Posts Tagged ‘weight loss’
Why Be Fat?–Weight Loss Made Effortless!
Why be fat? It’s a lie that everyone loves the “jolly fat person.” Truth be told, in the employment arena it’s “No Fat People Need Apply!” Of course employers and Human Resources Department personnel have been highly coached by their legal departments and are too sophisticated to openly say that to your face, but it’s still the reality of the situation. For the most part, fat people are looked upon as being “dead weight.”
Now imagine how a fat child would feel in a slightly different scenario…never being chosen, or the last chosen, for any type of activity–whether it’s a birthday party or a team sport. No one chooses to be overweight or obese, particularly a child.
In fact, if you took a poll and posed the question “Why Be Fat?” to a number of adults, they’d be unable to come up with one reason! Yet, ask them the advantages of being slim and trim, they could come up with three to ten reasons right off the top of their head.
Despite the availability of weight loss programs, low-fat foods, and diet pills, Americans are still gaining weight.
Although carrying around a few extra pounds is not dangerous, too much fat poses significant health risks. Even moderately overweight people may experience weight-related health problems.
Shortness of breath when walking or climbing stairs is one of the first signs that your body is struggling under too much weight. Carrying unnecessary weight burdens your back and legs, and may worsen conditions such as degenerative arthritis and varicose veins. Excess fat can crowd the inner organs, making it difficult for them to function fully or properly. Also, it causes the liver to produce more triglycerides and cholesterol, which increases the risk of developing gallstones. In addition, high blood pressure, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases have all been associated with an excess accumulation of body fat.
Additionally, studies suggest that being overweight increases the chances of having a stroke. Strokes occur when fatty deposits accumulate in arteries that supply blood to the brain, interfering with the blood flow. Eventually, a clot can entirely block the path of blood, resulting in serious disability or death.
Hormonal disruptions caused by excess weight also put overweight women at increased risk for breast, uterine and ovarian cancer and irregular menstruation; overweight men are at an increased risk for prostate cancer.
More than $50 billion a year is spent on health care for weight-related ailments.
However, being overweight is less of a health concern than being obese. But the impact of being moderately overweight can still be significant. Studies indicate that being 2 to 6% above ideal weight can shorten your life span.
Although we can’t see the damage we’re causing to our health when our diets consists mostly of high fat and high sugar foods, that doesn’t mean we aren’t causing damage to our bodies. We may not feel or notice any changes when, for instance, our insulin levels go through the roof, but our pancreas, liver, heart and brain sure feel the strain, and are constantly trying to make adjustments for our unhealthy dietary lifestyle choices. Ultimately, even the strongest body will crack under this type of constant pressure.
Medical science has proven that many conditions such as heart disease, cancer, weight problems, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure are caused by the wrong diet, and can be treated or reversed to some degree by foods. Dietary modification is the weapon of choice against these diseases that would have been treated mainly with prescription drugs a generation ago.
Of course, along with any dietary change you must prepare for it mentally. Even though logically we know that what we are doing is harmful to our body it has become such a habit that we may feel helpless to break the cycle.
Diets come in all forms and one that many people have had success with is the low Glycemic Index Diet. Following the Glycemic Index (GI) recommendations offers a healthy way for anyone to lose weight. Low-GI diets are easy to put in practice, using a “This for That” approach, and they don’t restrict variety as many traditional diets. Eating the GI diet way is absolutely healthy for the body as well as the mind.
The best thing you could ever do is to start now and learn how to control your Glycemic Index and then pass these recommendations on to your family. By starting these habits with your children while they are young you will be instilling in them a lifetime of good health. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know that your children may never have to struggle with weight issues or the threat of diabetes? And as they age and continue in this lifestyle they may avoid so many other diseases and serious health issues.