In short
- A medical condition with numbers behind it. Obesity is a body mass index of 30 or above, read alongside waist and body composition.
- It rarely comes alone. More than 80 percent of type 2 diabetes is attributable to excess weight.
- The effect on lifespan is measurable. Around four years shorter from age 40 in one large cohort of never smokers.
- Small losses do real work. 5 to 7 percent lowers diabetes risk. Around 15 percent puts diabetes into remission in nearly half of those who reach it.
- Regain is physiology. The body defends the higher weight. That is biology, not weakness.
Condition Overview
Obesity is defined by excess body fat sufficient to affect health, usually assessed with body mass index alongside waist measurement and body composition. It rarely arrives alone. Insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, abnormal lipids, fatty liver, obstructive sleep apnoea, joint pain and hormonal changes are frequent companions, and each can make weight harder to lose.
Most patients arrive after several serious attempts that worked briefly. That pattern is physiological, not a personal failing: the body defends its weight. A private medical weight loss consultation is appropriate because obesity needs examination, blood work and a treatment decision made by a doctor, which is not something a diet plan or an online prescription can provide.
When to See a Doctor
- Your body mass index is in the obesity range, or your waist measurement has been rising steadily.
- You have lost weight repeatedly and regained it, and want to know what is actually driving the pattern.
- You have been told your blood sugar, blood pressure, liver enzymes or cholesterol are abnormal.
- You snore heavily, wake unrefreshed or fall asleep during the day, which suggests sleep apnoea worth investigating.
- Weight is now limiting your mobility, your training or your ability to work the way you want to.
- You have chest pain, breathlessness at rest or on minimal effort, or swelling of the legs, which needs urgent medical assessment rather than a weight consultation.
- You are using vomiting, laxatives, extreme restriction or unprescribed medication to control weight, which needs individual care before any weight programme begins.
How Dr. Felix Assesses This
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1
Goals and history
Dr. Felix takes a full weight history from childhood onward, including previous attempts, family pattern, medication, work travel, sleep, alcohol and how eating actually happens across a normal week.
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2
Medical review
Examination, blood pressure, waist and body composition, then blood work covering glucose, HbA1c, lipids, liver and kidney function and thyroid, with hormone testing and sleep apnoea screening where the history points that way.
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3
Suitability decision
Findings are explained plainly: what is driving the weight, which conditions need treating in parallel, and which treatment routes are appropriate for you, including whether medication has a role at all.
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4
Personal plan
A written plan covering nutrition and protein structure, resistance based training, sleep and alcohol, treatment of any condition found, any prescribed medicine with its dose steps, and dated follow up appointments.
Treatment Options
Medical Weight Loss Program
Why has the weight not moved? Most patients who come here have already tried hard, more than once, and lost…
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Ozempic Treatment
What is Ozempic? Ozempic is a brand of semaglutide, given as a once weekly injection under the skin. Semaglutide copies…
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Wegovy Treatment
What is Wegovy? Wegovy is the brand name for semaglutide at weight management doses. Semaglutide copies a gut hormone called…
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Mounjaro Treatment
What is Mounjaro? Mounjaro is tirzepatide, given as a once weekly injection. It activates two receptors: GLP-1, the same one…
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Why Early Treatment Can Matter
Obesity tends to bring other conditions with it over time, and most of them are easier to manage before they are established. Blood sugar that is only slightly raised can often be brought back down. Early fatty liver frequently improves with weight loss. Blood pressure and lipids respond well. Joint damage, on the other hand, does not reverse.
Acting earlier also widens the options. There is more room to try nutrition, training and sleep first, and less need for aggressive intervention. None of this is urgent in the emergency sense. It simply means a consultation now gives you more ways forward than the same consultation in five years.
Why Early Treatment Can Matter
Obesity tends to bring other conditions with it over time, and most of them are easier to manage before they are established. Blood sugar that is only slightly raised can often be brought back down. Early fatty liver frequently improves with weight loss. Blood pressure and lipids respond well. Joint damage, on the other hand, does not reverse.
Acting earlier also widens the options. There is more room to try nutrition, training and sleep first, and less need for aggressive intervention. None of this is urgent in the emergency sense. It simply means a consultation now gives you more ways forward than the same consultation in five years.
More options, better response
Earlier treatment usually means gentler measures and a more complete recovery of blood markers.
Conditions that follow weight
Type 2 diabetes, fatty liver, sleep apnoea, hypertension and joint damage often develop over time.
A shorter route back
Less weight to lose means fewer months, fewer medicines and simpler maintenance afterwards.
Cost & Consultation Investment
The first appointment is a full medical assessment rather than a short review, and it usually includes examination, body composition and laboratory work. What follows depends on what is found, whether other conditions need treating, whether medication becomes part of the plan and how much follow up you want. The pricing page carries current figures and scope.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is treated as a medical condition because it has measurable causes, predictable complications and treatments that work. More than 80 percent of type 2 diabetes is attributable to excess weight, which is not something willpower explains.
Partly. It is convenient and widely used but it cannot tell muscle from fat and it underestimates risk in some ethnic groups. Waist measurement and body composition are read alongside it here.
In a United Kingdom cohort of 3.6 million never smokers, life expectancy from age 40 was around 4.2 years shorter in men with obesity and 3.5 years shorter in women. At a body mass index of 40 to 45, median survival was reduced by eight to ten years. Those are population figures, not a prediction for you.
Far less than most people set as a target. A 5 to 7 percent loss already lowers diabetes risk and improves blood pressure and lipids. Around 15 percent can put type 2 diabetes into remission in nearly half of those who reach it.
Because after weight loss the body burns less at rest and hunger signalling increases, so it defends the higher weight. If muscle was lost during the loss phase the effect is stronger. It is physiology, and it is the reason maintenance is planned in advance.
Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, abnormal lipids, fatty liver, obstructive sleep apnoea, joint pain and several cancers including liver, kidney, breast, endometrial, prostate and colon.
Because obstructive sleep apnoea is common with obesity and untreated apnoea raises appetite hormones and destroys recovery. Treating it frequently unlocks a plan that has been stuck for a year.
No. It is considered, not assumed. Some patients need treatment for a condition found in the work up and nothing else. Where a weight medicine fits, the reason is explained.
For severe obesity it is more effective than any current medicine and it is discussed honestly if you meet the criteria. It is performed by a surgical team, not here, and you would be referred.
Yes, but body composition matters more. Losing weight while losing muscle lowers your energy use and makes regain more likely, and the scale cannot see that happening.
That is useful information. It means nothing measurable is working against you, and the plan is structure, protein, training and follow up. You may still qualify for medication on your weight and risk profile.
It depends on the investigations you need and whether medication becomes part of the plan, so a single figure would be misleading. You get the full cost in the consultation before anything starts.
Evidence
Where this information comes from
Every figure on this page is taken from the sources below. All of them are free to read, so you can check them yourself.
- Obesity and overweight
- Obesity: identification, assessment and management
- Semaglutide for managing overweight and obesity
This page is general medical information and does not replace a personal consultation. Trial results are averages across large groups, not a prediction for any one person.