Should Obese Be Called Fat?

Obesity epidemic has been a worldwide issue not only in developed and wealthy countries but also among many developing countries. For example, the United Kingdom (UK) has one of the highest obesity rates in Europe, with the level steadily increased over the last 10 years. According to the Department of Health in UK, almost 25 percent of adults and 14 percent of children were classified as obese in 2008.

An obese is a highly possible victim of many chronic diseases including Type-2 diabetes, high blood pressure (hypertension), heart cholesterol, heart disease, atherosclerosis, stroke and certain types of cancer.

Authorities and health community have utilized all ways and means to curb the growing obesity epidemic. Recently, a government official in Europe has even suggested to call people who are obese as “fat” to motivate them to lose weight. The reason quoted by this official is that calling an obese “fat” could encourage this person to take personal responsibility for his or her lifestyles.

Most doctors and health workers tend not to use the word “fat” as they feel this will stigmatize people who are overweight or obese. However, this official believes that people will only start paying attention when they are called “fat”, and not “obese”. Patients will start doing losing weight only when they have true information about themselves.

Some doctors agreed with the official as they felt doctors need to be honest with their patients rather than telling them what they love to hear. To some doctors, the term “obese” seems to medicalize the state, and makes it a third person issue. Sometimes, for the sake of patients, doctors just need to be more brutal and honest.

Nevertheless, there were objection from other medical professionals against what the official advocated. They felt that people just do not want to be offensive. Calling a person “fat” will more likely to disgrace and harm that person. They also pointed out that obesity is something that happens to people rather than something they are. As such, they suggested using the term “obesity” to encourage patients to think about the condition in a different way.

While the approach might be different, the aim is still the same: to encourage the patient to lose weight so that he or she can be healthy. The best approach, perhaps, still depends on the relationship the doctor has with the patient and the doctor should make their judgment on a patient-by-patient basis.

Are There Any Good Fats in Our Body?

Too many fats accumulated in our body are bad for our health. This is because too many fats could lead to overweight or even obesity. More importantly, many medical complications like diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, etc. could be developed because of overweight or obesity.

Scientists have known that fat that buries in the abdomen (known as visceral fat) can raise a person's risk of diabetes and heart disease, but people with fat deposits in the buttocks and hips, are less prone to these disorders.

In finding out why fat located in different parts of the body have different risks of metabolic disease such as diabetes, researchers from the United States have found a surprising result: a type of fat that accumulates around the hips and bottom may actually offer some protection against diabetes.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School in Boston announced on May 6, 2008 in the journal Cell Metabolism that subcutaneous fat, or fat that collects under the skin helped improve sensitivity to the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar.

A series of experiments were conducted on mice where the researchers transplanted subcutaneous fat from donor ice into the bellies and under the skin of mice. Those mice getting subcutaneous fat transplanted into their bellies started to slim down after several weeks, even though no changes in their diet or activity levels was made. Their blood sugar and insulin levels were also improved compared to those mice, which underwent a sham procedure.

This no doubt is an important finding, as it not only states that not all fats are bad but also highlights a special aspect of fat that would require further research.

The researchers are working hard to find the substance produced in subcutaneous fat that offer the benefit. Once these substances are found, they hope to convert them into drugs or use them as guides to help develop drugs.

What Types Of Cereals Should Be Banned From Kids?

According to a new analysis by Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, the breakfast cereals meant for children are less healthy than cereals for adults, and worst still, those that are ‘marketed the most aggressively to kids’ have the worst nutritional quality.

Through the study of 161 brands of cereals, the researchers published their report in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association indicating that the health claims by the cereal producers were often misleading. For instance, cereals sold as ‘low fat’ or ‘low sugar’ did not have low calories, and those brands sold as ‘whole grain’ though had more fiber, they also had as much salt, sugar, and fat as any other brands and had the same calorie content.

They also noted that children are often encouraged by both the food industry and public health authorities to eat breakfast, especially ready-to-eat cereals.

With an aim to comparing the nutritional quality of cereals targeted for children and those for adults, the researchers screened 161 brands of cereals, 46 percent of which were meant for kids. To be qualified in the study, the particular brand of cereal should have a character on the box, toys or games inside, or the company’s web site listed that brand as a children’s cereal.

The research team found that children’s cereals in fact had more sugar, sodium, carbohydrate and calories per gram than non-children’s cereals, and less protein and fiber, too. Meanwhile on average, more than one-third of the weight of children’s cereals consisted of sugar, comparing to less than one-quarter of the adult cereals.

While 56 percent of the non-children’s cereals met nutrition standards for foods sold in school, only 34 percent of the kid’s cereals did.

The growing number of overweight and obese kids would definitely worry their parents because the extra weight in these kids may just make them the possible candidates for heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and many other sicknesses, as they grow older.

The advice from the researchers is that parents hoping to choose healthy cereals for their kids should search for those containing 4 or less grams of sugar per serving (about 1 teaspoon), at least 4 grams of fiber per bowl of cereal. Most importantly, once the parents decide to ban the heavily marketed cereals from their kids should stick to their decision. If they ever give in once, they are going to make their kid nag them even more.

Are There Gender Differences In Metabolizing Fructose?

Fructose is a simple sugar commonly used for sweetening drinks and foods. Short-term high fructose intake among young people is rather common. However, it appears that men and women have their own way of metabolizing high levels of fructose.

For men, such pattern of consumption will cause their blood triglycerides (fats) to increase and insulin resistance to decrease. This will also raise their risk for cardiovascular disease and Type-2 diabetes. On the other hand, women seem to get rid of the excess sugar load in a less harmful way.

In a study to evaluate the relationship between nutrition and metabolic disorders, researchers from Lausanne University School of Biology and Medicine in Switzerland enlisted 8 each of healthy, non-smoking men and women of normal weight and about 23 years of age to participate in 2 different 6-day diets separated by a 4-week wash-out period. The findings of the study were published in “Diabetes Care”

Not participated in sports or exercise, these men and women followed either the 'control' diet or the diet that included a lemon-flavored drink containing 3.5 grams of fructose.

The fructose load used for the study corresponded to several liters of sodas per day, which was considered quite large. 12 fasting metabolic parameters of the participants were tested the day after they completed each diet.

Fructose supplementation caused the men a significant increase in 11 of the 12 factors, including a 5 percent increase in fasting glucose and 71 percent increase in triglyceride levels. However, women had a significant increase in only 4 out of the 12 factors tested, and showed a 4 percent increase in fasting glucose and 16 percent increase in triglyceride levels.

As the current study only involved a very small number of participants, the researchers felt that further studies should be carried out to include a larger population so that gender differences in metabolic pathways could be accurately be identified and confirmed.

Meanwhile, the researchers also wonder if fructose may have effects that are more deleterious in individuals who are at high risk of metabolic disorders.

Heart Health Can Be Improved By Pre-Meal Exercise!

A study reported that taking a long walk before a fatty meal can reduce the effects of high fat intake on blood vessel function. It is known that food with high fat can transiently raise fat and triglycerides levels of the blood. Recent research showed that the function of the endothelium (inner lining of blood vessels) could temporarily be impaired by a rich meal.

Another study suggested that moderate exercise can blunt these effects in both thin and obese middle-aged men. 20 men ate a rich meal including whipped cream, chocolate and a 80 g of fat under different conditions. In one condition, the men were asked to walk for 90 minutes on the treadmill the day before meal while there was no exercise in the other condition.

Men who exercised before the meal had their post-meal triglycerides levels risen to lesser degree. Moreover, their blood vessel function was better when there was no exercise. How pre-meal exercise could counter the effects of fatty meal remains unclear. According to researchers, activity may help lower blood fat levels, giving less opportunity for the fat particles to interact with the blood vessel walls.

Researchers also revealed that exercise of shorter duration might also help for the blood vessel function, as it was previously found that 30 minutes of activity could lower post-meal blood fat levels.

Can Fat Be Burnt By Muscle Stimulating Devices?

Many people use electronic slimming devices and creams that are recommended by manufacturers to trim their bodies.

However, according to doctors, the only way to lose the excess fat in the body is to 'burn' it. Fat loss cannot be stimulated by local applications with creams, saunas, belts or electronic devices. Massage also does not help.

Remember this, exercise must be active!

Fat and Cholesterol

Fat and cholesterol are not the same. However, both cholesterol and saturated fats in diet may raise blood cholesterol level which may eventually cause heart disease. Therefore, it is recommended that you should take only 15 to 32g of saturated fat and less than 300mg of cholesterol per day. You should avoid fried and oily food and replace saturated fats with poly-unsaturated fats (such as some vegetable and fish oils) and mono-unsaturated fats (such as olive and canola oils).

2 Simple Principles To Prevent Heart Disease

Using easily-remembered numbers 3-5-7, the following two simple principles can help you prevent heart disease:

3-5-7 Healthy Heart Diet Principles
3 Highs (high in fiber, freshness, plant-based protein);
5 Lows (low in fat, cholesterol, salt, sugar and alcohol); and
70% Full for your diet.

3-5-7 Healthy Heart Exercise Principles
3 kilometers walk (or 5000 steps) per day;
5 times a week; and
Exercise heart rate at less than (170 minus Age) beats per minute. For example, if your age is 40, then your exercise heart rate should not exceed 130 beats per minute.

Stress and smoking can cause heart disease too, so do manage your stress level and stay away from smoking.