KNOCK-OUT OBESITY


FACTS ON OBESITY

Worldwide obesity has nearly doubled since 1980.
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion adults, 20 and older, were overweight. Of these over 200 million men and nearly 300 million women were obese.
35% of adults aged 20 and over were overweight in 2008, and 11% were obese.
65% of the world's population live in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight.
More than 40 million children under the age of five were overweight in 2011.
Obesity is preventable.
What are overweight and obesity?
Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health.
Body mass index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify overweight and obesity in adults. It is defined as a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/m2).
The WHO definition is:
a BMI greater than or equal to 25 is overweight
a BMI greater than or equal to 30 is obesity.
BMI provides the most useful population-level measure of overweight and obesity as it is the same for both sexes and for all ages of adults. However, it should be considered a rough guide because it may not correspond to the same degree of fatness in different individuals.
Facts about overweight and obesity
Overweight and obesity are the fifth leading risk for global deaths. At least 2.8 million adults die each year as a result of being overweight or obese. In addition, 44% of the diabetes burden, 23% of the ischaemic heart disease burden and between 7% and 41% of certain cancer burdens are attributable to overweight and obesity.
Some WHO global estimates from 2008 follow.
More than 1.4 billion adults, 20 and older, were overweight.
Of these overweight adults, over 200 million men and nearly 300 million women were obese.
Overall, more than 10% of the world’s adult population was obese.
In 2011, more than 40 million children under the age of five were overweight. Once considered a high-income country problem, overweight and obesity are now on the rise in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in urban settings. More than 30 million overweight children are living in developing countries and 10 million in developed countries.
Overweight and obesity are linked to more deaths worldwide than underweight. For example, 65% of the world's population live in countries where overweight and obesity kill more people than underweight (this includes all high-income and most middle-income countries).
What causes obesity and overweight?
The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended. Globally, there has been:
an increased intake of energy-dense foods that are high in fat; and
an increase in physical inactivity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of many forms of work, changing modes of transportation, and increasing urbanization.
Changes in dietary and physical activity patterns are often the result of environmental and societal changes associated with development and lack of supportive policies in sectors such as health, agriculture, transport, urban planning, environment, food processing, distribution, marketing and education.
What are common health consequences of overweight and obesity?
Raised BMI is a major risk factor for noncommunicable diseases such as:
cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke), which were the leading cause of death in 2008;
diabetes;
musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis - a highly disabling degenerative disease of the joints);
some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon).
The risk for these noncommunicable diseases increases, with the increase in BMI.
Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of obesity, premature death and disability in adulthood. But in addition to increased future risks, obese children experience breathing difficulties, increased risk of fractures, hypertension, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and psychological effects.
Facing a double burden of disease
Many low- and middle-income countries are now facing a "double burden" of disease.
While they continue to deal with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, they are experiencing a rapid upsurge in noncommunicable disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in urban settings.
It is not uncommon to find under-nutrition and obesity existing side-by-side within the same country, the same community and the same household.
Children in low- and middle-income countries are more vulnerable to inadequate pre-natal, infant and young child nutrition At the same time, they are exposed to high-fat, high-sugar, high-salt, energy-dense, micronutrient-poor foods, which tend to be lower in cost but also lower in nutrient quality. These dietary patterns in conjunction with lower levels of physical activity, result in sharp increases in childhood obesity while undernutrition issues remain unsolved.
How can overweight and obesity be reduced?
Overweight and obesity, as well as their related noncommunicable diseases, are largely preventable. Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s choices, making the healthier choice of foods and regular physical activity the easiest choice (accessible, available and affordable), and therefore preventing obesity.
At the individual level, people can:
limit energy intake from total fats and sugars;
increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, as well as legumes, whole grains and nuts;
engage in regular physical activity (60 minutes a day for children and 150 minutes per week for adults).
Individual responsibility can only have its full effect where people have access to a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, at the societal level it is important to:
 
support individuals in following the recommendations above, through sustained political commitment and the collaboration of many public and private stakeholders;
make regular physical activity and healthier dietary choices available, affordable and easily accessible to all - especially the poorest individuals.
The food industry can play a significant role in promoting healthy diets by:
reducing the fat, sugar and salt content of processed foods;
ensuring that healthy and nutritious choices are available and affordable to all consumers;
practicing responsible marketing especially those aimed at children and teenagers;

ensuring the availability of healthy food choices and supporting regular physical activity practice in the workplace.


 HEALTH AND NUTRITION 

Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living organism. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind and body, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain (as in "good health" or "healthy"). The World Health Organization (WHO) defined health in its broader sense in 1946 as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." Although this definition has been subject to controversy, in particular as lacking operational value and because of the problem created by use of the word "complete," it remains the most enduring.
Other definitions have been proposed, among which a recent definition that correlates health and personal satisfaction. Classification systems such as the WHO Family of International Classifications, including the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) and the International Classification of
Diseases (ICD), are commonly used to define and measure the components of health.

Nutrition (also called nourishment or aliment) is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary (in the form of food) to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet.
The diet of an organism is what it eats, which is largely determined by the perceived palatability of foods. Dietitians are health professionals who specialize in human nutrition, meal planning, economics, and preparation. They are trained to provide safe, evidence-based dietary advice and management to individuals (in health and disease), as well as to institutions. Clinical nutritionists are health professionals who focus more specifically on the role of nutrition in chronic disease, including possible prevention or remediation by addressing nutritional deficiencies before resorting to drugs. While government regulation of the use of this professional title is less universal than for "dietician", the field is supported by many high-level academic programs, up to and including the Doctoral level, and has its own voluntary certification board, professional associations, and peer-reviewed journals, e.g. the American Society for Nutrition, Nutrition Society of India, Food Scientists and Nutritionists Association India, Indian Dietetic Association and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
                   According to WHO  "Nutrition is the intake of food, considered in relation to the body’s dietary needs. Good nutrition – an adequate, well balanced diet combined with regular physical activity – is a cornerstone of good health. Poor nutrition can lead to reduced immunity, increased susceptibility to disease, impaired physical and mental development, and reduced productivity".


                                   
     11 TIPS ON HOW TO STAY HEALTHY

1.          Maintain healthy eating habits. Avoid fad diets like the plague; to get all the nutrition the human body needs, eat carbs, protein, and fat (yes, even fat!) at every meal. By doing so, you'll have a healthy heart, healthy brain, and a fully functional immune system. Eating highly varied foods will also help insure you get all the vitamins, minerals, oils, and enzymes your body craves.
To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. That’s all there is to it. With the exception of sweets, eliminating one area of the food pyramid from your diet won’t replace the need to simply consume fewer calories.
Avoid skipping meals, which is hard on the body. Some people even recommend eating up to 6 mini meals a day instead of 3 large ones, which can sustain energy and steady blood-sugar levels; however, many people end up turning their “mini meals” into junk food sessions and end up consuming not just more calories, but emptier ones. Be honest with yourself before making this choice.
If you want to work on portion control, eat low energy-density foods (i.e. more substance, fewer calories). Fruits and vegetables, for example, are packed with not only vitamins and minerals, but also water and fiber, making them take longer to digest and keeping you full longer.
Drink more water. This helps flush metabolic wastes to keep your metabolism in top shape. Water can also help you feel fuller, so drink at least a half-gallon (2 liters) of water every day (or more if you are active or live in a hot climate).
2             Sleep well every night. Adults should get 7 to 9 hours daily, whereas school-aged children should get 10 to 11. One of the absolute most important ways of improving the quality of your sleep is to do it in complete darkness, as even small amounts of light interfere with the chemicals that tell your body to rest. If you can’t eliminate the light in your room, wear an eye mask. Another one of the best ways to improve your sleep is to exercise
.
Sleeping is also a good way to prevent overeating. A study by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition demonstrated that men who only slept for 4 hours consumed, on average, 500 more calories than they did after sleeping for 8.
3        Stick to an exercise regimen. If you don’t want to pay for a gym membership, try strength-training at home. The muscle you develop will help increase your metabolism: the bodies of muscular people burn more calories even while they’re at rest. To keep your heart in shape, do cardio. One particularly effective way to improve your cardiovascular health is to do interval training, which means alternating between low- and high-intensity activity. This has been shown to be a quick and extremely effective way to improve heart health and endurance. (Anyone over the age of 60 or who has heart disease, high blood pressure, or arthritis should consult a doctor before attempting interval training.)
4         Pursue your passions. No, not everyone can make a living playing sold-out concerts, traveling around the world trying new foods, or churning out bestselling fantasy novels, but that doesn’t mean you should give up on your dreams. Set some time aside to practice an instrument, do art, take photos, build models, weld, bake gourmet cakes, or whatever else enriches your free time. If you want to learn something new, take an evening or weekend class. If you can’t think of anything interesting off the top of your head, take the time to find a hobby.
If you’re convinced that there isn’t enough time in the day to pursue any outside activities, try to cut back on a time-wasting activity like channel-surfing or hitting refresh on Facebook
.
   Limit your vices. Quit smoking, beat drug addiction, and, if necessary, stop drinking. Avoid other risky behaviors like speeding, fighting, unsafe sex, and excessive thrill-seeking.
6    Improve your psychological health. Prioritize developing meaningful relationships above simply being social. Practice self-disclosure, which means sharing things that are unique to you (your thoughts, fears, favorite movies and music, pet peeves, etc.) with those you trust. This has been shown to be of immense importance to not only forging deeper interpersonal connections, but also feeling validated emotionally.
Learn how to have a healthy relationship. If you think you’re in a manipulative or controlling relationship, get out of it. It’s better to stand strong on your own than be held back by a so-called companion.
Learn how to understand your emotions so that you can truly know yourself.
Learn how to cope with emotional pain and, if necessary, deal with emotional abuse.
7     Keep your mind limber. Read more, solve puzzles, play games of strategy, learn to play an instrument, improve your memory, and never stop learning, even if you feel like you’re “past your prime.” In addition to the fact that staying mentally active is emotionally rewarding, studies have shown that there is a correlation between mentally-challenging activities and a decreased risk of Alzheimer's.
   Be hygienic. Wash your hands thoroughly after coming into contact with a sick person, using the bathroom, or anything else that could make you sick. (If you’re not sure what “thoroughly” entails, sing Happy Birthday to You in your head as you scrub.) In addition to flossing regularly, brush your teeth and tongue at least twice daily to limit plaque and harmful bacteria.
9     Make little lifestyle changes. Don’t tire yourself out by making large gestures toward health without addressing the small stuff. Instead of running yourself ragged at the gym three days a week, park farther away from the store, walk the dog more often, take the stairs instead of the elevator, or weed your garden; instead of attacking your veggies and dip distractedly in front of the computer or TV, set time aside to slowly enjoy each meal and prevent mindless overeating. Get your new habits to stick by tackling them at the grass-roots level.
10      Remember to do everything in moderation – including moderation. Turning each aspect of your life into something you need to check off a list can not only make you feel trapped, but also make you more likely fall (or possibly even throw yourself) off the wagon. Allowing yourself the occasional indulgence to blow off steam will make you much more satisfied with your new lifestyle choices.
11    Know that friends play an important role. Many studies show that people with a wide range of social contacts get sick less than those who don't. Friends make you laugh, and laughing is also an important part of health.,

                                                                DIET
In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. Dietary habits are the habitual decisions an individual or culture makes when choosing what foods to eat. The word diet often implies the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management reasons (with the two often being related). Although humans are omnivores, each culture and each person holds some food preferences or some food taboos. This may be due to personal tastes or ethical reasons. Individual dietary choices may be more or less healthy.
Proper nutrition requires ingestion and absorption of vitamins, minerals, and food energy in the form of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Dietary habits and choices play a significant role in the quality of life, health and longevity. It can define cultures and play a role in religion.
                              Diet classification table
Food Type
    paleolitic      diet
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
No
Religious and cultural dietary choices
Some cultures and religions have restrictions concerning what foods are acceptable in their diet. For example, only Kosher foods are permitted by Judaism, and Halal foods by Islam. Although Buddhists are generally vegetarians, the practice varies and meat-eating may be permitted depending on the sects. In Hinduism, vegetarianism is the ideal, but meat-eating is not banned. Jain are more or less strictly vegetarian
Dietary choices
Many people choose to forgo food from animal sources to varying degrees (e.g. flexitarianism, vegetarianism, veganism, fruitarianism) for health reasons, issues surrounding morality, or to reduce their personal impact on the environment. Raw foodism is another contemporary trend. These diets may require tuning or supplementation such as vitamins to meet ordinary nutritional needs.
.Weight management
A particular diet may be chosen to seek weight loss or weight gain. Changing a subject's dietary intake, or "going on a diet", can change the energy balance and increase or decrease the amount of fat stored by the body. Some foods are specifically recommended, or even altered, for conformity to the requirements of a particular diet. These diets are often recommended in conjunction with exercise. Specific weight loss programs can be harmful to health, while others may be beneficial (and can thus be coined as healthy diets). The terms "healthy diet" and "diet for weight management" are often related, as the two promote healthy weight management. Having a healthy diet is a way to prevent health problems, and will provide your body with the right balance of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients.
Eating disorders
An eating disorder is a mental disorder that interferes with normal food consumption. It is defined by abnormal eating habits that may involve either insufficient or excessive diet.
Health
A healthy diet may improve or maintain optimal health. In developed countries, affluence enables unconstrained caloric intake and possibly inappropriate food choices.

It is recommended by many authorities that people maintain a normal weight by (limiting consumption of energy-dense foods and sugary drinks), eat plant-based food, limit red and processed meat, and limit alcohol. However, there is no total consensus on what constitutes a healthy diet.


The story of a 625lb mother-of-six who died as a result of her weight is documented in a new TLC show.
Dominique Lanoise, 40, from Miami, Florida, was virtually housebound for almost two decades with her daughters washing, feeding and caring for her.
She died in March, after being given less than a year to live by doctor's who had been waiting to give her potentially life-saving stomach surgery. 


 

Commenting on her situation, Dr Oscar Hernandez from the Southern Bariatric Center in Miami, said: 'She’s gone to town eating, there is no operation at these numbers.
'It wasn’t a one time slip-up it was a systematic assassination of her weight loss program.'
During the TLC special, 600-Pound Mom: Race Against Time, he is seen visiting Lanoise at home telling her: 'You are going to die in this bed; this bed is your coffin.'


Dr Jorge Rabaza  the bariatric surgeon in charge of giving her life-saving surgery agreed that operating at that point would be too risky.
'I'm willing to be reasonable with that number. Dominique is 625 I will not do the surgery,' he said.
'There is a high mortality rate for morbidly obese patients, where they get blood clots in their legs and the blood clots go up to their lungs. A large blood clot will kill a patient instantaneously.'


He said the eventual goal was to reduce her stomach by 90per cent.
Lanoise, born in Haiti, started gaining weight aged 16, following the birth of her first daughter, Witelane.
'I used to be skinny but after I had my first baby I got so big.' she told Asiantown.net.
As her weight skyrocketed to more than 600 lbs, she spent her days sitting in bed wrapped in sheets as she couldn't find clothes to fit.



She first came to the media's attention in 2010 when she was forced to stay in Haiti for three months after the earthquake, because she was too heavy for commercial airlines.
Instead she was forced to travel back to the U.S. in a military cargo plane.
Despite doctor’s orders to eat healthier, she continued to indulge in her favorite Haitian dishes and sprinkled her meals with appetite-suppressing powder, wrongly thinking it would counteract the calories.


At one point, Lanoise was close to her target weight - but she explained that 'sometimes I feel so hungry.'
Lanoise's daughters had mixed feelings about the surgery and some are concerned about the risks although they were keen to get her walking again.

 

One of her daughters recalled: 'When they told me the weight. I was like very surprised and very angry. I thought the scale was wrong but as they did it over and over again it was right.'
Dr Hernandez added: 'I do need to have a conference with her daughters, make sure they support what we’re doing. I’m not here 24 hours a day.'


Culled: Dailymail.co.uk

MORE ARTICLES...

 'Fitness Myths Busted'
MYTH 1: MUSCLE TURNS INTO FAT
REALITY: Muscle and fat are two completely different tissues that have different functions, so it's physiologically impossible to turn one into the other. If you stop exercising, your muscles atrophy, so you lose the tone you worked so hard to create. And if you eat more calories than you burn, you'll gain fat.

MYTH 2: YOU NEED TO EXERCISE 30 MINUTES STRAIGHT TO GET FIT.
REALITY: Three 10-minute cardio stints offer the same healthy payback as a single 30-minute one. If you are trying to peel off pounds, of course, the more you do, the faster you'll succeed. But don't feel guilty if all you can squeeze in is a few minutes here and a few minutes there—it all adds up.

Short on time? Ratchet up the intensity of your workout: Go hard for 30 seconds on the elliptical or jog for a minute in the middle of your walk to maintain your fitness level and your habit. And remember, anything you do—whether it's a brisk 5-minute walk or carrying heavy groceries to your car—for any period of time, provides some benefit.

MYTH 3: OVERWEIGHT PEOPLE HAVE A SLUGGISH METABOLISM.
REALITY: Though some folks do have metabolic disorders that slow their metabolism, fewer than 10 percent of overweight people suffer from them. In fact, the more you weigh, the more calories you'll burn during exercise at the same relative workload as a slimmer person. If you notice the scale climbing higher, worry about your activity level, not your metabolism. Try this fat-burning workout to really see results.

MYTH 4: LIFTING HEAVY WEIGHTS MAKE WOMEN BULK UP.
REALITY: Women don’t have enough of the muscle-building hormone testosterone to get bulky, even using heavy weights. The truth is, some people will gain muscle faster than they lose fat, so they may look bigger until they shed some of the flab and reveal the slim, toned muscles underneath. Shape sleek muscles with this workout from The Biggest Loser's Jillian Michaels.

MYTH 5: YOU CAN’T LOSE ANY WEIGHT BY SWIMMING.
REALITY: OK, it’s true that long-distance swimmers who navigate colder waters tend to retain body fat for insulation. But ask anyone who laps it up while training for a triathlon: You will sizzle off pounds in the pool, since swimming burns 450 to 700 calories an hour! One reason you might not shed flab doing freestyle? If you throw in the towel and cut your workout short.

MYTH 6: STRETCHING BEFORE EXERCISE PREVENTS INJURIES AND ENHANCES PERFORMANCE.
REALITY: Researchers are still scratching their head over this one, since studies have yet to show conclusively that limbering up has any effect on staving off strains and other injuries. But they do know that stretching regularly can make bending, reaching, twisting and lifting easier. Best move: Save your stretching for post-exercise, when muscles are warm.

MYTH 7: YOU BURN MORE CALORIES EXERCISING IN CHILLY WEATHER.
REALITY: If you shiver through a long run in the frigid winter air simply to experience the extra calorie burn, you might want to come in from the cold: You do torch a few extra calories during the first few minutes, but once you get warmed up, the caloric expenditure is the same whether you’re exercising in Siberia or the Sahara. Try a treadmill circuit workout with a great playlist to keep you going!

MYTH 8: WHEN YOUR BODY GETS USED TO AN EXERCISE, YOU'LL BURN FEWER CALORIES DOING IT.
REALITY: Unless you've adjusted the intensity, you'll burn as much jogging or cycling today as you did last week, last month, even last year. Experts say that this principle only applies to exercises that we're naturally inefficient at, such as using the elliptical machine: After five to six sessions, you'll be smoother in your movements and expend fewer calories—but the difference is only about 2 to 5 percent.

MYTH 9:
THE CALORIE READOUT ON MACHINES IS ACCURATE.
REALITY: If only! Research has shown that some types of machines can be off by as much as 70 percent. The culprit? Contraptions such as the elliptical machine haven’t been around long enough for exercise scientists to develop the appropriate calorie-burn equations. On the upside, stationary bikes and treadmills, the grandfathers of the gym, generally give a fairly precise reading, particularly if you enter your age and weight.

Rather than swearing by what the machine says, use the calorie readout to monitor your progress. If the tally climbs during the same workout for the same duration, you’re working harder and getting fitter.
Lucy Danziger, author of "Fitness Myths Busted", is editor-in-chief at Self Magazine





No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.