Childhood Obesity Makes the Cover of Time Magazine
Childhood obesity was the topic of Show #23, again in a post called Cutting the Cord and most recently on Show #32. We’ve really given a lot of time to this important topic. And now childhood obesity has now made the cover of Time Magazine.
Check out the seven articles from the June 16, 2008 edition of Time Magazine:
- It’s Not Just Genetics
- Weighty Issues for Parents
- How America’s Children Packed on the Pounds
- A Full Plate
- Overweight Children: Living Large
- Retooling School Lunch
- School Cuisine
Are Sleep and Weight Connected?
So I’m reading the latest copy of Oprah Magazine. Don’t judge me. It’s open to this article called Why You Really Need Beauty Rest. Take a look at question number 4 on the sleep quiz:
“If you’re watching your weight, it’s better to get a full night’s sleep than it is to wake up early to work out. True/False”
The answer is True according to the article. A study was cited in the explanation:
“In a study in the American Journal of Epidemiology, women who slept seven hours or more put on less weight over 16 years than women who slept less, even if the other women exercised. Those who slept only six hours a night were 12 percent more likely to put on more than 30 pounds; if the women slept five hours or less, they were 32 percent more likely to gain that much. Other studies have found that lack of sleep impacts hormones that regulate appetite (ghrelin and leptin) and that a higher BMI is proportionally linked to less sleep. One solution is to set the alarm so that you get your full night of sleep and schedule your exercise for later in the day.”
I’ve blogged in the past about sleep and how it’s important for weight loss and maintenance. Below you’ll find a few of the posts I’ve made on the subject. But when I saw that there was a study in a medical journal, I had to go read it. A medical study that’s going to tell me that if I get more sleep, it will help me lose weight. Bring it on. Here’s the conclusion from the abstract of the article.
“These data suggest that short sleep duration is associated with a modest increase in future weight gain and incident obesity. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms by which sleep duration may affect weight.”
Notice in the graph above that the average weight of the participants of this study went up, across the board. I think the author of the article in Oprah magazine misstated, what I think, is the point of the study. Getting more sleep is not going to lose you any weight. It’s not a magic pill for weight loss, but it is one more weapon in your arsenal fighting the battle of the bulge. Getting a good night’s sleep needs to be combined with exercise and a healthy diet to make an impact on your body.
Read the article for yourself and think about getting at least 7 hours of sleep and making rest a part of your healthy lifestyle.
Thanks Oprah.
Related Articles:
- Sleep Loss Equals Weight Gain
- No Sleep Means No New Brain Cells
- Air-conditioning and lack of sleep promote obesity
- #19 - Curse of Halloween (206) 203-DIET
How Much Should I Weigh for Optimal Health?
In the 50’s, Insurance Companies began releasing height and weight charts for men and women which told you how much you should weigh depending on your height. These charts fell out of favor with the public because only a small segment of the population fit into their ideals. Similar charts are still used today by some physicians, sports teams and the military.
BMI stands for Body Mass Index and is the latest measure of what an ideal body weight should be. It is technically your weight (in kilograms) divided by your height (in meters) squared. There is no distinction between men and women. Here is an online BMI calculator from the NIH.
Here are the BMI categories:
- Underweight = <18.5
- Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
- Overweight = 25-29.9
- Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater
Don’t just rely on BMI and an indicator of your health and fitness because there are some major problems with BMI. First of all, there is no distinction between men and women. Men naturally have more muscle than women and are heavier. A man and a woman at the exact height and weight would have the same BMI, but the man could look very skinny and the woman quite overweight. Secondly, people with a high body fat composition and low weight, may seem healthy according to BMI, but they may be just as unhealthy as a much larger person.
The BMI is a good measure for looking at populations as a whole, because all physicians have height and weight data. For example, you can compare average Americans to Canadians to see which country on average is heavier. As an individual, we vary too much to have a “one size fits all” approach. However, if you are out in the extremes of BMI, either underweight or obese, it is obvious that you are in a poor health category.
So how much should you weigh? The bottom line is, it doesn’t really matter. Body fat percentage is the true measure of obesity, not weight.
The good news is that it is fairly easy to find out your own body fat. There are regular scales that can now tell you your weight and body fat on a daily basis, and their prices have come down quite a lot in that last couple of years. When you stand on the scale in your bare feet, a very small current goes up one leg and back down the other (You can’t feel it) to measure your body fat.
Body fat percentage is now considered the most important factor, because that is a fair measure for everybody. According to “Shape up America”, which is the former Surgeon General’s (Dr. Koop) anti obesity initiative, it issued an advisory stating that one’s body fat percentage is superior to the currently accepted body mass index (BMI), as a measure of healthy weight.
For more information and specific body fat percentage guidelines, here is the link to Shape Up America’s advisory against using BMI and rather to use body fat percentage.
Fat 2 Fit Radio #2 - Realistic Expectations
This was a jammed packed show full of content. We discussed several news stories including the negative side of NBC’s Biggest Loser, obesity being caused as a result of our modern lifestyles and some common nutrition and diet myths. Are you an ectomorph, endomorph or mesomorph and does that affect the shape of your body? What if your body is a pear, apple and hourglass? Regardless of your body shape we wrap up with some good tips on setting weight loss and fitness goals.
Links mentioned in the show:
NY Times article on the Biggest Loser
Obesity The Result of Modern Life
7 Nutrition Myths
The Daily Plate
My Odeo Channel (odeo/1b22a1224d8abbbe)
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