Obesity & Weight Management

On February 9th, President Obama signed a memorandum with a plan of action to address childhood obesity. This will work in conjunction with the First Lady’s Let’s Move campaign. So, why the attention? It’s a matter of health. And this issue has finally gotten political attention due to financial ramifications. A review of the last decade’s (English) public literature by Dr. Alter Withrow found that “obesity was estimated to account for between 0.7% and 2.8% of a country's total healthcare expenditures. Furthermore, obese individuals were found to have medical costs that were approximately 30% greater than their normal weight peers.” (Obesity Review. 2010 Jan 27.)

Obesity increases your risk factors for:
• Type 2 diabetes
• Coronary heart disease
• Endometrial cancer
• Breast cancer
• Colon cancer
• Stroke
• High blood pressure (Hypertension)
• High cholesterol (Dyslipidemia)
• Arthritis
• Liver and Gall bladder disease

Obesity can be caused by medical problems or a result of lifestyle choices. See your doctor for evaluation of obesity. The following is information about healthy weight and eating.

Rx for a Healthy Lifestyle – weight and diet
(based in part on NIH Weight Control Information Network recommendations)

• Eat a variety of foods – balanced diet of complex carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats
• Avoid or limit saturated fats and trans fats.
• Avoid added sugars and salt.
• Avoid or limit alcohol.
• Give yourself smaller servings of high-calorie (high fat, etc) foods and larger amounts of low-calorie foods (fruits, vegetables.)
• Limit restaurant meals. When you go out for meals, eat only half of the meal & take the other portion home.
• Engage in physical activity for at least 30 minutes per day. Do this at least 5 times per week. This activity level will help you reduce chronic disease risk (diabetes, heart disease.)
• Find time to exercise. Get into a routine – before your day, during lunch break, before dinner, on a work break. Take the stairs when you can. Park far away, so that you can walk.
• Prepare fruit & vegetables as snacks before starting your day or purchase these items in convenient snack packs. When you have healthy foods on hand, you won’t need to reach for the high calorie snacks when you are hungry.
• Avoid prepared foods when possible. However, if you need to grab a quick item, look at labels. Make sure you understand the serving size.

For weight loss, also consider:
• Keep a food diary, writing down all foods & drinks consumed per day. Make sure to note the time, amounts & feelings. This diary will help you identify unhealthy eating patterns.
• Engage in physical activity for 60-90 minutes per day. Start slowly – walking, etc. Vary your activities and be sure to increase intensity or duration as you are able.

Resource: www.win.niddk.nih.gov
NIH Publication No.08-6444 and 07-5634