Nick Mutt asked:


Child obesity is one of the alarming situations in most of the countries in the world. Obesity among children can lead to several health problems. So it is always advisable for parents to take action against child obesity before it’s too late. You must carefully monitor what your children eat. The aim should be right food, right quantities; junk food to be restricted or chucked out completely.

Fitness trainers say that the number of obese and overweight children coming in for weight reduction programs is on the rise. In this article you will find some useful dietary guidelines to overcome child obesity.

1. Salads are good to replace snacks. Include fruits and vegetables in salad your child love to eat.

2. Fruits and vegetables must be included in diet. Vegetable soups can be served in breakfast.

3. Milk shakes are healthy substitutes for colas. Try not to keep cakes, chocolates and sweets at home.

Encourage your child to take an active part in sports and outdoor games. To lose all the flab accumulated by eating, sleeping and watching TV, your child needs some intensive weight reduction program. If the family members have high BP or diabetes related to obesity, children should be encouraged more so to lose the flab so that those diseases don’t bother them. Strict diet of vegetable soup and fruits must be given, and chocolates, soft drinks, etc., to be completely banned.

Lifestyle measures to combat child obesity:

1. Limit time spent in front of the TV

2. Eat healthy food. Try fruit salads and vegetable soups.

3. Baked foods are a better alternative to fried stuff

4. Try sweets cooked in milk rather than oil or ghee

5. Include more pulses and vegetables in your diet

6. Cut out red meat; try seafood

7. Fix regular times for meals

8. Snack on fruits and fruit juices

9. Go outside and play more. Try jogging at least two or three times a week. Cycling is also a good option.

Parents, teachers or fitness experts can only guide the kids but the initiative and motivation should come from kids. What they need is correct guidance and ideal role models. Parents and teachers should play these roles and the results will be excellent, for everybody to see.

Disclaimer: This article is not meant to provide health advice and is for general information only. Always seek the insights of a qualified health professional before embarking on any health program.

Copyright © Nick Mutt, All Rights Reserved. If you want to use this article on your website or in your ezine, make all the urls (links) active.

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Javier

anil kapur asked:


The Layman’s Guide To Diabetes

Facts about diabetes that everybody should know

What is Diabetes

Diabetes is one of the commonest but very serious health disorders found all over the world. Approximately one in every 25 person suffers from it and a big population is predisposed to suffer from it. With all the advancements and developments in modern medicine, we have failed to find a cure for it. We do not even know the exact causes of Diabetes. Diabetes today has affected whole world irrespective of peoples’ life styles. Elder or younger, rich or poor, rural or urban; all have equally suffered.

Diabetes is a metabolic disorder. It is associated with a hormone called ‘insulin’ which is secreted by a gland known as ‘pancreas’ situated near the lower border of stomach. Diabetes arises either from ‘deficiency of insulin’ or from ‘inability of cells to utilize the available insulin’. It is basically the ‘lack of action’ of insulin that brings about Diabetes. This disorder affects the whole metabolism of the body. Modern sciences have failed to explain with certainty why pancreas stops the production of insulin or why body cells develop resistance to insulin.

The causes of diabetes are still not known but there are certain predisposing factors that considerably increase the chances of developing diabetes. Some predisposing factors are

Obesity

Sedentary life style with very less physical activity

Family history of diabetes

Old age

Eating habits especially when food contains excessive carbohydrates

What actually happens!

When we eat food, it is digested in digestive tract beginning from mouth. Complex food is broken down to simpler foods such as glucose, amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins etc. which can be absorbed in the blood. In a normal human being, the glucose produced in this way is acted upon by a hormone called insulin which helps in taking this glucose to all body cells for their energy needs and converts the ‘left over’ glucose into glycogen. Thus, the chief role of insulin is to regulate the glucose level in the blood. Sometimes, for unknown reasons, either the Pancreas gland stops producing insulin or the body cells develop inability to utilize the available insulin thereby causing glucose level in the blood to rise which eventually results in diabetes. More than 90% of all diabetics suffer from the diabetes that is caused by inability of body cells to utilize the available insulin to regulate the glucose level.

When body cells do not receive glucose for their energy needs, they begin to starve. To supplement the energy needs, body starts disintegrating the stored fats and proteins leading to loss of weight, fatigue, weakness and several other complications.

Symptoms and their reasons explained

Common symptoms of diabetes include

Frequent and excessive urination

As I explained earlier, glucose level in the blood is very high in diabetes. This glucose circulates in blood and reaches

kidneys which filter the blood to form urine. Kidneys ordinarily never let glucose pass into the urine but when glucose level is excessive, this glucose enters the urine and during this, kidneys filter a lot of water also which results in excessive and frequent ********* in diabetes.

Excessive thirst and dry mouth

Excessive ********* in diabetes leads to shortage of water in the body. This, in turn leads to thirst and dry mouth.

Hunger

Since, the body cells do not get glucose, they begin to starve. Although the glucose is all around yet cells cannot utilize it. This is a case of ‘scarcity amidst plenty’. This starvation of body cells leads to more and more hunger.

Weight loss

When body cells cannot utilize glucose, the stored fat in the body is slowly disintegrated to compensate it. This leads to loss of weight.

Fatigue

Along with stored fat, the protein in the muscles is also disintegrated to nourish the starving cells. This results in fatigue and weakness of the body.

Blurred vision

Our eyes have a fluid inside them that helps in focusing. Due to high concentration of glucose in blood, this fluid also changes its concentration thus leading to blurring of vision and frequent changes in power of eye lenses.

Slow healing of cuts and wounds

Since the blood contains abnormal amount of glucose, it provides an ideal medium for the growth of pus forming micro-organisms. This in turn affects the healing of even small cuts and abrasions and delays the recovery.

Itchy skin and fungal infection

The blood of a diabetic is quite rich in glucose which provides favorable conditions for faster growth of micro-organisms that cause diseases. This is more visible on skin which becomes vulnerable to infections. This excessive glucose also causes itching on the skin.

Complications

There are various complications that may take place due to prolonged presence of glucose in bloodstream.

Some commonly occurring complications include

A. Diabetic Coma

B. Coronary Heart Disease

C. Cerebral Hemorrhage

D. Gangrene

These complications are a result of very complex changes that take place in the body due to excess glucose. Almost all parts of the body are affected by Diabetes and in long run, it ruins all body parts.

Hyperglycemic Coma

This is a commonly occurring complication of diabetes. But how does it happen?

In diabetics, glucose does not nourish the body cells either due to deficiency of insulin or due to inability of body cells to utilize available insulin. As a result, stored fats in the body start disintegrating and chemical compounds called ‘ketones’ are formed which make the blood ‘acidic’. Now the body tries to reduce the acidity and forms more and more urine. But this in turn reduces the fluid content of the body and further increases the acidity of the blood which eventually affects the brain and Coma sets in.

What to do!

There are some predisposing factors that may cause diabetes as explained earlier. Sedentary life style invites the disease therefore one should cultivate a life style full of physical activities and exercises. People working in the offices usually do not get any opportunity to remain physically active. Such people should try to spend some time out of their chairs and do as much physical activity as possible at their work place. Today’s little workout can ward off tomorrow’s great suffering.

Obesity is another big predisposing condition. More than 70% elder people who develop diabetes are obese. Physical exercises and a check on food intake are best things one can do to avoid adding unwanted weight.

Family history plays a role in causing diabetes. When one is aware of occurrence of diabetes in the family, one should prepare against the disease by avoiding other predisposing factors like obesity, sedentary life style, faulty eating habits etc. Remember, a prepared man has half fought the battle!

Foods may also be related to diabetes but it is not known with certainty which foods may cause diabetes or may hamper the activity of pancreas. One should be careful in selecting food. The intake of fast foods and those foods that are quite rich in carbohydrates should be minimized.

Diabetes badly affects all physiological systems of the human body. Majority of the diabetics develops severe complications that shorten the lifespan. Whether there is any history of diabetes in one’s family or not, it is always advisable to take precautions and lead a physically active life. Remember, prevention is always better than cure!

***



Lucille

Miller Thompson asked:


Teen Obesity is seen in children and teens between the ages of 6 to 19 years old. It is rising to epidemic proportions in America. A large number of teens are therefore at a high risk to develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease. This is the result of teen obesity.

The teenagers who face obesity problems may also have to face social discrimination that can be quite devastating. Being overweight reduces their self-esteem and self-confidence and keeps them away from participating in a number of active activities with children of their age. The obese children may be highly depressed thus, they prefer to stay back at home and indulge in activities like watching TV and having snacks. This leads to additional weight gain, depression and more serious health issues.

What is the Cause of Teen Obesity?

Basically, Teen Obesity is a result of inadequate physical activities and unhealthy eating habits. Day to Day, activities such as playing video games, sitting in front of the computer and the lack of physical activity is making more teens obese.

Another cause of Teen Obesity is diet. These days, diets mainly consists of sugary snacks, fast foods, oily and fried food items, and in addition to this eating in restaurants is also an affect. These foods directly contribute in developing obesity. A teen’s diet should consist of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, sprouts and curd. Such a diet will help teens to develop a healthy weight, a proper waist-to-hip ratio, and reduce the risk for developing diabetes.

Teens should also be encouraged to participate in activities that can play a vital role in reducing obesity. Getting teens involved in activities like swimming, playing basketball, tennis, volleyball, rocket ball, trekking & skating will ensure that they burn out the extra calories and hence maintain a healthy weight. Practicing any one of these activities daily and teens will notice a big difference. It is encouraged that teens choose activities that are fun as well as healthy.

Studies have shown that obesity can be reversed in teens. It is a lot easier to catch it early than in a later stage in life.

Parents play a very critical role in the child’s life to avoid the problems of obesity. They have to guide them to develop healthy food habits, exercise regularly and indulge in other physical activities to maintain good health. Always remember, scolding the child for being overweight without guiding them is useless. Instead, they need to explain the significance of losing weight, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and portraying a positive image to their children.



Kristen

Oliver Hetzel asked:


When it comes to counteracting the causes of overweight and obesity most people don’t know where to start. This is understandable because of the huge amount of useless and misleading information and humbug such as hollywood diets, magic diet pills or expensive pre-package food diets. For this reason I have created this step-by-step guide to provide you with the most important steps to lose weight. If you act according to the compiled guide you will be able to positively affect the causes of overweight and obesity and actually lose weight.



Be aware that there are several environmental causes which you can control





Strengthen your will and make the decision to counteract these causes





Focus on your body’s overall fat percentage, not only on a particular part of your body. If you focus on your body’s overall fat percentage you will also lose weight in those parts of your body that you perceive as problematic.





Your metabolic rate is a key factor in burning fat. An increased metabolic rate results in an increased fat metabolism. Therefore you have to stimulate your metabolic rate on a regular basis.





A great way to boost your metabolic rate is by performing exercises. Here are some effective options: Power Walking, Incline Walking, Swimming, Rollerblading, Cycling, Jogging, using the Climbing Machine or doing Circuit Training with weights.





Practice at least 30 minutes without a pause. Start with 3 workouts per week and try to gradually increase the number of your workouts to 5.





Get into the habit of eating 5 smaller portions instead of the usual 3. Every time you ingest food your metabolic rate will slightly increase.





Avoid high caloric food products. They very often contain a lot of simple sugar and fat.





Decrease the intake of carbohydrates in the evening and drink a lot of water.



Now that you have more information about how to control the causes of overweight and obesity you will probably approach it in a new way. Important pillars you should keep in mind are: performing exercises to boost your metabolic rate, eating 5 smaller portions a day and consuming low caloric food. Be aware of the significant meaning of your metabolic rate and try to stay as positive as you can. There is, of course, much more beneficial information concerning weight loss, e.g. information on diets. But by putting this information into practice you will be able to positively affect the causes of overweight and obesity.



Keith