Overweight and Obesity Problems

Obesity is one overweight condition that provides a leeway for several deadly diseases to afflict the sufferers if it’s not put in check. Though losing weight is not a very easy decision or exercise, the health benefits it brings on a long term basis can be of great help to any overweight who wants a weight loss.

In this article, we would like to discuss three of such killer diseases that may be prevented if anyone with serious weight problems or suffering from obesity can embark on an effective weight loss program to shed the unwanted and unhealthy pounds.

Weight Loss Can Prevent Type 2 Diabetes.

Diabetes is one killer disease that affects the way the sufferers lead their lives as a result of the complications that results from having it. There are two types of diabetes, the type one and type two diabetes which are also linked with being obese and overweight. If you are overweight and already suffering from diabetes, in addition to the medications you may be taking currently, regular exercises and losing weight can also help in controlling your blood sugar levels as well. You can also increase your physical activities by walking, jogging or dancing. These activities would really help you get your blood streams moving as well as lose those unnecessary weights or excessive fats.

Weight Loss Can Help Prevent or Reduce Your Risk for Cancer

There are a number of cancers often linked with obese people or being overweight. Some of the common types of cancers often associated with overweight women include cancer of the colon, breasts, ovaries, uterus and gallbladder. Weight loss for men is very important as obese an overweight men are also standing the risk of developing cancer too. The common types of cancer these men could develop include cancer of the prostate glands, cancer of the rectum and cancer of the colon.

Some of the easiest way these problems can be prevented and avoided all together if you are not yet overweight or obese is to watch your weight, avoid diets high in fats and cholesterol as much as possible. If you are already overweight or suffering from obesity, embarking on an effective weight loss diet or program that works for you can really help.

Weight Loss Reduces The Pain of Osteoarthritis.

Being overweight or obese makes the body weight to weigh heavily on the joints of the people it affects. Their joints, hips and lower backs would have to exert doubles or triples in an effort to carry them through out their lifetime. This always results in severe pains often felt around the joints in their waking up, walking and moving life. Quite often, a lot of obese and overweight people find it very difficult to move themselves around and some even rely on people to assist them in several instances like getting or waking up from their beds, trying to stand up from a sitting position and many more.

The effect of their overall weight is that it could cause stress and tension on their body joints leading to arthritis. However, weight loss decreases the load these joints carry thus decreasing and eliminating the pain of obese and overweight people suffering osteoarthritis or arthritis.

In the United States today, the percentage of overweight and obese children has been increasing. One of the reasons why is because, in our technologically advanced society, children tend to spend more time in front of the computer, television, and video games than they do engaging in physical activity. Beyond that, the problem is dietary. Families spend more time eating out than they do eating healthy home cooked meals, with the result being that they tend to eat more quantities of food while also eating a lot of unhealthy food containing fat and carbohydrates. Indeed, in the new millennium, fast food and electronics seem to be two defining factors of our day to day lives – and with that comes obesity.

But with obesity also comes a lot of problems. Beyond the unpleasant aesthetic appearance of an obese person, there are also serious health problems that can develop as a result of overweight and obesity. They risk contracting such health problems and diseases as diabetes 2, gout, cancer, gallbladder disease, arthritis, digestion problems, respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, and high blood pressure, among others.

Children afflicted with chronic obesity oftentimes suffer from depression and related self esteem issues. A recent study has established that children and young adults who struggle with overweight and obesity tend to have a higher rate of depression than non-obese children and young adults. The study focused on about 1,000 children over the course of eight years, with the goal being to decipher the psychological effects of obesity. The study concluded that chronically obese kids are much more likely to have psychiatric problems related to depression and oppositional defiant disorder. While the former occurs more usually in boys, the latter occurs in both sexes. Non obese children are not nearly as at risk for these sorts of psychological problems.

As per World Health Organization report there are more than 1 billion overweight adults, at least 300 million of them obese. Obesity occurs when there is an excess amount of fat (BMI of 30 or higher). Body mass index (BMI), defined as the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters (kg/m). BMI above 25kg/m is defined as overweight, and a BMI of over 30 kg/m2 as obese. Obesity can afflict any human being irrespective of whether men, women, adults, teenagers or children. The increasing obesity rate is a growing problem in the modern world. The problem of overweight and obesity has increasedin the last 2 decades particularly in metropolitan cities due to faulty lifestyle.

Main causes of over weight/obesity

Unorganized, haphazardor sedentary life style.
Unbalanced diet (Intake of junk food, high fat diets like chocolates, sweets, wafers and high carbohydrate food like potatoes, rice and pasta) & Overeating.
Lack of exercises/Physical inactivity.
Improper functioning of digestive system (improper digestion, improper assimilation of food and elimination of waste from the body).

Medical conditions like thyroid and neurological problem may also cause obesity.

Psychological reasons such as Depression, anxiety, trauma and stress may cause eating disorder & may lead to over weight/obesity
Recovering from a surgery or prolonged immobility.

Bad effects of obesity & over weight

Obesity and overweight pose a major risk for chronic diseases such as anxiety, hypertension, sleeping disorder,joints problem particularly knee joints, type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and stroke, and certain forms of cancer.

Cure for over weight/ obesity

Change in lifestyle & eating habits
Exercises/ yoga

Change in lifestyle & eating habits

Get up early in the morning and drink luke warm water with 1tsp lime juice mixed with 2tsp honey. Control anger and anxiety by avoiding the situation, keeping calm or taking deep breath. Do not watch TV while taking food. Take balanced diet i.e. food from all food groups such as Vegetables, fruits, whole-grains, legumes and low fat milk products & chew eatables properly. Avoid taking junk and spicy food, deep-fry food, processes food, ice cream, high fat diets chocolates, sweets, wafers and high carbohydrate food like potatoes, rice and pasta as these items lose nutrition balance and causes deposition of excess fat on body and sleep after two hours of dinner.

Exercises/ yoga

Exercises and yoga stimulate the body and create necessary hormones for the proper and smooth functioning of digestive system, heart, brain, kidney and all other organs of our body & play very important role in the treatment of Obesity.Brisk walking in the morning for twenty minutes or jogging, along with doing stretching exercises, asana and yoga’s (PRANAYAM) is the best way to prevent & control obesity. Following Yoga techniques can be practiced effectively to reduce the weight.

Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutation is the best way to burn the calories and reduce weight. It is useful for the people of all ages from kids to old people.
Urdhvahastottanasana: Stand erect, heels joined. Interlock your fingers and slowly raise your hands up while inhaling. Now exhale and bend to the left at the waist. Hold the position as long as you can, breathing normally. Then inhale and bring the body back to erect position. Repeat for the right side. Repeat the asana 6-8 times.
Ek Pad Utanasana: Lye on the back, keep the heels together & put the hands on the floor by the side of the body. Inhale slowly, stretch one of the feet forward and lift the tight leg up. Hold the breath remains in this position for six to eight seconds and bring the leg down while exhaling. Practice this exercise with the other leg. In the beginning, this asana should be practiced four times with each leg. After practice, one can practice this asana for more times with each leg.
Uttanopadasana: Lye down in shavasana, Inhale & start raising your legs up to 30 degrees. Continue normal breathing & bring down your left leg slowly till the heel touches the floor. Now inhale & start raising your left foot till it joins your right foot, keep it up & bring down your right leg slowly till the heel touches the floor & relax. Repeat the same with your right leg. Keep the knees straight & toes out stretched and slowly bring both feet down till both heels touch the floor and relax.
Pada Sanchalasana(Bicyling): Lye down on the floor or hard bed on your back, put the hands on the floor by the side of the body facing palm upward and raise your left leg and make a big zero by rotating it in a clockwise direction from the hip joint. Continue to make 8-10 circles without touching the ground at all. After rotating in clockwise direction, rotate the same leg in anticlockwise direction for 8-10 rounds. Relax for some time & repeat the same exercise with your right leg. Take normal breath. This asana can also be performed with both the legs at a time but those suffering from backache, slip disc, sciatica, high blood pressure and heart diseases should do this asana with only one leg at a time.
Drututtanpadasana: Stretch your body and keep it taut. Inhale and raise both legs slowly while putting pressure on your hands. Align your legs at 90 to the floor and then slowly bring them down. However, just before touching the ground, raise both legs back up. Repeat this procedures 8-10 times or till you feel tired. Inhale while raising the legs, exhale while bringing them down. Repeat this asana 3-5 times

Take precaution that you gradually start your asana & exercises not at once. All the asanas and exercise should be learned from any guru and be practiced under his guidance. These yoga asanas should be avoided by persons suffering from the high blood pressure, serious heart conditions. Those suffering from and back problems such as Sciatica and Slipped disc should not do the bending postures of surya namaskar & do the other asanas with one leg at a time.

Regular exercises, yoga and meditation are also very useful in controlling psychological factors like depression, anxiety, stress and anger. Exercises and yoga are also very effective in controlling the diseases due to heredity and genetic reasons. For medical conditions consult the qualified doctor.

The problem of obesity in the United States has grown to the point where it has received national attention. In 2001, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a call to action to prevent, and decrease overweight and obesity. A year later, Congress mandated that the Institute of Medicine develop an action plan to reduce the number of obese youth in the U.S. More recently, the Childhood Overweight and Obesity Prevention Initiative was launched in 2007 at the National Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Summit. Yet, according to the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Progress in Preventing Childhood Obesity, the problem is still increasing nationwide.

Texas Programs Have Focused on Obesity for a Decade

During the past decade, the Paso del Norte Health Foundation has provided extensive funding for obesity prevention programs. The Coordinated Approach To Childhood Health (CATCH) in El Paso is an evidence-based health program for elementary and middle school students. Walk El Paso promotes walking as a fun and safe way to exercise, and media advertisements promote nutrition, and physical activity in the El Paso region.

The Foundation fights childhood obesity by uniting community partners at all levels to promote healthy weights and strong bodies, and studies support the effectiveness of this approach. Two research studies have confirmed that the CATCH program reduced childhood obesity in elementary school, but the rate of child obesity in all Texas counties is still greater than the targeted national health goal.

In the U.S., 16.3 percent of children between the ages of two and 19 are obese, so more resources are needed to implement effective programs at both local and state levels.

El Paso Region Excels in Obesity Prevention Efforts

Obesity prevention efforts in the El Paso region of Texas have been cited as the most effective in Texas for decreasing obesity among children. Researchers at The University of Texas School of Public Health at Austin Regional Campus reported a 13-percent decrease in obesity among El Paso’s fourth graders.

Following the implementation of statewide programs, researchers looked at regional changes in child obesity across Texas. El Paso has offered the first indication that obesity prevention efforts will work on a broad public scale.

The El Paso effort is important because the National Institutes of Health reported that childhood obesity doubled during the past 20 to 30 years among all age, gender, and race groups. Research has also pointed out that obesity has put children as young as seven at risk of future heart disease and stroke, even in the absence of high blood pressure. This increased risk of life-threatening health problems is insidious because the children studied were entirely healthy except for obesity.

The Barrier Parents Have Accepting That They Have an Overeating, or Overweight Child or Teen

Nothing can be done to help children and teens with their dysfunctional eating problems until the parents are willing to recognize and accept the fact that their child or teen is overeating, overweight or obese. No matter what the type of eating dysfunction, it needs to trigger a reaction in the parents to make changes in the whole family’s eating and drinking.

Parents Don’t Recognize There Child is Overeating:

63% of parents (higher if the parents are both overweight) fail to recognize their child is overweight or obese despite the child’s obvious physical appearance. Often they perceive their child’s excess weight to be a temporary problem- “baby fat” or a “stage” which they are sure they will “outgrow.”

7 out of 10 overweight adolescents will become overweight adults. If one parent is overweight it rises to 8 out of 10. A great majority of parents do not know how much their child should weigh nor do they know the risks of childhood obesity. Some parents were more concerned with underweight and force their children to eat and “clean up the plate.” The disconnect between the parents perception and the reality of their child’s weight prevents any future solution to the child’s problem, since parents are the most influential factor in laying the foundation for solving childhood eating dysfunction.

A Distorted Picture of a 12 Year Old Girl

An informative way to picture how the parents of obese children see their children is to look at a hypothetical 12 year old girl, with a height of 60 inches. She would have to weigh at least 125 lbs. to have a BMI of 26. (The 95th percentile for 12 year old girls.) A 6 year old boy who is 54 inches tall, and borderline overweight, would have to weigh at least 90 lbs. to have a BMI of 22. (The cut off for overweight at his age.) Yet these children are commonly

thought of as being normal and often “just about right” any more than 80% of their parents.

Should Parents “Protect” Their Child’s Feeling or Change The Eating?

Much has been written about protecting “feelings” of children, preventing damage to self-esteem and the problem of making “big issues” about food. Sitting down at the dinner table is important for children’s social education.

Very young children have the food and portions selected by the parents. Teenagers have to be given room to make their own food choices and portions. It’s the 6 to 12 year old where the parents usually have the greatest difficulty. They need to provide the “right” food selections and present it to the children with the portions already

controlled. The child is free to pick his own selections and eat eat all or less of the that portion.

Restricting foods or pushing children to finish their meals only serves to make the child uncomfortable and at the same time interferes with the learning process.

Taking Charge of the Child and Family’s Eating Does Not Lead to Adult Binge Eating or Bulimia

The ideas that you will make a child bulimic, induce binge eating or anorexia if you talk too much about food is simply not true. With less than 5% of children becoming bulimic in their lifetime and more than 34% grossly overweight, the odds are that the complications from obesity will far outweigh the problems of bulimia. (Incidentally, bulimia is almost universally confined to females) Only a very small number of teenagers develop eating disorders despite the societal pressures for thinness.

Which children are at risk for developing binge eating and bulimia as adults?

Children and teens at risk for eating disorders usually have a history of depression or anxiety and very disturbed relationship with their parents and usually a history of psychiatric problems in their parents. They can be spotted ahead of time.

Making large issues about food, restricting food, or singling out one child in the family for “special foods” is just as destructive as not even facing the problem. With 1/.3 of children overweight or obese, the parents need to take charge and make some changes. Breaking down the barrier to accepting the problem is always the first step.