Obesity is a very serious risk factor for a disease like Covid 19. This was expressed in an article referring to the topic of a reputable news agency. The British Medical Journal reported that obese people with a high body mass index are more likely to be seriously ill if they contract the coronavirus.
Obesity, which many consider a purely cosmetic problem, is a very risky comorbidity in the current pandemic. The coronavirus has become a risk factor that can lead to the death of the overweight or obese patient.
Numbers indicating that obese people are at higher risk from Covid 19
In the study carried out, more than 400,000 cases were evaluated. Many of them came to the hospital with confirmed Covid 19. Of 5,700 deceased patients, nearly 30% were overweight and 35% were obese.
According to the article, the risk of developing Covid-19 disease more seriously is 44% higher if the person is overweight. This is doubled if the patient is obese.
For people with a body mass index between 30 and 35, the risk is 27%, while it doubles for a BMI over 40. This would be the case if there were no other types of comorbidities that could make the situation even worse.
Why do obese people suffer from this problem?
In obese people, there are excess ACE-2 enzymes that spread the Covid-19 virus. This excess causes the virus to be stored in your adipose tissue and free to move around other organs at will. Obese people also have a lower immune system response. Influenza viruses such as the coronavirus exploit this weak immune response.
The situation is compounded by the fact that obesity itself causes poor lung function. The difficulty for the lungs to expand due to weakened pulmonary resistance makes it necessary for them to go to the intensive care unit in a hospital.
So much so that in Spain more than 80% of patients who needed intubations, mechanical ventilators, or died were obese. This study was presented by the Spanish Obesity Society and confirms what has been said by the English media.
It adds another problem for people who are overweight
There is hope that the pandemic will have an expiration date. Several vaccines against Covid 19 are entering phase 3 thanks to the good actions of scientists from different parts of the world. This gives the world plenty of hope. But it doesn’t favor overweight people
Scientists estimate that the vaccine would not be effective for those people because of the poor immune system function of an overweight person. The immune system fights the infection by calling up the white blood cells that release proteins. Thus, they deactivate the inflammation caused by the disease. This does not happen in the immune system of an overweight person.
The Spanish study found that poor diet and lack of exercise are responsible for weight gain. This phenomenon was exacerbated during the delivery period. Most people confirmed that they put on excess weight during that time. It is advisable to watch your diet and weight so as not to develop comorbidities with the new virus.
