What exactly IS obesity?
Having a few extra pounds here and there is NOT obesity. Extra weight puts added stress on your heart and joints, but we’re not talking about a few love handles. Obesity is generally considered to be having a weight that’s more than 20 percent above your ideal weight. To determine if your weight is right on track, if you’re overweight, or if you’re obese, you’ll need to calculate your body mass index or BMI. The BMI measures body fat based on your height and weight. You can determine your BMI by entering your height and weight into a simple online BMI calculator (http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/). What can I do to avoid becoming a statistic? And where does Fido fit in? These numbers are staggering – so what can you do? Start walking your dog – seriously! Researchers in California showed that obesity occurred 65 percent more in dog owners who didn’t walk their dogs compared to those who did. And researchers at the University of Pittsburgh showed that people doing short exercise segments
