Obesity is more than a cosmetic problem; it is a health hazard. Approximately 280,000 adult deaths in the United States each year are related to obesity. Several serious medical conditions have been linked to obesity, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and stroke. Obesity is also linked to higher rates of certain types of cancer. Obese men are more likely than non-obese men to die from cancer of the colon, rectum, or prostate. Obese women are more likely than non-obese women to die from cancer of the gallbladder, breast, uterus, cervix, or ovaries.

Other diseases and health problems linked to obesity include:

Gallbladder disease and gallstones.
Liver disease.
Osteoarthritis, a disease in which the joints deteriorate. This is possibly the result of excess weight on the joints.
Gout, another disease affecting the joints.
Pulmonary (breathing) problems, including sleep apnea in which a person can stop breathing for a short time during sleep – this can be fatal.
Reproductive problems in women, including menstrual irregularities and infertility. Health care providers generally agree that the more obese a person is, the more likely he or she is to develop health problems. Psychological and social effects Emotional suffering may be one of the most painful parts of obesity. American society emphasizes physical appearance and often equates attractiveness with slimness, especially for women. Such messages make overweight people feel unattractive. Many people think that obese individuals are gluttonous, lazy, or both, even though this is not true. As a result, obese people often face prejudice or discrimination in the job market, at school, and in social situations. Feelings of rejection, shame, or depression are common.
So why are so many people literally digging their graves with their forks? There’s many ways to explain it but this way is the best – it’s the story of the “frog in the frying pan.

You can put a pan of cool water on the stove and put a live frog in the pan, and as long as the water is comfortable the frog will stay right in the pan. You can then turn the heat on to a very low setting. So low, that as the water begins to heat up the frog can’t notice the difference. As the water gets warmer and warmer the frog gets sleepier and sleepier and finally falls off into a deep sleep. Meanwhile the water is getting hotter and hotter and hotter. Finally when the water begins to boil the frog wakes up but the heat of the water has relaxed its muscles so much that the frog can’t jump out of the pan. It tries, it strains and lurches this way and that way but by the time it wakes up, it’s too late.

In a way this happens to people pretty much same way. They know that they should lose weight – they know it’s taking a toll on their health – they know that they are at an increased risk of disease but just like the frog, they fall off into a deep sleep. Days, weeks, months, and years continue to pass. They keep saying “tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow” and then all of a sudden they are stricken with diabetes or have a heart attack. Then they wake up, but many times, just like the frog it’s too late. They’ve already caused serious and permanent damage to themselves. Once you get diabetes it doesn’t just go away one day. Neither do heart disease, bone disease, liver disease, gallbladder, pulmonary disease, or cancer.

Are you off in a deep sleep while the water is getting hotter and hotter and hotter? This is your chance to “snap out of it” – this is your chance to really wake up before it’s too late.

To create energy your body burns fat or it burns blood sugar (carbohydrates),but it can’t burn them both at the same time. When you’re not doing anything strenuous your body burns fat. When you’re sitting at a desk, driving a car, working around the house, or even sleeping, your body burns fat. But when you work into the aerobic zone (70% or more of your max. heart rate) your body will stop burning fat and instantly begin to burn blood sugar – because blood sugar can be converted to energy much faster than fat. When it comes to exercise, most people trying to lose weight make a big mistake by doing the wrong types of exercise. Strenuous exercise like jogging, bike riding, circuit training, or aerobics are great for your heart, lungs, and circulation. But they don’t necessarily burn fat or condition your body to burn fat. Those who market exercise equipment suggest that 20 to 30 minutes, a few times a week is all you need. People believe that this type of strenuous aerobic exercise is burning fat. Aerobic exercise will burn fat – but only after you’ve depleted your available blood sugar – which, for most people takes at least 20 to 30 minutes of being in the aerobic zone. Aerobic exercise is great for your heart, lungs, and circulation – and once you’ve reached your ideal weight – it’s great. But countless overweight individuals are on the exercise bikes and tread mills, pedaling and running, until their heart almost pounds out of their chest – and guess what – they’re not burning fat. How many obese people do you know who can work themselves into the “aerobic zone” and maintain that agonizing, strenuous level of exertion for more than 30 minutes? The first 30 minutes only burns off blood sugar – after that you’d need another 30 minutes to burn any fat.

Exercise equipment sales are on the rise and so is obesity – does that make sense to you? The truth is that walking and very light weight lifting are two of the best types of exercise for healthy weight loss. Walking burns fat. Weight lifting builds lean muscle which “feeds” on the body’s excess fat. Do the right types of exercise, drink plenty of water, and turn your body into a fat burning machine that incinerates fat 24 hours a day!

Many years ago, if people wanted food to eat they had to either go hunting everyday or grow their own food. That’s a lot of work – that’s a lot of physical activity. Our bodies were designed to expend energy in order to get food. Even though this is no longer necessary, it doesn’t change the fact that our bodies are actually designed this way. When you skip a meal, your body thinks that you’re out in the wild and, for whatever reason, food is hard to come by. This is a built in survival mechanism that all of us have – it’s built in. When your body thinks food is hard to find, it makes two changes to protect you from starving. First it slows your metabolism causing your body to slow down and burn less fat. Secondly, the meal you eat after you skip a meal will be converted almost entirely to fat and stored – to protect you from starving. If you skip breakfast, almost all of what you eat for lunch is converted to fat. You think you’re taking in less food but in reality you’re causing your body to store fat. Eat regularly throughout the day but eat the right foods. Your metabolism will increase, your stamina and endurance will increase, your appetite will decrease, and your body will produce less fat while it burns more! Learn to “listen” to your body – it knows what’s best for you. Eat when you’re hungry and stop eating once you’re full.

Eating a low fat diet can help you lose weight – but that’s just half the story. Most people trying to lower their fat intake go to the store looking for products whose labels show low fat or no fat. Pasta, for example reads “0 fat grams”. There are fat free chips, fat free cookies, fat free ice cream, and the list goes on and on. Let’s face it – sales of no fat foods have “skyrocketed” over the last 20 years and so has the number of Americans who are overweight.

The problem is that most fat free, or low fat foods are very high in carbohydrates and also very low in fiber. Fiber really means fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, and berries. The acid in your stomach will not dissolve these natural fibers, so eating them fills you up faster and keeps you full longer. But eating low fat foods like, cakes, cookies, and chips, that are also low in fiber means you have to eat more to feel full. As you eat these foods the acid in your stomach begins to dissolve the foods and digest them very quickly – it’s like trying to fill up a sink that has no stopper. Eventually you can get the sink to fill up – but it takes a lot more water to do it. The result is that you eat more, you take in more calories than you need, and your body stores the extra carbohydrates and calories as fat.

Keep reading labels, but choose foods that have more fiber grams than fat grams. You will quickly discover many delicious foods that are far healthier than any of the low fat or no fat foods – and you’ll see your body respond the way you want it to.

The government wants to promote self. Why not! This decision is double-edged …

We are increasingly involved in our health.

Internet sites abound on health, demonstrating the interest of public health issues. So indeed, why not self …

A recent American study showed that Google was a remarkable doctor, since the search engine “diagnosed” in 80% of cases the disease before it through various symptoms.

Self or “Loto medication?

However, it is not reassuring to encourage people to engage in self. When consult her doctor? Might there not to see patients diagnosed very late after playing too well in the sorcerer’s apprentice? What the authorities have control over what people do to their health? The door is open to many abuses. Once some have tasted the joys of self-medication (Loto Medication?), It will be difficult to stop them “prescribe” miracle medicines sold on the net without supervision.

And then I’m intrigued by the gap between the pragmatic vision of health embodied self (allow self is tolerate some risk to realize substantial savings), another, much more cautious on osteopathy (and osteopathy, all non-medical techniques: Reflexology, Reiki, shiatsu, etc.)

Asking people to treat just one side, and prohibit the other practitioners who are trained (usually long), who join federations representative, practice their technique with the sole purpose of the reserve physiotherapists and doctors (which generally are less well trained in such techniques) is inconsistent.