What is Central Obesity?

If all this time we know obesity or overweight as the accumulation or accumulation of fat in the body, then central obesity is the accumulation of fat in our stomach. Central obesity is associated with an increased risk of diabetes, heart and blood vessel disease, stroke, and so on. If a person is obese or obese, accompanied by central obesity, the risk for developing the disease increases.
Obesity itself can be easily identified by calculating the Body Mass Index (BMI), which is body weight (in kg) divided by height (in m) squared. For example, a person with a weight of 65 cm and a height of 150 cm, then his BMI is 65 divided by 1.52, the result is 28.9 kg/m2. According to the WHO classification for the Asia-Pacific population, it is said to be obese if the BMI is 25 kg/m2 or more. Although easy, this BMI calculation cannot distinguish our body composition, whether excess weight is due to fat accumulation or due to muscle mass, so the definition of obesity with BMI is not relevant for athletes with large muscle mass, such as bodybuilders or weightlifters.
Central obesity is characterized by an abdominal circumference that is larger than normal. For the Asia-Pacific population, including Indonesia, it is said to be centrally obese if the abdominal circumference is more than 90 cm for men or 80 cm for women. People with normal weight according to their height or BMI calculation in the normal range (18.5 – 22.9 kg/m2), may also have central obesity, so abdominal circumference measurement is still recommended to be done.
Abdominal circumference can be measured by yourself by standing in front of a mirror to make it easier for us to see body position and measurement position. The body stands straight and the legs are slightly spread about 25-30 cm or shoulder width apart. Then the measuring tape is looped in the middle of the abdomen and we start to inhale-breathe-inhale-exhale, now the measuring tape is read when we exhale or exhale, not when we inhale or inhale.

If you get a BMI or abdominal circumference that is more than normal, you should consult a doctor, even though there may not be certain complaints. Often obesity is considered not a "disease" until a person experiences certain complaints and then consults a doctor, so that certain diseases have emerged, such as heart disease, stroke and so on, which should have been prevented beforehand by maintaining a normal weight or returning to normal for those who are obese. . Since obesity and central obesity are risk factors for disease, it is important to control these risk factors before it is too late.