According to the data of the World Health Organization a prevalence of obesity has increased since 1975. Almost 2 billion adults are overweight, among them over 650 million are obese. It is also known that overweight and obesity kill more people than underweight. Currently, it is estimated that about 3 billion adults will be overweight and over 1 billion will be obese by 2025. Moreover, among 13 biggest health problems facing people in their country an obesity takes the fifth place. The purpose of the study was to analyze the new data of the scientific publications of recent years explaining new concepts of physiological mechanism of hunger and satiety balance, the causes of excessive weight or obesity, and suggestions for mindful eating, avoiding overeating and food temptation. Results and discussion. The obesity epidemic is now one of the most important public health problems in the world. However, overweight and obesity are preventable. Being overweight increases the risk of death. The results of recent researches suggest that weight gain itself, even if a person stays within the “normal” weight range, also increases the risk of disease and premature death. There are studies that showed that a weight gain even less than 5 kg and within a healthy body mass index range, is associated with an increased risk of disease. Results of other research findings showed that biological indicators of health risk are strongly related to body weight from the lowest body mass index to the highest body mass index, with higher body mass associated with greater health risk. Obesity becomes global health problem. Obese people are at high risk of developing a number of comorbidities, including disorders of gastrointestinal tract, type 2 diabetes mellitus, joint and muscle diseases, respiratory problems and psychological problems, which can significantly affect the quality of their daily life and increase the risk of mortality. The conditions associated with obesity are diverse, but even modest weight loss can reduce the risk of development of cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, obstructive sleep apnea, and arterial hypertension, among many other comorbidities. Even relatively small weight loss can improve patient condition and can act as a trigger for further change, with sustained weight loss achieved through a series of gradual weight loss steps. Conclusion. The increase in obesity prevalence has an essential influence on the global morbidity of many diseases, moreover obesity and overweight affect quality and quantity of health thus being the causes of disability and significantly affect quality of life. Prevention of weight gain has been the focus of much discussion and debate, with many theories about the causes and solutions of the problem. However, prevention programs, which take in account the causes and risks factors, are more effective than weight-loss programs
Keywords: overweight, obesity, risk factors, feeding center, mindful eating
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