Obesity is known as sthoulya in ayurveda. It is a medical condition that appears when a person carries excess body fat that affect their health and day to day activities.

Obesity is a serious and complex health issue as it is associated with poor mental health, decreased quality of life. It can even leads to death as it have various complications such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke etc.

BMI is a measure of your healthy weight for your height.

For adults, a BMI of:
18.5 to 24.9 means you’re a healthy weight
25 to 29.9 means you’re overweight
30 to 39.9 means you’re obese
40 or above means you’re severely obese
BMI is not a diagnostic tool used to diagnose obesity because people who are muscular can also have a high BMI without fat.

We can also check waist size for excess fat as a measure of overweight people. Usually men with a waist size of 94cm or more and women with a waist size of 80cm or more are more prone to develop obesity-related health problems.

Most common causes for obesity are intake of poor diet which include foods high in fats and calories, having a sedentary lifestyle, not taking enough sleep etc.
There are various medical conditions such as Hypothyroidism, PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome), Prader-Willi Syndrome, cushing syndrome which can also cause obesity.
Obese people face various symptoms that includes excessive sweating, tiredness and fatigue, breathlessness,
pain in joints.

Ayurveda has a perfect solution for obesity and that is panchkarma.
There are various therapies that can be used to maintain healthy weight and scrape of excess fat in body. Some of the therapies are
Swedana – This helps in the elimination of toxic substances from the body by providing herbal steam treatment to whole body.

Kizhi – Medicated potlis are used as part of hot fermentation therapy.

Udvarthanam – Dry powdered massage is done on the body, this treatment helps expulsion of inordinate cellulite stores in the body

Pizhichil – oil stream is poured on body for muscle tone strengthening and balancing

Basti- A special type of enema decoction is made which scrape off excess fat from the body

Dhanyamla Dhara – It is an Ayurvedic decoction poured on the body where a consistent stream of herbal fluid is poured and massaged over the body. It is used for weight reduction and detoxification, and for relaxing the person.

Ayurveda has been traditionally practiced from long ago for many benefits. Excess body fat can increase the risks for various diseases like cardiac issues, breathing issue, digestive, and joint pain. Also it can cause depression, lack of self-worth, and confidence. Ayurvedic practices keep the whole body overall maintained. Panchakarma treatment is alot in weight loss and provide an effective outcome.