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Obesity Shortens Life Expectancy
By: R.G. Srinivasan
Steady gains made in improvement in life expectancy may be brought to naught by the increasing waistlines in America. Obesity has become a killer disease and shortening the life expectancy of Americans. A new report by the scientists in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests shortening of life spans by 3 to 5 years. Obesity is the major cause of many diseases from cardiovascular to diabetes, certain types of cancers, arthritis, high blood pressure and strokes. With cost of Health care in U.S. being one of the highest in the world, the economic burden to the society is immense. The U.S. federal government has released the latest dietary guidelines titled ‘Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005’ strongly recommends that Americans need to exercise more and consume fewer calories. What are the key elements of the Dietary Guideline? Consume a variety of nutrient dense foods and beverages from the basic food groups Avoid or limit foods with saturated fats, added salt & sugars and alcohol. People over 50 should include supplements of Vitamin B12 Women who may become pregnant should take plant foods high in iron or iron fortified foods with Vitamin C. Balance intake of calories with the calories expended through physical activities. For losing weight reduce calories gradually while maintaining a proper nutrition and increasing physical activities. Overweight adults and children with chronic health conditions should consult a weight management specialist prior to starting a weight reduction program. Engage in 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity to reduce possibility of chronic disease. Manage weight or reduce weight with moderate to intense physical activity over and above the normal activities. Consume variety of fruits and vegetables within the calorie requirements. Consume a minimum of 3 ounce of whole grain with more coming from enriched and whole grains. Consume less than 10 % of calories from saturated and fatty acids and less than 300 mg of cholesterol. A total of 30 – 35 % should come from other monounsaturated and poly unsaturated fats such as fish, nuts and oils. People who consume alcoholic drinks should do so in moderation – defined as one drink a day for women and two for men. Get the complete guidelines at http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/ The food guideline is prepared taking into account new scientific inputs. The guidelines are clear indicator of imbalance in the diet with too many poor foods with low nutritional values and high stress lives devoid of exercise and physical activities. United States Department of Health & Human Services has an excellent website with the small steps you can take to lead a healthy lifestyle. Don’t forget to download the PDF ‘Informational Guide for Parents Regarding Healthy Lifestyle for the Whole Family’ at http://www.smallstep.gov/ It is clearly a time to review the food and physical activities and make lifestyle changes now if you are not already a part of the obesity statistics. In addition, if you are obese it is time for a massive action plan for a correction in lifestyles. This article is copyright © of R.G. Srinivasan a Certified Trainer, Small Business Consultant, Writer and Author. He is a strong proponent of a holistic lifestyle and alternate health practices. Check out his site at http://globalhealthnetwork.tripod.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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How to Benefit from the Mind-Body Connection
(excerpt)
You are about to gain insight into the
mind-body connection. The number of
people who truly understand these principles on our
planet are relatively few.
There is an undeniable connection between our minds and
bodies, you can learn
to use this fact to your benefit.
Dr. Bernie Siegel, author of "Love, Medicine and
Miracles" was once a
distraught cancer surgeon until he
began to understand the greater principles
of the mind-
body connection. He felt dragged down by the artificial
barriers
that existed between patient and doctor, and the
helplessness he often felt as
a result of his inability
to effectively serve those patients. Eventually, those
barriers
were disintegrated by Dr. Siegel's recognition
and growing understanding of the
mind-body connection and
how it could serve his patients and himself.
Dr. Siegel, or Bernie as he began to have his patients
refer to him, had some
startling realizations as a cancer surgeon. He found that
there were actually
quite a few people in the world that successfully beat
the statistics on cancer
survival. He began to recognize that a patient's ability
to defeat something as
serious as cancer had to do with the patient's mind and
attitude about their
disease.
If you would like to see the rest of
this article, please go here:
http://www.tobeinformed.com/repository/mind-body.html
copyright 2004 - David Snape
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