Has it ever occured to you that there is a rapidly rising rate of obesity amongst adults, adolescents and children today? Latest studies show that of the 300,000,000 people in the U.S.A. , nearly one third are obese and nearly another one third are overweight by statistical weight and fat analysis in relationship to risk of morbidity and mortality. What does that tell us? That this common problem has become an epidemic the proportions of which have never been seen before for any illness or condition.
But, obesity didn't just sneak up on us one day. It became entrenched in our homes, schools and workplace as certain foods and lack of activity became a part of our lifestyles. Does that mean now that because a BMI(body mass index) over 30 has become the majority population that it should be accepted as the "norm" ?
The health professionals must now "shift the paradigm" and attack excess fat as a lifestyles battle not just a disease alone. Because if you do that you really begin to lose the size and scope of just how really dangerous and pervasive this problem is.
Obesity by itself is responsible for at least 300,000 deaths yearly . That's a direct cause in and of itself and this is probably a very conservative estimate. But, it doesn't stop right there. Obesity is the cause of several medical, nutritional, immune, neoplastic, emotional and psychological problems in our healthcare system. In medical schools they teach medical doctors to "not" treat the symptom , but rather the "root" cause...so why are we only going after the symptoms of obesity. It is again a lifestyle issue that requires a whole paradigm shift!
A GIANT SIZED PROBLEM:
HEART DISEASE AND MORE
Obesity is a cause for heart disease. Not just heart disease by itself , but the broader cardio-vascular diseases. Because the fats like excess saturated fats and trans fats(hydrogenated fats) that accumulate in arteries and are oxidized occur .Now, we are seeing a rise in younger aged victims of obesity. Cardio-vascular disease associated with heart attack which can eventually lead to heart failure, strokes, peripheral artery disease(PAD), (MVD) microvascular disease of smaller arteries and even visual problems and (ED) erectile dysfunction are now common. Cardio-vascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the USA and is directly related to our nutritional intake and lack of activity. One of the most common diseases related to obesity is high blood pressure as well.Longterm effects of high blood pressure are stroke, kidney failure and heart failure which are serious systemic diseases.
CANCER
Cancers have a direct relationship to the accumulated amounts of fats in the blood stream as well as the excessive amount of adipose storage. The fats again can be oxidized and neoplastic events occur that cause a propensity for cancer such as: breast, colon, and prostate. The more fat available means there is more chance of a neoplastic event towards causing cancer.
DIABETES
Diabetes is linked to obesity in over 20,000,000 Americans. This is due to the high cholesterol and high triglycerides. The tremendous amounts of sugar in the blood stream unphased by insulin are stored as triglyceride in the adipose tissue. A vicious cycle of high blood sugar and high insulin or poorly stimulated insulin leads to an anabolic state for type II diabetics which is the larger class of diabetes. Diabetes from mothers with gestational diabetes who pass it on inutero to their children is also growing. Another form of type II diabetes is from a rising use of a "alternative" forms of sugar called fructose. HFCS(figh fructose corn syrup)whcih is now a major nutritional and health problem in the pediatric generation which may create a whole new generation of liver disease(fatty liver) in the ensuing years .
ARTHRITIS
The weight bearing joints can not take increasing weight . There is a limit and sooner or later the joints will begin to creak and ache and might even blow! This form of arthritis is called osteoarthritis. The "wear -and tear" begins to create loss of cartilage and grinding of joints. Knee replacement becomes a plausible result of this as well as the limitation in range of motion and mobility. This affects one's mood and psyche creating depression, anger, self-defeating attitudes about exercise and self-pity. Another form of arthritis called "gouty arthritis" or gout can occur from accumulated uric acid and fat. The tophi are extremely painful and cause swelling. Gout was called "the rich mans disease" because of the direct link to "rich" foods with fats.
PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY & DELAYED MATURITY
High amounts of extra fats in the adipose tissue means more fats available in the blood as well. Our natural body steroids like estrogen, testosterone and corticosteroids are made from the backbone of cholesterol. When young girls have this excess amount of fat to make estrogen a very unusual "precocious" form of early onset puberty occurs while the opposite happens in young males who may take on a delayed purberty or "feminine" anatomy such as gynecomastia( premature breast buds). Excess estrogen then becomes the set up for estrogen sensitive cancers such as breast cancer. The implications for more estrogen than tetosterone are being noted as a pre-requisite in developing prostatic problems for men.
GASTRO-INTESTINAL GLANDS
We discussed fatty liver diseases from excess fat. This can occur in the pancreas as well which is where insulin is made. Fatty deposits in the pancreas can cause inflammation or pancreatitis which is a very painful abdominal and exocrine gland problem. Higher amounts of cholesterol in the blood means a higher rate to developing gall stones in the gall bladder as well!
LUNG DISEASE
The lungs are greatly affected by excess weight from fat in the body. The fat can cause a restriction so that inhaling is limited. Fat in the thorax impinges on the throat and epiglottis as well. This is an upper airway form of asthma creating an obstuction to breathing. Obesity has the propensity therefore to cause both a restictive and obstructive lung disease. On rare occasions when obesity becomes very high and dangerous, fat in the neck, throat and thorax can lead to an illness known as sleep apnea. It is part of a wider syndrome called "Pickwickian Syndrome" .Carbon dioxide is accumulated and the person will have prolonged moments where they stop sleeping and often occurs during the day called narcepilepsy. It is very dangerous and can cause serious morbidity and mortality.
Restriction of fat within the throax and upon abdominal contents restricts movement of the ribs and diaphragm, thus limiting (restriciting) movement of important muscles of inhaling. Low capacity volumes inhibit the normal mechanics of breathing.
IMMUNE SUPPRESSION
Immune suppresion from high amounts of fat particularly due to the increase of corticosteroids formed has been noted. The stress hormone reduces immunity and resistance and one becomes susceptible to many bacterial and viral diseases.
METABOLIC SYNDROMES
The metabolic problems from excess fat is high cholesterol, high triglycerides and high sugar as well. These metabolic derrangements are all associated with The Cardio-Metabolic Syndrome(CMS). the CMS is the main culpirt in causing the "unhealthy lifestyle culture" that is bombarding us with obesity, overweight, diabetes and heart disease occuring together.
EMOTION & IMAGE
Emotional problems from body dysmorphia, low self-esteem and eating disorders, bulimia, anorexia nervosa, and depression all can be related to obesity as well.
Newer " bizzare" lifestyle syndromes are attacking us today that were not around twenty years ago. Twenty years ago the television or maybe radio is all we had to distract us form exercise. Today there are Ipods, Ipads, PADs, lap tops, desk tops, portable DVD players, cell phones, portable TVs, headset radios, drive through and microwavable foods.
THE MEDIA EFFECTS
A new feature to this are comfort foods that are easily accessible to anyone in convenient stores. Snacks, pop up foods, micro-waved pizza are all called "comfort" foods and they do just that. But, studies are showing that a new "Potato Couch Syndrome" has arrived with Tivo , DVD, replay of programable television programs when added to late night movies by cable and satellite involves insomnia and hyperglycemia leading to diabetes. The sleep center is one of the areas controlled by metabolism. The later you stay up and offset the normal diurnal system, the hypothalmus and thalmus can not "re-set" adequately. Scientist are also documenting various types of food addictions that follow the same similar path as chemical addiction . When the "comfort food" that someone is addicted to is removed they may illicit a withdrawl response.
THE INFLUENCES ON CHILDREN
Children are "seduced" by cute jingles, shiney attractive colors and cute cartoon characters on Saturday mornings and after school just in time to get all the sugar and fat they need. To make matters worse some schools have candy and soda machines at school or near a school. As more HFCS is used today and other sugars like dextrose .How can kids concentrate in school for tests? To make matters worse school lunch programs are under seige and not too many curricula mandate physical education.
MARKETING TO KIDS AND OBESITY
The commercial market from Madison Avenue to Hollywood has also had a role in this new "toxic culture" we've developed about nutrition. You and your kids are bombarded by thousands of commercials, sound bites and tunes and their subliminal messages affect your subconcious. These thousands of hours of "hits" have a cumulative effect on the psyche which can manifest physically, too. Many of the images of models are "hyped" or just plain unrealistic. We are chasing "cut outs and photo-shopped" images and want to look like them. The anorectic model who uses "whatever means" to look like that is not ever fully told to the child or even the grown up for that matter. We get frustrated by not being able to obtain these unrealistic images and quit whatever little progress we make with our method of diet and exercise and go "off the wagon". We end up "yo-yoing" out -of-control while "killing " ourselves to look like these "false images".
COMMERCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
Today the food supply is laced with foods that have antibiotics, estrogen, growth hormone, genetically modification, insecticides, herbicides, pesticides, PAHs, HCAs, Aspartame, MSG, food coloring, food dyes, chemical preservatives, HFCS, saccharin, dextrose, acrilimide, irradiated food and microwaved food.
The water supply has chloride and flouride, spillage from raw sewage, chemical plants and land fills with pharmaceuticals seeping into groundwater.
Our air is polluted with emissions from cars and all carbon based fuel engines, benzene from gas, other chemical plants as well.
We are bombared by ionizing and non-ionizing radiation from telephone lines and cell phones as well as cable buried underground .
WHAT DO WE DO?
Dr. Marcus Wells, MD, MPH is a past Clincal Associate from the National Institutes of Health at the National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute(NIH/NHLBI). He holds a Master's of Public Health from Emory University . He has also served in the Health & Human Services(HHS), Public Health Service(PHS) and the Commssioned Corp.
Learn more on how to take care of youself naturally with green health and organic methods to obtain a better quality and quantity of life. Go to http://www.tgx360.com/
But, obesity didn't just sneak up on us one day. It became entrenched in our homes, schools and workplace as certain foods and lack of activity became a part of our lifestyles. Does that mean now that because a BMI(body mass index) over 30 has become the majority population that it should be accepted as the "norm" ?
The health professionals must now "shift the paradigm" and attack excess fat as a lifestyles battle not just a disease alone. Because if you do that you really begin to lose the size and scope of just how really dangerous and pervasive this problem is.
Obesity by itself is responsible for at least 300,000 deaths yearly . That's a direct cause in and of itself and this is probably a very conservative estimate. But, it doesn't stop right there. Obesity is the cause of several medical, nutritional, immune, neoplastic, emotional and psychological problems in our healthcare system. In medical schools they teach medical doctors to "not" treat the symptom , but rather the "root" cause...so why are we only going after the symptoms of obesity. It is again a lifestyle issue that requires a whole paradigm shift!
A GIANT SIZED PROBLEM:
HEART DISEASE AND MORE
Obesity is a cause for heart disease. Not just heart disease by itself , but the broader cardio-vascular diseases. Because the fats like excess saturated fats and trans fats(hydrogenated fats) that accumulate in arteries and are oxidized occur .Now, we are seeing a rise in younger aged victims of obesity. Cardio-vascular disease associated with heart attack which can eventually lead to heart failure, strokes, peripheral artery disease(PAD), (MVD) microvascular disease of smaller arteries and even visual problems and (ED) erectile dysfunction are now common. Cardio-vascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the USA and is directly related to our nutritional intake and lack of activity. One of the most common diseases related to obesity is high blood pressure as well.Longterm effects of high blood pressure are stroke, kidney failure and heart failure which are serious systemic diseases.
CANCER
Cancers have a direct relationship to the accumulated amounts of fats in the blood stream as well as the excessive amount of adipose storage. The fats again can be oxidized and neoplastic events occur that cause a propensity for cancer such as: breast, colon, and prostate. The more fat available means there is more chance of a neoplastic event towards causing cancer.
DIABETES
Diabetes is linked to obesity in over 20,000,000 Americans. This is due to the high cholesterol and high triglycerides. The tremendous amounts of sugar in the blood stream unphased by insulin are stored as triglyceride in the adipose tissue. A vicious cycle of high blood sugar and high insulin or poorly stimulated insulin leads to an anabolic state for type II diabetics which is the larger class of diabetes. Diabetes from mothers with gestational diabetes who pass it on inutero to their children is also growing. Another form of type II diabetes is from a rising use of a "alternative" forms of sugar called fructose. HFCS(figh fructose corn syrup)whcih is now a major nutritional and health problem in the pediatric generation which may create a whole new generation of liver disease(fatty liver) in the ensuing years .
ARTHRITIS
The weight bearing joints can not take increasing weight . There is a limit and sooner or later the joints will begin to creak and ache and might even blow! This form of arthritis is called osteoarthritis. The "wear -and tear" begins to create loss of cartilage and grinding of joints. Knee replacement becomes a plausible result of this as well as the limitation in range of motion and mobility. This affects one's mood and psyche creating depression, anger, self-defeating attitudes about exercise and self-pity. Another form of arthritis called "gouty arthritis" or gout can occur from accumulated uric acid and fat. The tophi are extremely painful and cause swelling. Gout was called "the rich mans disease" because of the direct link to "rich" foods with fats.
PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY & DELAYED MATURITY
High amounts of extra fats in the adipose tissue means more fats available in the blood as well. Our natural body steroids like estrogen, testosterone and corticosteroids are made from the backbone of cholesterol. When young girls have this excess amount of fat to make estrogen a very unusual "precocious" form of early onset puberty occurs while the opposite happens in young males who may take on a delayed purberty or "feminine" anatomy such as gynecomastia( premature breast buds). Excess estrogen then becomes the set up for estrogen sensitive cancers such as breast cancer. The implications for more estrogen than tetosterone are being noted as a pre-requisite in developing prostatic problems for men.
GASTRO-INTESTINAL GLANDS
We discussed fatty liver diseases from excess fat. This can occur in the pancreas as well which is where insulin is made. Fatty deposits in the pancreas can cause inflammation or pancreatitis which is a very painful abdominal and exocrine gland problem. Higher amounts of cholesterol in the blood means a higher rate to developing gall stones in the gall bladder as well!
LUNG DISEASE
The lungs are greatly affected by excess weight from fat in the body. The fat can cause a restriction so that inhaling is limited. Fat in the thorax impinges on the throat and epiglottis as well. This is an upper airway form of asthma creating an obstuction to breathing. Obesity has the propensity therefore to cause both a restictive and obstructive lung disease. On rare occasions when obesity becomes very high and dangerous, fat in the neck, throat and thorax can lead to an illness known as sleep apnea. It is part of a wider syndrome called "Pickwickian Syndrome" .Carbon dioxide is accumulated and the person will have prolonged moments where they stop sleeping and often occurs during the day called narcepilepsy. It is very dangerous and can cause serious morbidity and mortality.
Restriction of fat within the throax and upon abdominal contents restricts movement of the ribs and diaphragm, thus limiting (restriciting) movement of important muscles of inhaling. Low capacity volumes inhibit the normal mechanics of breathing.
IMMUNE SUPPRESSION
Immune suppresion from high amounts of fat particularly due to the increase of corticosteroids formed has been noted. The stress hormone reduces immunity and resistance and one becomes susceptible to many bacterial and viral diseases.
METABOLIC SYNDROMES
The metabolic problems from excess fat is high cholesterol, high triglycerides and high sugar as well. These metabolic derrangements are all associated with The Cardio-Metabolic Syndrome(CMS). the CMS is the main culpirt in causing the "unhealthy lifestyle culture" that is bombarding us with obesity, overweight, diabetes and heart disease occuring together.
EMOTION & IMAGE
Emotional problems from body dysmorphia, low self-esteem and eating disorders, bulimia, anorexia nervosa, and depression all can be related to obesity as well.
Newer " bizzare" lifestyle syndromes are attacking us today that were not around twenty years ago. Twenty years ago the television or maybe radio is all we had to distract us form exercise. Today there are Ipods, Ipads, PADs, lap tops, desk tops, portable DVD players, cell phones, portable TVs, headset radios, drive through and microwavable foods.
THE MEDIA EFFECTS
A new feature to this are comfort foods that are easily accessible to anyone in convenient stores. Snacks, pop up foods, micro-waved pizza are all called "comfort" foods and they do just that. But, studies are showing that a new "Potato Couch Syndrome" has arrived with Tivo , DVD, replay of programable television programs when added to late night movies by cable and satellite involves insomnia and hyperglycemia leading to diabetes. The sleep center is one of the areas controlled by metabolism. The later you stay up and offset the normal diurnal system, the hypothalmus and thalmus can not "re-set" adequately. Scientist are also documenting various types of food addictions that follow the same similar path as chemical addiction . When the "comfort food" that someone is addicted to is removed they may illicit a withdrawl response.
THE INFLUENCES ON CHILDREN
Children are "seduced" by cute jingles, shiney attractive colors and cute cartoon characters on Saturday mornings and after school just in time to get all the sugar and fat they need. To make matters worse some schools have candy and soda machines at school or near a school. As more HFCS is used today and other sugars like dextrose .How can kids concentrate in school for tests? To make matters worse school lunch programs are under seige and not too many curricula mandate physical education.
MARKETING TO KIDS AND OBESITY
The commercial market from Madison Avenue to Hollywood has also had a role in this new "toxic culture" we've developed about nutrition. You and your kids are bombarded by thousands of commercials, sound bites and tunes and their subliminal messages affect your subconcious. These thousands of hours of "hits" have a cumulative effect on the psyche which can manifest physically, too. Many of the images of models are "hyped" or just plain unrealistic. We are chasing "cut outs and photo-shopped" images and want to look like them. The anorectic model who uses "whatever means" to look like that is not ever fully told to the child or even the grown up for that matter. We get frustrated by not being able to obtain these unrealistic images and quit whatever little progress we make with our method of diet and exercise and go "off the wagon". We end up "yo-yoing" out -of-control while "killing " ourselves to look like these "false images".
COMMERCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
Today the food supply is laced with foods that have antibiotics, estrogen, growth hormone, genetically modification, insecticides, herbicides, pesticides, PAHs, HCAs, Aspartame, MSG, food coloring, food dyes, chemical preservatives, HFCS, saccharin, dextrose, acrilimide, irradiated food and microwaved food.
The water supply has chloride and flouride, spillage from raw sewage, chemical plants and land fills with pharmaceuticals seeping into groundwater.
Our air is polluted with emissions from cars and all carbon based fuel engines, benzene from gas, other chemical plants as well.
We are bombared by ionizing and non-ionizing radiation from telephone lines and cell phones as well as cable buried underground .
WHAT DO WE DO?
Dr. Marcus Wells, MD, MPH is a past Clincal Associate from the National Institutes of Health at the National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute(NIH/NHLBI). He holds a Master's of Public Health from Emory University . He has also served in the Health & Human Services(HHS), Public Health Service(PHS) and the Commssioned Corp.
Learn more on how to take care of youself naturally with green health and organic methods to obtain a better quality and quantity of life. Go to http://www.tgx360.com/
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