Obesity is an epidemic in the United States. The People no longer care for their diet or their bodies and simply pig-out on all of modern societies sugar coated and fat soaked treats. In this blog, I'm going to attempt to outline the cause and effects of obesity and recommend some ways to protect or help yourself against it.
- Approximately 127 mil. adults are overweight and 60 million of those are considered obese.
- ~62% of all females in the U.S. are overweight-- more than half! That means 1 in every 2 women/girls are overweight! Doesn't that tell you that something needs to be done?
- ~67% of all males in the U.S. are overweight-- more than 2/3! Something has to be done to fix this.
- Genetics does not determine whether you will be obese or not, it simply raises the tendency for you to be one or the other. Think of it as balancing a broom on your hand [with the top of the handle in your palm and the bristles in the air], except, there's a lead weight attached to the top of it, making it more prone to falling over. Same with genetics, so I suppose you could thing of it as magnifying your weight gain. Other people may have inherited a high metabolism, making them more prone to being thin [though they can definitely still be overweight].
- Overweight-ness has doubled in children ages 6-11 and tripled in adolescents aged 12-19 in the past 20 years alone.
- Obesity costs approximately $123 billion per year.
> ~$63 million in doctor's visits and ~$39 million lost in missed work days.
- Obesity leads to many different illnesses; and not always just one. A "metabolic syndrome" is a cluster of illnesses related to being overweight [type 2 diabetes, heart disease, etc.].
- Losing 10% of one's weight can significantly reduce the chances of developing obesity-related diseases.
-- The BMI calculator compares your height and your weight and determines whether your weight is above that of the "healthy" standard for your height. The major flaw here is that the calculator can't account for muscle. Since muscle weighs more than fat, someone could be a 6'2" weightlifter, or a 6'2" habitual McDonald's diner. It could go either way; but according to the BMI calculator, both of these people would be considered overweight, though one is not.
- Long term dieting works.
-- Diet is one part of losing weight, but diet alone won't work. Coupled with exercise/physical activity, diets will help the dieter lose weight. Another problem arises from this though; most obese people probably have very little to no diet restrictions and most likely don't exercise often [thus their current physical condition]. This lifestyle is hard to change, which is why motivation is a key factor that many lack. An overweight person surely wants to be healthy and maybe even look slimmer, but it is extremely difficult to dedicate oneself to those kind of restrictions and routines; which is a main cause as to why many long term diets fail. But if someone's got the motivation, long-term dieting can make a difference in one's weight.
- Eat healthy foods. Cut trips to fast food restaurants and if you need a snack, replace it with something healthy; get rid of those empty calorie potato chips and eat a fruit or whole grain bread. Oranges and whole-grain bagels are a good choice [don't be afraid to throw on some fat-free cream cheese].
- Eat slower. Eating slowly is a great way to prevent overeating. Not only does it prevent overeating, but it also improves digestion, since part of it takes place in your mouth, which is one reason to chew slower. By eating slowly, you're giving your stomach more time to react to the food you're taking in, which triggers the sensation that you're "full" sooner, which prevents you from eating more food that would otherwise make you feel sick if you were mowing it down as fast as possible.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day. Exercising is the other half of the battle [along with dieting] and is probably the most important. Physical activity both tones your body and burns the calories that have been consumed. But the motivation issue arises again. Many people don't want to go out for a run [or even a walk] if they think about it too much. So try this: just go outside, put your shoes on, and start. Don't think about how far you'll go, just get started. Once you've got your shoes on, let your feet do the rest.
- Start out slow. Don't look at this as a huge wall that you've got to climb over, think of it as a hill you've got to walk up; it takes time. Start off by maybe exercising every other day, or cutting back on your fast-food trips or improving your snacking habits. So don't do everything at once, do certain things first until all the pieces come together into a full-on healthy routine.
I hope that all this information has both enlightened and encouraged you to stay healthy and avoid obesity. And if you are overweight, I hope that some of these tips will encourage you to get back down to a healthy weight. But remember, it is possible to defeat obesity.
Sources:
obesityinamerica.org
obesityscam.com
zenhabits.net
*ANYONE can comment on this post.
FACTS
- Obesity is the second leading cause of preventable death in the United States.- Approximately 127 mil. adults are overweight and 60 million of those are considered obese.
- ~62% of all females in the U.S. are overweight-- more than half! That means 1 in every 2 women/girls are overweight! Doesn't that tell you that something needs to be done?
- ~67% of all males in the U.S. are overweight-- more than 2/3! Something has to be done to fix this.
- Genetics does not determine whether you will be obese or not, it simply raises the tendency for you to be one or the other. Think of it as balancing a broom on your hand [with the top of the handle in your palm and the bristles in the air], except, there's a lead weight attached to the top of it, making it more prone to falling over. Same with genetics, so I suppose you could thing of it as magnifying your weight gain. Other people may have inherited a high metabolism, making them more prone to being thin [though they can definitely still be overweight].
- Overweight-ness has doubled in children ages 6-11 and tripled in adolescents aged 12-19 in the past 20 years alone.
- Obesity costs approximately $123 billion per year.
> ~$63 million in doctor's visits and ~$39 million lost in missed work days.
- Obesity leads to many different illnesses; and not always just one. A "metabolic syndrome" is a cluster of illnesses related to being overweight [type 2 diabetes, heart disease, etc.].
- Losing 10% of one's weight can significantly reduce the chances of developing obesity-related diseases.
FICTION
- The Body Mass Index [BMI] calculator accurately determines whether you're overweight or not.-- The BMI calculator compares your height and your weight and determines whether your weight is above that of the "healthy" standard for your height. The major flaw here is that the calculator can't account for muscle. Since muscle weighs more than fat, someone could be a 6'2" weightlifter, or a 6'2" habitual McDonald's diner. It could go either way; but according to the BMI calculator, both of these people would be considered overweight, though one is not.
- Long term dieting works.
-- Diet is one part of losing weight, but diet alone won't work. Coupled with exercise/physical activity, diets will help the dieter lose weight. Another problem arises from this though; most obese people probably have very little to no diet restrictions and most likely don't exercise often [thus their current physical condition]. This lifestyle is hard to change, which is why motivation is a key factor that many lack. An overweight person surely wants to be healthy and maybe even look slimmer, but it is extremely difficult to dedicate oneself to those kind of restrictions and routines; which is a main cause as to why many long term diets fail. But if someone's got the motivation, long-term dieting can make a difference in one's weight.
PROTECTION & Tips
- To prevent obesity, begin developing healthy habits early on [read the information below to find some ways to help you with that].- Eat healthy foods. Cut trips to fast food restaurants and if you need a snack, replace it with something healthy; get rid of those empty calorie potato chips and eat a fruit or whole grain bread. Oranges and whole-grain bagels are a good choice [don't be afraid to throw on some fat-free cream cheese].
- Eat slower. Eating slowly is a great way to prevent overeating. Not only does it prevent overeating, but it also improves digestion, since part of it takes place in your mouth, which is one reason to chew slower. By eating slowly, you're giving your stomach more time to react to the food you're taking in, which triggers the sensation that you're "full" sooner, which prevents you from eating more food that would otherwise make you feel sick if you were mowing it down as fast as possible.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day. Exercising is the other half of the battle [along with dieting] and is probably the most important. Physical activity both tones your body and burns the calories that have been consumed. But the motivation issue arises again. Many people don't want to go out for a run [or even a walk] if they think about it too much. So try this: just go outside, put your shoes on, and start. Don't think about how far you'll go, just get started. Once you've got your shoes on, let your feet do the rest.
- Start out slow. Don't look at this as a huge wall that you've got to climb over, think of it as a hill you've got to walk up; it takes time. Start off by maybe exercising every other day, or cutting back on your fast-food trips or improving your snacking habits. So don't do everything at once, do certain things first until all the pieces come together into a full-on healthy routine.
I hope that all this information has both enlightened and encouraged you to stay healthy and avoid obesity. And if you are overweight, I hope that some of these tips will encourage you to get back down to a healthy weight. But remember, it is possible to defeat obesity.
Sources:
obesityinamerica.org
obesityscam.com
zenhabits.net
*ANYONE can comment on this post.
Written with help from ScribeFire, a Firefox add-on.
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