BENGALURU: Obesity is the new after-effect that doctors are noticing in patients who have recovered from Covid-19. Till now many were facing issues like heart complications, chronic respiratory diseases, fatigue etc post-recovery.Health professionals say that after patients have recovered from Covid-19, they tend to eat more food, mainly junk stuff. And with little or no physical activity, they have been putting on about 10kg and are seeking the help of nutritionists or dieticians to lose weight.
Dr Mahesh Chikkachannappa, Senior Consultant, General Laparoscopic and Bariatric Surgery, at Aster CMI Hospital, said that he has been getting two cases daily of recovered patients with obesity. “In order to boost their immunity, people are ending up eating fat and oil-rich foods and they tend to put on 8-10 kg in a month. They need to start eating a healthy diet and perform indoor exercises. Many fitness apps and YouTube workout videos are there to help them. This will also help in staying away from binge watching, as we are even seeing cases of digital addiction among the recovered patients.”
Dr Dinesh V Kamath, Senior Consultant physician, Apollo Hospitals, Seshadripuram, said many who have lost their taste and smell during the Covid period ended up binge eating. “We advise the patients to stay isolated for 14 days post recovery. This is when they are eating more and gaining weight. We are seeing many recovered patients in the age group 40-60 years putting on weight.
They say they have been overeating. Those with comorbidities like diabetes are seeing an increase in cholesterol and blood sugar levels, resulting in weight gain. If this continues, we will see serious medical problems in six months.”Pavithra N Raj, Chief Dietician, Columbia Asia Referral Hospital Yeshwanthpur, said she has started to get enquiries on weight management from recovered patients. “Those who are taking supplements and medications might put on weight. The intake of supplements can increase their appetites.”