Turkey immunization efforts against coronaviruses in general, from the first days of 2021 are carried out in a planned way by giving priority to a variety of risks.
First of all, healthcare workers at high risk and elderly individuals were included in the vaccine program by the Ministry of Health Scientific Committee. Speaking about the vaccination program, general surgery specialist Associate Professor Hasan Erdem said, “Morbid obese individuals; "It should be included in the priority groups for vaccination because of the risks of this disease, the difficulties in its treatment and high mortality rates."
"Obesity is a serious syndrome accompanied by many comorbid diseases"
According to the classification of the World Health Organization, individuals with a body mass index of 40 kg / m² are called morbidly obese. Obesity is a serious syndrome that can be accompanied by additional diseases such as lung and heart diseases, various blood circulation disorders, insulin resistance or diabetes. In this case, it is known that obesity patients are more vulnerable to infections than healthy individuals. If COVID-19 is transmitted to obese patients, the picture worsens, treatment becomes difficult, and the risk of death increases in these patients. ''
"Obesity is an important factor that increases the severity of COVID-19"
Noting that there is a risky relationship between obesity and COVID-19, Assoc. Dr. Erdem continued as follows: “The immune systems of obesity patients are weakened by various mechanisms. Excessive fat tissue in all internal organs, especially in the liver, and the musculoskeletal system prevents the metabolism from working properly. In addition, the low lung capacity of these patients and the weakness of the immune system against the infection that is transmitted make the treatment difficult. Therefore, obese individuals experience COVID-19 more severely. Consider two individuals who are both 40 years old. One has healthy weight, the other has morbid obesity. Undoubtedly, in a possible COVID-19 transmission, an individual with morbid obesity is more likely to experience this disease more seriously, even fatal. "
"Morbid obese individuals should be in the priority group in vaccination studies"
Ministry of Health Science Board; "Especially morbidly obese individuals should be in the priority group in vaccination studies." proposing Assoc. Dr. Hasan Erdem gave the following information by showing an example of the scientific researches: “According to the data announced by the Public Health England affiliated to the UK Ministry of Health in July 2020, a person with a body mass index between 35-40 kg / m19 It is emphasized that the death rate may increase by 40 percent due to 40, and if the body mass index is 90kg / m² and above, this rate may rise up to XNUMX percent. Of course, as the world, we are about to complete our first year in combating the epidemic. Therefore, obtaining precise data and putting it forward in the scientific field will continue in the coming years, but it should not be overlooked that obesity has a serious effect on virus-related mortality rates.
"Attention should be paid to eating habits in these times of restrictions."
Speaking about the issues to be considered in the fight against COVID-19, Assoc. Dr. Emphasizing the need to pay attention to dietary habits and adopt a lively lifestyle as much as possible, Erdem said, “We have been living with restrictions for about a year. We had to lock in homes and it was inevitable for the vast majority of us to gain weight in this process. However, in this process, we must learn various ways to take joint measures against both obesity and COVID-19. In particular, we should review our eating habits and take care to consume foods that strengthen the immune system. We have to bar ourselves with industrial ready-to-eat foods with excess calories and trans fat. In addition, we should definitely evaluate the curfews determined by the Ministry of Health for various risk groups and pay attention to walking, fresh air and exercise activities. " He made recommendations.
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