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Medicine vocabulary · Diseases by System

Obesity

Meaning in medicine, with examples

/oʊˈbiːsəti/nounCore term

In medicine, obesity means: A condition in which a person has so much body fat that it may harm their health; in adults it is usually defined as a BMI of 30 or more.

In Turkish: obezite, şişmanlık

How it is used

A major risk factor for diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnoea and joint problems. To avoid stigma, doctors say 'people living with obesity' or 'a raised BMI' rather than 'fat'. 'Overweight' means a BMI of 25 to 29.9.

Example sentences

  1. Obesity increases the risk of complications after surgery.

  2. Childhood obesity has risen sharply over the last thirty years.

Common collocations

  • childhood obesity
  • severe obesity
  • obesity-related disease
  • manage obesity
  • BMIShort for body mass index: weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in metres, used to classify a person's weight.
  • risk factorAnything that makes a person more likely to develop a disease, such as smoking, high blood pressure, age or family history.
  • diabetesA long-term disease in which the body cannot control blood sugar properly, because it makes too little insulin or cannot use it well.
  • hypertensionBlood pressure that stays higher than normal over time, which increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney disease.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Diseases by System

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.