obesity

Posted on Diet

Obesity – an over view from NHS Choices

Obesity - an overview

Obesity – an overview

The term “obese” describes a person who’s very overweight, with a lot of body fat.

It’s a common problem in the UK that’s estimated to affect around one in every four adults and around one in every five children aged 10 to 11.

Defining obesity

There are many ways in which a person’s health in relation to their weight can be classified, but the most widely used method is body mass index (BMI).

BMI is a measure of whether you’re a healthy weight for your height. You can use the BMI healthy weight calculator to work out your score.

For most adults, a BMI of:

18.5 to 24.9 means you’re a healthy weight

25 to 29.9 means you’re overweight

30 to 39.9 means you’re obese

40 or above means you’re severely obese

BMI isn’t used to definitively diagnose obesity, because people who are very muscular sometimes have a high BMI without excess fat. But for most people, BMI is a useful indication of whether they’re a healthy weight, overweight or obese.

A better measure of excess fat is waist circumference, which can be used as an additional measure in people who are overweight (with a BMI of 25 to 29.9) or moderately obese (with a BMI of 30 to 34.9).

Generally, men with a waist circumference of 94cm (37in) or more and women with a waist circumference of 80cm (about 31.5in) or more are more likely to develop obesity-related health problems.

Read more about diagnosing obesity.

Risks of obesity

It’s very important to take steps to tackle obesity because, as well as causing obvious physical changes, it can lead to a number of serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, such as:

type 2 diabetes

coronary heart disease

some types of cancer, such as breast cancer and bowel cancer

stroke

Obesity can also affect your quality of life and lead to psychological problems, such as depression and low self-esteem (see below for more information about the health problems associated with obesity).

Causes of obesity

Obesity is generally caused by consuming more calories – particularly those in fatty and sugary foods – than you burn off through physical activity. The excess energy is stored by the body as fat.

Obesity is an increasingly common problem because for many people modern living involves eating excessive amounts of cheap, high-calorie food and spending a lot of time sitting down, at desks, on sofas or in cars.

Read about why sitting too much is bad for your health.

There are also some underlying health conditions that can occasionally contribute to weight gain, such as an underactive thyroid gland (hypothyroidism), although these type of conditions don’t usually cause weight problems if they’re effectively controlled with medication.

Read more about the causes of obesity.

Treating obesity

The best way to treat obesity is to eat a healthy, reduced-calorie diet and exercise regularly. To do this you should:

eat a balanced, calorie-controlled diet as recommended by your GP or weight loss management health professional (such as a dietitian)

join a local weight loss group

take up activities such as fast walking, jogging, swimming or tennis for 150 to 300 minutes (two-and-a-half to five hours) a week

eat slowly and avoid situations where you know you could be tempted to overeat

You may also benefit from receiving psychological support from a trained healthcare professional to help change the way you think about food and eating.

If lifestyle changes alone don’t help you lose weight, a medication called orlistat may be recommended. If taken correctly, this medication works by reducing the amount of fat you absorb during digestion. Your GP will know whether orlistat is suitable for you.

In rare cases, weight loss surgery may be recommended.

Read more about the NHS weight loss guide and how obesity is treated.

Outlook

There’s no “quick fix” for obesity. Weight loss programmes take time and commitment, and work best when fully completed. The healthcare professionals involved with your care should provide encouragement and advice about how to maintain the weight loss achieved.

Regularly monitoring your weight, setting realistic goals and involving your friends and family with your attempts to lose weight can also help.

Remember that even losing what seems like a small amount of weight, such as 3% or more of your original body weight, and maintaining this for life, can significantly reduce your risk of developing obesity-related complications like diabetes and heart disease.

Couch to 5K

If it’s been a long time since you did any exercise, you should check out the NHS Choices Couch to 5K running plan.

It consists of podcasts delivered over the course of nine weeks and has been specifically designed for absolute beginners.

To begin with, you start running for short periods of time, and as the plan progresses, gradually increase the amount.

At the end of the nine weeks, you should be able to run for 30 minutes non-stop, which for most people is around five kilometres (3.1 miles).

Posted on Weight Loss

WHY AMERICA IS GETTING FATTER: THE SCARY TRUTH ABOUT OBESITY

The numbers don’t lie—obesity in America is a real and growing threat to the health and wellness of millions, both young and old.
According to the Center for Disease Control, 34.9% of U.S. adults are considered medically obese—that’s 78.6 million people in this country! But do you know how bad obesity is for the body? With the life-threatening illnesses and complications that come from being overweight, it’s no wonder that the “obesity epidemic” in the United States is inspiring all types of healthy living initiatives from the grocery store to Capitol Hill.

Please include attribution to Top Medical Assisting Programs with this graphic.

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Obesity in America by the Numbers

Forget the numbers on the scale and the clothing size you want to fit in—obesity has some even more startling numbers connected with it. According to the Center for Disease Control, a shocking 17% of children ages 2 to 19 are considered not just overweight, but obese. Obesity for adults is defined as a body mass index (BMI) of over 30.0. Illnesses caused by eating too unhealthily and carrying a harmful body weight are some of the leading causes of preventable death in this country—including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of cancer. In fact, as reported by the Harvard School of Public Health, overweight people have 32% higher risk of developing coronary artery disease (CAD), while those who are obese have 81% higher risk!

With that in mind, consider that the National Institutes of Health estimate that 300,000 Americans die each year due to the obesity epidemic. That’s like the whole population of Cincinnati, Ohio being wiped out from obesity-related illnesses! On average, an obese individual’s annual medical costs are $1,429 higher than someone of healthy weight. That much money can pay for a whole family’s gym membership and some healthier food options.

Some Hidden Causes of Obesity

One of the best things you can do for your health is to take a good hard look at the food you eat. Huge contributors to the rise in obesity are the added fats, sugars, and chemicals lurking in foods that seem harmless. The New York Times reports that Americans eat 22 to 30 teaspoons of added sugar in their foods, with half of them coming from sugary drinks and sodas. And when you have a meal at a restaurant, you have no idea how many calories, grams of fat, or what types of ingredients are used to make your dish. So you might be looking at just one meal that packs a 1,500+ calorie punch—more than half the recommended daily intake for an average person. There has been a growing trend—and legislation in some states—that demands that food establishments list the calorie and fat content on menus to fully inform customers.

Combating Obesity in the United States

You may not be surprised to hear this, but preventing and combating the dangerous health effects of obesity have to do with exercise and eating habits that are often shaped when we’re young. Only 20.8% of adults over 18 years old meet the Physical Activity Guidelines for both muscle-strengthening and aerobic physical activity. Those guidelines recommend that Americans shoot for a minimum of 2.5 hours of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, reports the Harvard School of Public Health. Many gyms offer trial periods or discounted first classes so that you can try a particular type of exercise before you commit to membership fees. The key to consistent and goal-achieving weight loss and management is to find a type of exercise you enjoy doing!

Healthier eating is also crucial to maintaining a healthy weight and body mass index (BMI). Unfortunately, the Harvard School of Public Health reports that eating costs about $1.50 more per day than an unhealthy diet, which really isn’t too much to pad to your grocery budget.

There has also been a legislative move to end “food desserts”—a term for urban and rural areas that are more than a mile away from healthy, affordable food options in supermarkets or restaurants. The Healthy Food Financing Initiative is working to develop grocery stores, small retailers and corner stores, and farmers markets to offer healthy and affordable food options to their community.

What You Can Do
One of the best defenses against the slippery slope of ongoing weight gain is to be aware of your eating habits and establishing an exercise routine that you stick to. If you’re passionate about inspiring healthy habits in others, then consider pursuing a career in healthcare or nutrition. And share this infographic to alert your friends and family to the dangers that unhealthy eating can lead to!

Leave a comment Posted on Sleep disorders

Why lack of sleep is bad for your health and seven reasons why a good night’s sleep boost your health!

Why you need your sleep

Why you need your sleep


Many effects of a lack of sleep, such as feeling grumpy and not working at your best, are well known. But did you know that sleep deprivation can also have profound consequences on your physical health?

One in three of us suffers from poor sleep, with stress, computers and taking work home often blamed.

However, the cost of all those sleepless nights is more than just bad moods and a lack of focus.

Regular poor sleep puts you at risk of serious medical conditions, including obesity, heart disease and diabetes – and it shortens your life expectancy.

It’s now clear that a solid night’s sleep is essential for a long and healthy life.

How much sleep do we need?

Most of us need around eight hours of good-quality sleep a night to function properly – but some need more and some less. What matters is that you find out how much sleep you need and then try to achieve it.

As a general rule, if you wake up tired and spend the day longing for a chance to have a nap, it’s likely that you’re not getting enough sleep.

A variety of factors can cause poor sleep, including health conditions such as sleep apnoea. But in most cases, it’s due to bad sleeping habits.

Find out the common medical causes of fatigue.

What happens if I don’t sleep?

Everyone’s experienced the fatigue, short temper and lack of focus that often follow a poor night’s sleep.

An occasional night without sleep makes you feel tired and irritable the next day, but it won’t harm your health.

After several sleepless nights, the mental effects become more serious. Your brain will fog, making it difficult to concentrate and make decisions. You’ll start to feel down, and may fall asleep during the day. Your risk of injury and accidents at home, work and on the road also increases.

Find out how to tell if you’re too tired to drive.

If it continues, lack of sleep can affect your overall health and make you prone to serious medical conditions, such as obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Here are seven ways in which a good night’s sleep can boost your health:

1. Sleep boosts immunity

If you seem to catch every cold and flu that’s going around, your bedtime could be to blame. Prolonged lack of sleep can disrupt your immune system, so you’re less able to fend off bugs.

2. Sleep can slim you

Sleeping less may mean you put on weight! Studies have shown that people who sleep less than seven hours a day tend to gain more weight and have a higher risk of becoming obese than those who get seven hours of slumber.

It’s believed to be because sleep-deprived people have reduced levels of leptin (the chemical that makes you feel full) and increased levels of ghrelin (the hunger-stimulating hormone).

3. Sleep boosts mental wellbeing

Given that a single sleepless night can make you irritable and moody the following day, it’s not surprising that chronic sleep debt may lead to long-term mood disorders like depression and anxiety.

When people with anxiety or depression were surveyed to calculate their sleeping habits, it turned out that most of them slept for less than six hours a night.

4. Sleep prevents diabetes

Studies have suggested that people who usually sleep less than five hours a night have an increased risk of having or developing diabetes.

It seems that missing out on deep sleep may lead to type 2 diabetes by changing the way the body processes glucose – the high-energy carbohydrate that cells use for fuel.

5. Sleep increases sex drive

Men and women who don’t get enough quality sleep have lower libidos and less of an interest in sex, research shows.

Men who suffer from sleep apnoea – a disorder in which breathing difficulties lead to interrupted sleep – also tend to have lower testosterone levels, which can lower libido.

6. Sleep wards off heart disease

Long-standing sleep deprivation seems to be associated with increased heart rate, an increase in blood pressure and higher levels of certain chemicals linked with inflammation, which may put extra strain on your heart.

7. Sleep increases fertility

Difficulty conceiving a baby has been claimed as one of the effects of sleep deprivation, in both men and women. Apparently, regular sleep disruptions can cause trouble conceiving by reducing the secretion of reproductive hormones.

How to catch up on lost sleep

If you don’t get enough sleep, there’s only one way to compensate – getting more sleep.

It won’t happen with a single early night. If you’ve had months of restricted sleep, you’ll have built up a significant sleep debt, so expect recovery to take several weeks.

Starting on a weekend, try to add on an extra hour or two of sleep a night. The way to do this is to go to bed when you’re tired, and allow your body to wake you in the morning (no alarm clocks allowed!).

Expect to sleep for upwards of 10 hours a night at first. After a while, the amount of time you sleep will gradually decrease to a normal level.

Don’t rely on caffeine or energy drinks as a short-term pick-me-up. They may boost your energy and concentration temporarily, but can disrupt your sleep patterns even further in the long term.

Leave a comment Posted on Diet, Obesity, Weight Loss

Could discovery of ‘fat switch’ cure obesity?

Could discovery of 'fat switch' cure obesity?

Could discovery of ‘fat switch’ cure obesity?

 

Original article on NHS Choices here.

“Obesity cure possible after discovery of fat ‘switch’,” is the somewhat premature headline in The Daily Telegraph.

Researchers have identified a “biological switch” that controls when fat cells convert fat into energy for the body. But the headline fails to make it clear that this discovery was in mice, not humans.

Current thinking is that fat cells start off as “beige”, where they’re essentially in a neutral state. They can then be converted into either white or brown fat cells.

White fat cells store energy and can contribute towards obesity. Brown fat cells are primed to burn energy by warming the body.

It’s possible for white fat cells to be converted into brown fat cells – by fasting, for example – in a process known as browning. In some cases, brown fat cells can switch back to being white fat cells again.

This study looked at this process in mice and found a mechanism that controls this switch. It involved an area of the brain called the hypothalamus and a protein called TCPTP, which acts on insulin receptors.

Researchers found the switch was stuck in obese mice and they were in energy-storing mode all the time, promoting weight gain.

But we don’t yet know if the switch would be the same in humans, and to what extent it contributes to obesity.

Interfering with neural pathways in the brain could have unintended consequences, so any drugs developed to target the process would need thorough testing to make sure they’re safe.

For now, the best way to achieve a healthy weight is to stay activeand eat a balanced diet.

Where did the story come from?

The study was carried out by researchers from Monash University in Australia, and the Department of Neuronal Control of Metabolism in Cologne, University Hospital Cologne, the University of Cologne, and the National Center for Diabetes Research, all in Germany.

The research was funded by the NHMRC of Australia, the Diabetes Australia Research Trust, and the National Imaging Facility.

It was published in the peer-reviewed journal Cell Metabolism.

The UK media coverage of this research was generally accurate, although The Guardian failed to mention anywhere in their article the research was conducted in mice.

Any talk of a cure for obesity being found, as suggested by The Daily Telegraph, is premature.

The study’s results can’t be directly linked to human biology. There’s no way of knowing yet if fat control mechanisms in human brains work in the same way.

What kind of research was this?

This experimental research was carried out in mice to understand the mechanism behind the storage or expenditure of energy in normal and obese mice, as well as during feeding or fasting stages.

This kind of research is very useful for showing how biological mechanisms might potentially work in humans.

But the research is at a very early stage, and there’s a long way to go before therapies or treatments might be available for humans.

What did the research involve?

The researchers looked at brain scans, blood tests and metabolic measurements in mice to examine how the mechanisms in a part of the brain called the hypothalamus work in response to feeding and fasting, and see how these might potentially work in humans.

The hypothalamus is responsible for regulating a number of essential biological processes, including appetite, and regulating body temperature.

The specific area in the hypothalamus the researchers were interested in was the insulin receptor TCPTP.

The researchers looked at the mice’s ability to use energy just after a meal and store energy in between meals by preventing or allowing the action of insulin.

Insulin levels rise after eating as blood glucose levels rise, causing the brain to send signals to start “browning” fat so energy is expended. When insulin levels lower, energy starts to be conserved again.

The researchers looked at beige fat cells and their ability to switch between white fat cell-like states (energy storage) and brown-like states (energy expended).

They also looked at the mechanism that controls these beige fat cells, how this mechanism changes according to eating or fasting patterns (and therefore insulin levels), and whether there are any differences in this mechanism in obese mice.

What were the basic results?

The researchers found beige fat cells’ ability to switch between energy storage versus expenditure was important in a feeding versus fasting context.

They found this was co-ordinated by the hypothalamus and the action of TCPTP on insulin receptors in this area of the brain.

Hypothalamic TCPTP was increased during the fasting phase, which prevented insulin signalling, resulting in less browning of the white fat cells and therefore less energy expenditure.

Hypothalamic TCPTP decreased during the feeding phase, increasing insulin signalling and resulting in more browning of the white fat cells and more energy expended.

The ability to suppress the hypothalamic TCPTP as a result of feeding didn’t work as effectively in obese mice.

Removing hypothalamic TCPTP in obese mice restored browning of the beige fat cells after feeding, increasing energy expenditure once more to promote weight loss.

Mice without hypothalamic TCPTP didn’t become obese when overfed.

How did the researchers interpret the results?

The researchers concluded: “Our studies indicate that the energy expenditure specifically associated with feeding in chow-fed lean mice is reduced in diet-induced obesity.

“The promotion of feeding-induced energy expenditure may provide an approach by which to combat obesity.”

Conclusion

This early-stage research suggests there is potentially a mechanism by which energy expenditure and storage is controlled in normal-weight mice versus obese mice.

Removing a protein called hypothalamic TCPTP, which acts as the “switch” for fat storage, promoted weight loss in obese mice.

This might give us some insight into how weight loss could be promoted in obese humans by turning this switch off.

But at this stage, this is just a hypothesis – we can’t assume the same is true for humans. Many therapies and procedures that appear promising at the outset aren’t always successful in humans.

Given the major disease burden caused by obesity, finding ways to reduce its prevalence is a crucial area of research.

For now, the best way to achieve a healthy weight is to stay activeand eat a balanced diet.

Leave a comment Posted on Diet

Avoid eating just before your bedtime, study recommends

Avoid eating just before your bedtime, study recommends

Avoid eating just before your bedtime, study recommends

 

Original on NHS Choices here.

 

“It’s not what you eat, it’s when you eat that matters: study shows timing your meals right is the key to beating obesity,” the Mail Online reports.

The headline was prompted by a small US study involving 110 university students.

Researchers gave them activity monitors to wear, measured their sleep patterns, and observed how much they ate and at what time.

The researchers were particularly interested in what they termed dim-light melatonin onset (DLMO). DLMO is when the body begins to wind down in preparation for sleep and starts producing the sleep hormone melatonin.

For most of us, our DLMO usually begins around 8pm. But the timing can vary if you do shift work.

The researchers found students with a higher body weight tended to eat more of their calories later in the day, closer to their DLMO.

This adds to previous evidence suggesting it’s good to consume more of our calories earlier in the day, when we have more opportunities to be active ahead of us. Eating large, heavy meals late in the evening has also been linked with higher body fat.

But as a single study in a small, specific sample of students, this study provides little evidence that lifestyle and eating habits have a direct effect on body weight.

As advice goes, it may be sensible to consider whether regularly eating a large, heavy meal close to bedtime is the best thing for your health and wellbeing.

Eating earlier in the day may not make you magically thinner, but it may help prevent night-time indigestion.

Where does the study come from?

The study was conducted by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in the US, and the University of Murcia in Spain.

It was published in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

No external sources of funding are reported for the study, although the authors declared various conflicts of interest as many of them work, or have worked, for a wide range of commercial interests.

The Mail Online’s coverage was accurate, but may have benefitted from noting the limitations of this small, cross-sectional study.

What kind of research was this?

This cross-sectional study aimed to see whether timing of eating, particularly eating at a later hour in the evening, was related to body clock and the amount of calories consumed.

The human body normally defaults to a 24-hour light-dark, wake-sleep cycle. Put simply, we wake up when it’s light and go to bed when it’s dark.

But with electrical lighting and modern lifestyles, we’re now able to control our own wakefulness, and can stay awake and eat late into the evenings.

Various studies suggest eating at a time naturally reserved for sleeping could have adverse effects on weight and metabolic health.

This study observed the eating and activity patterns and body measurements of some university students across the course of a week.

You can observe links in this type of study, but you can’t prove cause and effect.

What were the basic methods?

The study recruited 110 university students aged 18 to 22. They took part in a 30-day sleep-wake monitoring study, where they were instructed to wear a wrist actigraph monitor at all times.

An actigraph is a device that can provide a reasonably accurate estimate of time spent asleep by measuring physical activity and light exposure.

The students also kept daily sleep and exercise diaries. Sleep timing and duration was assessed from the actigraph monitor and correlated with the diaries.

For 7 consecutive days in the middle of the course, participants were asked to record all the food and drink they consumed.

They did this using a mobile app that allowed them to take photos of all the food they ate and record which meal or snack this was.

They also came in for a single night’s sleep in the study lab, where they had saliva samples taken in dim-light conditions to measure levels of the sleep hormone melatonin.

Release of melatonin marks the start of the biological night, when our body clocks begin to shift into sleep mode.

Researchers assessed meals, calories consumed, and their timing against sleep, activity and body fat.

What were the results?

The study gives a breakdown of the average calories consumed and their timings.

There was no difference between students with higher and lower body fat in the timing of melatonin release.

But researchers noticed that for individuals with higher body fat, the midpoint of all the calories they consumed for the day was later than for leaner people, and 1 hour closer to the onset of melatonin release.

And those with a calorie intake-midpoint later in the day were also more likely to consume a greater number of calories at this time. People eating more calories later in the day also tended to have less sleep.

What do the researchers conclude?

The researchers said: “These results provide evidence that the consumption of food during the circadian evening and/or night, independent of more traditional risk factors such as amount or content of food intake and activity level, plays an important role in body composition.”

Conclusions

Previous research suggests we may be better off consuming more of our calories earlier on in the day, when we have a full, active day ahead of us to use up the energy.

It’s also been observed that people who consume large calorific meals late in the evening can have a higher body weight.

In a sense, the results of this study seem plausible and don’t really say anything different from what’s already been observed. But as this is a cross-sectional study, it can’t really prove very much.

The study involved a small, select sample of US university students. Their results can’t be applied to everyone, as they have different lifestyles and sociodemographics from the general population.

And a cross-sectional study can only show associations – it can’t prove cause and effect.

The participants’ body weight was assessed at the same time as their food intake and sleep patterns.

Though again it seems plausible, we can’t assume that the students’ lifestyle and eating habits have directly caused their current body weight.

This study will doubtless contribute to the body of evidence around timing of food intake, relationship to the sleep-wake cycle, and body weight. But it provides little proof as a single piece of evidence.

The best way to achieve and maintain a healthy weight is to eat a balanced diet high in fruit and vegetables and low in saturated fat and sugars, and to get regular exercise.

Read more advice on how to eat a healthy, balanced diet.