Obesity in the Context of Evolutionary Development. Modern Methods Of Diagnostics And Treatment.

Abstract

Obesityrepresents a major public health problem due to its high prevalence, rising treatment costs, and adverse outcomes. Despite the fact that obesity has accompanied humanity since the advent of man, it was recognized as a disease with certain pathophysiological consequences about 100 years ago [1–3]. Obesity as a term does not appear until the 17th century and is then only seen in the literature to describe excessive obesity [4]. The impact of obesity on quality of life began to be assessed in the 18th century, in the mid-19th century it was recognized as a cause of poor health, and in the first decades of the 20th century its complications and association with increased mortality were documented [1–3, 5]. The current exponential increase in incidence and accumulating scientific evidence has prompted the World Health Organization to declare obesity a global pandemic and a worldwide public health crisis [ 6 , 7 ].