Obesity

Some Buddhas are fat, and some are skinny (some are just right). Stay strong!

1. BELLYFAT
I have bellyfat, and the news this morning says I'm in jeopardy of getting alzheimer's. I thought I would share the news, and start working harder on my own fitness/physique.



To read about the dementia likelihood for people with larger bellies than hips, go to:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/MNJSVQR4T.DTL

What to do?
Bellyfat in men: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/belly-fat/MC00054
Bellyfat in women: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/belly-fat/WO00128

By the way, there's no such thing as a belly fat diet. Contrary to what some diet books and articles preach, certain foods cannot magically melt away the fat off your belly (or any other part of your body). Where fat tends to settle is typically all in your genetics.

2. OBESITY, in general.
Currently, about 119 million, or 64.5%, of US adults are either overweight or obese. The prevalence in the United States continues to rise. New government figures show almost one in three American adults is obese. And an alarming number of kids, even toddlers, are overweight. (As for "packing too many pounds", I used to fill my backpack with too many books).

Morbid obesity, obesity, overweight, and normal range classifications are all calculated using the BMI (Body Mass Index). To do this, you plug weight and height into a formula. Weight (lbs) - (ht (in) x ht (in)) x 703=BMI. For me, it's (204 / 72x72) x 703, which is a BMI of 27.66.

Normal range is 18.5 to 24..9
Overweight range is 25 to 29.9
Obese range is 30 to 34.9
Morbidly obese range is 35+

Patients often naively believe themselves to have alot of muscle. For the m.o., you can disprove this by measuring fat with calipers and in submersion tanks, etc. Another indicator of unhealthy body weight is the waist-hip ratio. Divide your waist measurement by your hip measurement, and anything over 1.0 means you may be at risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc.

I'm smack in the center of the overweight category. And it's bellyfat. Not good, argh.

More than 25% of adults in China are now considered overweight or obese, according to new research. The findings, in the journal Health Affairs, blame declining physical activity and a more Western diet. Researchers say what is happening in China could be seen as a marker for what is going to happen in the rest of the developing world. There is a link, as in the U.S., between poverty and obesity. China's traditional balanced diet is increasingly giving way to one high in oil and meat. Even in the countryside, people are getting much less exercise. Agriculture is more mechanised, and cars, motorbikes and tractors are replacing bicycles. People are also watching much more television. Audio link.

Keeping a food diary -- a detailed account of what you eat and drink and the calories it packs -- is a powerful tool in helping people lose weight, U.S. researchers say. A study involving 1,685 middle-aged men and women over six months found those who kept such a diary just about every day lost about twice as much weight as those who did not.

To read the Wikipedia article on obesity, go to: obese .
Also,
1. http://www.americansportsdata.com/obesityresearch.asp (a quick 1 pg. overview)
2. http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/trend/maps/ (see how your state measures)
3.http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/Nutrition_Information/Weight_Control/overweight_obesity_facts.htm (a list of risks from being obese).
4. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7481026.stm (it might not (all) be your fault..you are what your mother ate, too).

3. Even if you're NOT overweight, you still need to eat right and exercise:
A new study claims that normal-weight Americans are more likely than their overweight contemporaries to develop heart disease, diabetes and other health problems. Body fat has nothing to do with weight, but ruins your metabolic system. It was revealed that normal-weight people have higher percentages of body fat, thus posing a threat of different metabolic abnormalities. So fat people, take heart.

The study is based on data provided by U.S. government's Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The initial goal of the study was to discover risk factors of metabolic diseases. The majority of Survey participants showed a bit increased body fat levels, high cholesterol and leptin levels, and high rates of metabolic syndrome. Researchers warn that if your weight is normal for your size it doesn’t mean that your health is secure and requires no support in forms of exercises and healthful diets. These measures can help to reduce the level of fat – the main reason of many diseases.

4. If you are diagnosed with DIABETES or Pre-diabetes (METABOLIC SYNDROME):
(But everyone should Read)-
Also, contrary to popular understanding: A type of fat that accumulates around the hips and bottom may actually offer some protection against diabetes. Subcutaneous fat, or fat that collects under the skin, helps to improve sensitivity to the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar. Mice that got transplants of this type of fat lost weight and their fat cells shrank. Researchers have known for some time that fat that collects in your abdomen -- known as visceral fat -- can raise your risk of diabetes and heart disease. People with pear-shaped bodies are less prone to these disorders. It seems that their fat may be actively protecting them from metabolic disease. So big butts aren't necessarily bad...and I cannot lie.

"Two guidelines should be placed at the top of your list if you have been diagnosed with metabolic syndrome (pre-diabetes), namely: 1. Exercise, and 2. Avoid grains and sugars in your diet like the plague.

These two guidelines are so important, they will benefit absolutely anyone, regardless of whether you have pre-diabetes or not; whether you’re overweight or not. They are basic foundations of optimal health." (This sounds like you shouldn't eat bread. Wheat is a grain, no? I'm a bit confused. Is bread bad? Ask your doctor. This quoted doctor seems to think so).

In addition to those two fundamental basics, the following guidelines are vital components if you have metabolic syndrome or diabetes:
1.Avoid trans fats
2.Get plenty of omega-3 fats from krill oil or fish oil
3.Get enough quality sleep every night
4.Maintain a healthy body weight
5.Exercise Right for Optimal Benefits

These things probably wouldn't hurt, even if you don't have diabetes/pre-diabetes.

EXERCISE
One of the keys in using exercise to normalize your insulin and leptin levels, with the secondary benefits of weight loss and normalization of blood sugars, is to make certain minimum thresholds are met. It seems most people are not exercising enough. There are three important variables with exercise:
1.Length of time
2.Frequency
3.Intensity

Assuming you can exercise, I encourage you to gradually increase the amount of time you exercise to reach one hour per day. Initially the frequency is daily. This is your treatment dose until you normalize your weight or insulin levels. Once normalized, you only need to exercise three to four times per week.

Exercise hard enough so that it is very difficult to talk to someone next to you. When you are exercising that hard your cardiovascular system is under such a significant stress that the mere act of talking makes you unable to provide your body with enough oxygen because of the diversion of airflow.

If you cannot carry on a conversation at all, then you have gone too far and need to decrease the intensity slightly. However, most people don’t exercise at the appropriate intensity and as a result aren’t able to obtain the benefits.

Article with links on diets that work.