Obesity and Voice

Book excerpt: Obesity and Voice: Current Views and Future Trends examines obesity-related voice research and suggests future research trends on the link between weight loss, weight gain, obesity, and phonation. Obesity is becoming one of the leading causes of disabilities and death. This unique text highlights the various means by which excessive weight, and weight loss, may jeopardize voice quality and endurance. All three components of voice production, the respiratory system and abdominal back and thoracic muscles as the power source, the vocal folds as the oscillator, and the vocal tract as the resonator, are targets of anatomic and systemic obesity-induced changes. Consequently, phonatory effects of obesity are inevitable. Considering the epidemic nature of obesity, obesity-related voice research is a critical topic for anyone interested in conditions affecting the voice, especially professional voice users and physicians.