent the misuse of taxpayers’ money and the exploitation of the public by the private sector. Apart from other external factors, containing of obesity largely depends on an individual’s ability and commitment towards a healthy life.

References

Bacon, L. (2010).Health at every size: the surprising truth about your weight. Dallas, FW:BenBella books.

Farrell, A. (2011).Fat Shame: Stigma and the fat body in American culture. New York, NY: New York university press.

Kolata, G. (2009).Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss, and Myths and Realities of Weight Loss. London: Picador publishers.

Mankiw, G. (2011).Principles of economics. New Jersey, NJ: Cengage publishers.