Dogs and Obesity
Body weight is an important consideration for both humans and animals. For humans, maintaining a healthy weight reduces the risk of many diseases and health problems. Additionally, overweight individuals may face discrimination in their social environments. However, there are many factors that contribute to a person's weight, such as age and dietary habits. Dogs are no exception when it comes to obesity; they are increasingly obese due to human influence. Therefore, it's important to know how to help dogs maintain ideal body weights.
The human population is currently more than 7 billion strong, and the number of dogs worldwide exceeds 60 million. Both of these numbers make humans the minority when compared to canines. Humans are the dominant species when it comes to numbers, but canines outnumber them in terms of weight. As of 2016, there were 78 million obese humans compared to 210 million obese dogs in the United States alone. Dogs are becoming increasingly overweight due to human influence, so healthcare professionals must be aware of this trend.
Obesity has become a growing concern for canines as well as humans over the past few decades. There have been many medical breakthroughs that have revolutionized the healthcare industry. These transformations rely on technological advancements that primarily affect modern society. However, these have had a less significant impact on lower-income groups. In these groups, accessibility to technology remains limited, which means obesity rates remain high in these demographics. As such, healthcare professionals must be aware of this trend when treating patients.
One major way dogs and humans differ when it comes to weight gain is activity levels. Dogs typically spend excessive time indoors thanks to modern conveniences such as electricity and indoor kennels. This leads to excess calorie consumption and weight gain for millions of pet owners every year. Certain exercise options prove beneficial for weight loss for dogs and humans alike. For example, walking your pet is one good option that avoids excess calorie consumption without putting you through extreme effort either way. However, there are also many different ways to get your dog involved in regular fitness regimes- whether that be at the park or at home with equipment you have at home.
As both species grow in number, the concern over obesity will rise along with it. For both canine and human populations, maintaining an ideal weight reduces the risk of many diseases and health problems associated with being overweight or obese. Therefore, healthcare professionals must be well-trained in dealing with overweight patients so they can effectively treat both human and animal obesity alike.
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