Overweight And Obesity

By Paul S

Get the Facts

Low-carb diet or a balanced diet? We are bombarded every day with conflicting information about our health.

Should we be physically active three times a week or five times a week?

And how can we be expected to follow any of these recommendations when we're always so busy?

With so many conflicting 'expert advise'; It's no wonder that many of us would just surrender!

But if we want to live long and fulfilling lives, it's essential that we learn the real facts about health, nutrition, and physical activity.

Luckily, the real facts are pretty straightforward. All you really need to know about a healthy lifestyle is:

* Eat a healthy diet that includes fruits, vegetables, and whole grain products -- and be sure to control portion sizes.

* Get physically active at least five times a week, for thirty minutes or more.

* Avoid tobacco and illegal drugs altogether.

Sounds simple, right? Well, if it were that easy, we'd all be effortlessly fit and healthy.

Today's lifestyle doesn't allow much room for health. And that's where taking Small Steps comes in. We know that it's impossible for many people to make dramatic lifestyle changes. Instead, you can learn ways that you can change small things about your life and see big results.

The Statistics

· 61% of adults in the United States were overweight or obese in 1999.

· Approximately 300,000 deaths each year in the United States may be attributable to obesity

· Overweight and obesity are associated with heart disease, certain types of cancer, type 2 diabetes, stroke, arthritis, breathing problems, and psychological disorders, such as depression.

Eat Better

In 1999, almost 108 million adult Americans were overweight or obese. If you are overweight or obese, carrying this extra weight puts you at risk for developing many diseases, especially heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer. Losing this weight helps to prevent and control these diseases.

But many people are confused about how to lose unhealthy weight. The good news is that this may be accomplished by eating healthy, balanced, and well-apportioned meals

Get Active

If you think of getting active as one more thing on your long to-do list, you'll never get moving. It is actually easy to integrate activity into your daily life.

You don't need to go to the gym five times a week to be healthy.

Do You Know That:

· For instance, did you know that a forty-five minute walk at a brisk pace (3 to 4 miles an hour) can burn up to 300 calories?

· Or that by making small changes in your daily routine -- like parking further away, taking the stairs, and playing active games with your kids -- you can start living an active, healthy life?

Learn More

Be interested in your health. Learn more by reading a good book on proper nutrition, join a health clubs or, my best recommendation is to check on the internet where you will most valuable information. Why not ask a neighbor whom you know is health conscious and stay healthy. Surely they can offer you some good tips on how to do it right!

P.S. You will be thrilled to discover that our body is capable of healing itself; provided we feed it with the right type and amount of nutrition; drinking sufficient water, sufficient sleep / rest, and physical exercise.

Paul S is passionate about helping people who train hard, work hard, study hard, to stay not just healthy, but at OPTIMAL Level. He is also passionate about sharing the reality about food we eat today as compared to the last 50 years which our forefathers enjoyed. His main site is at http://www.healthsportsnutrition.com

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Dangers of Being Overweight

It is not only not being able to fit in small sizes that people who are overweight should worry about. Weighing more than you should can present a lot of problems not only in terms of your social life or your romantic chances but also in the quality of life that you lead and the health of your body.

Obesity, to be technical about it, is classified as being in 20 percent more than the average or ideal body weight. The measure of the average body weight can be found in the body mass index charts in hospitals and even in the internet. For people who have not reached the 20 percent mark is said to be only overweight and not obese.

But whether obese or overweight, the potential problems and illnesses that may develop are still the same for both. In fact, being overweight and obese can both be lethal especially if not taken seriously and if actions are not taken immediately.

When you come to think about it, it is not actually being obese that presents the problem but the complications that the person develop when he or she is overweight. Studies have presented the number of potential problems that may ensue when your body mass index is way overboard. Also, the risk for death increases as the rate of obesity increases.

Below are just some of the dangers that people who are overweight and those that are obese can face. Read on and it might just serve as a wake-up call to start eating right and crunching those muscles.

Hypertension.

This is perhaps the biggest problem that overweight and obese people face. Hypertension or what is commonly called as high blood pressure increases the chances of a heart attack occurring. This is because when excess fats accumulate, sodium is retained, which in turn takes in water. Water flows through the blood stream, abnormally increasing the volume of blood that the heart pumps. This makes the work of the heart much harder, thus pressuring and stressing the organ.

Diabetes

Another problem that can happen when people are overweight or obese is the 2nd type of diabetes. While the first type of diabetes is inborn, the Type 2 diabetes is mainly due to the lifestyle of the person, particularly their diet and intake of fats and sugar. This happens because fats in the body can cause the body to resist insulin.

Stroke

The presence of abnomally high number of fats in the blood especially the bad ones called the LDL (bad cholesterol) can clog the arteries and lead to stroke.

Osteoarthritis

When one is heavier than what the legs can support, this puts undue pressure to the joints of the legs and the feet. Uknowingly, tears and wearing away in the cartilage can develop thus leading to this problem that is often seen in older people.

Sleep apnea

Believe it or not, your weight can also affect the way you sleep at night. The more overweight a person is, the more severe will be your sleep apnea.

By Bob Janeway

Gallstones

This is also quite common for people who are very overweight although up until now, the connection between the presence of gallstones and one’s weight is still unclear.

Cancer

Because there are many conditions and complications that may develop when one is overweight, all this problem can lead to cancer when not immediately diagnosed.

Bob is the owner of http://ensureyoursuccess.net which is an up-to-date, informative weight loss and low carb diets website.

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