Why are we still fat?

America is in the midst of an epidemic, an epidemic we seem to be taking some steps to cure and keep we failing. The epidemic is obesity in a survey done in 2009-2010 35.7% of U.S. adults were obese, 16.9% of U.S children were noted to be obese. The prevalence of obesity was higher among adolescents than among preschool-aged children. The prevalence of obesity was higher among boys than girls (18.6% of boys and 15.0% of girls were obese).  In 2008, medical costs associated with obesity were estimated at $147 billion; the medical costs of someone who is obese is $1429.00 higher than those of normal weight. In 2010, there were 12 states with an obesity prevalence of 30%. In the last two or three years there has been growth in group fitness classes, boxing gym memberships, personal training industry as well the explosion of Crossfit. The annual revenue of the U.S. weight loss industry is a staggering $20 billion dollars, 108 million people are on diets in the U.S, it is of note dieters will make four to five attempts per year. The number of people who have had bariatric surgery since 2009 is 220,000, the average cost of the surgery is $11,500 to $26,000.00.  Enough stats it is time to look at; Why we are still fat?

Lets start with defining what obesity is exactly, then we can look as some of the contributing factors. Obesity is defined as the body mass index was calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared, rounded to one decimal place. Obesity in adults id defined as a BMI greater than or equal to 30. The definition of obesity for children is not directly comparable with definition for adults. Obesity in children was defined as a BMI greater than or equal to the age and sex specific 95th percentiles of the 2000 cdc growth charts. There has been some debate over the use of the BMI calculation, some nutritionists would rather look at your bodyfat percentage. But for the most part unless your an anomaly the BMI is sufficient for our purposes today. Here is a link to a BMI calculator:

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/BMI/bmicalc.htm

I have had many discussions with my nutritionist on this subject, from those discussions is where this article arose. The first thing that needs to be said is that all of the “diets” work, in that you will lose the weight. Just follow the program this goes for weight training, boxing, MMA follow it to the letter and it works. Problems start when you go off the reservation or when you mix and match. I am sorry but you are not smarter than the engineer of the diet or program, they have been carefully mapped out step by step by people with experience. In this example we are looking at a meal plan the golden rule is if it is not on the paper you don’t eat it. Compliance with the program is of the utmost importance. I had a friend start a meal plan similar to one I had used with success, we meet for Sunday football games at a bar. He is eating a plate the size of 13 in Apple Macbook of Mussels fra diablo, told me he read on the internet unlimited mussels. I know the nutritionist he was working with and this was not the case. he strayed from the program and put on weight.  The other example of people making this same mistake are people who used meal replacement bars in a previous meal plan. But their current meal plan does not call for them and they keep eating them, meal replacement bars can have anywhere from 300 calories to 600 calories. One other area we should look at is what is the goal? If your trying to lose weight is your program, supplementation, and meal plan all a match. It does not matter what the goal is, if the plan in place is not appropriate. You are banging your head against the wall. Step back and look at what your doing, and write it all down. You will never remember where you were or how you got to where you are without a map.

Ok so lets say you have been a good boy or girl, you lost x number of pounds  you look great, feel great. Unfortunately you have no maintenance plan,  developed no plans to handle difficult situations. You put a little weight back on, get a little lazy in the gym. Maybe you went to your friends wedding and your not watching as much. The next thing you know you gained the weight back and 20 extra pounds. Then you take the weight off again. This is YO YO dieting, many people go through a seasonal yo-yo dieting skinny in the summer fat in the winter. Whatever the cause of the back and forth its not healthy either way, you would be healthier if you stayed obese. The National Weight Control Registry project has found that the respondents had maintained a 67 pound weight loss for five years and between 12 and 14 percent had maintained a loss of more than 100 pounds. This goes against the 1959 New York Hospital Study. What is telling is that one of Registries respondents noted that you need a balanced approach eating a balanced diet of salad, fish, vegetable burgers fruit and a little desert. As well as exercise every day, whether its to a tape, jogging, riding a bike or jumping rope. She attributing her success to changing her lifestyle, and making healthy choices. 

In previous articles we looked at the dangers environmental toxins their affect on us. In a recent study BPA or Bisphenol A has been linked to obesity and insulin resistance. The study measured BPA levels in 3390 adults older than 40 from the Songnan Community in Shangai. The highest levels of BPA were associate with both an obese BMI and waist circumference and higher concentrations of insulin in the blood. What’s more troubling is study published in PLOS One that shows BPA is linked to obesity in puberty-age girls. Researchers found that in girls between 9 and 2 years old a higher than average level of BPA was associated with twice the risk of having a bodyweight in the top 10th percentile for girls of their age in the same population. The sample size used was 1,326 male and female children in grades 4 to 12 at three Shanghai schools. BPA is used to make plastics and other materials such as cash register receipts. It is known as an endocrine disruptor with estrogenic properties. The head of the study Dr. Li noted that with children and adolescents BPA is likely to enter the body primarily in the ingestion of food and liquids. He also noted that "Girls in the midst of puberty may be more sensitive to the impacts of BPA on their energy balance and fat metabolism”. The easiest way is to avoid BPA is to store your food in glass containers and don’t microwave food in plastic containers. 

Show me your friends and I will show you who you. Your community helps to create your mindset, if you surround yourself with people with a positive attitude that exude self confidence. This will help in committing yourself to great things as well. You will have to look at your life who is around and answer some tough questions. Which way am I going? Are the people who are around me helping me to achieve my goals? Is my current  situation optimal for my goals and dreams? Am I getting the most out of myself?  Most people do not want to do this. We need to surround ourselves for success in all phases of life. 

Why are we still fat? The answer is actually education or miseducation. It is the lack of knowledge about proper exercise, nutrition and environmental factors. Obesity is a multi-layered problem, it comes down to a commitment to a lifestyle change. It is diet and exercise, will power, environmental factors, discipline and really community. Most of us get tunnel vision and focus on one area, and don’t pay attention to the complete picture. We all need to take part in an effort to reduce obesity and educate people on the right food choices.  This coming week we have a book review,a mystery subject and the Friday list. Please read and share this blog!