Obesity - an epidemic?
We are hearing about it on the news all the time these days. The Western world is expanding; well our waistlines apparently!
Its great that goverments are increasingly stepping up to the mark and encouraging and advertising a wide range of 
activities and programs to get people up and moving. The catch cry is participation...give it a go...get involved...
Unfortunately side by side with those pro-activity ads are all the counter ads- fast food, an avalanche of high fat, high sugar temptations! It is so easy to just give in! I know I did. I remember how easy it was to just let it slide- have another chocolate...and another and next week add a few more to the daily quota. Everyones doing it so whats the harm?
The harm is actually measurable- very real and serious. Being overweight, consuming foods high in fat and sugar and being sedentary (not active) can lead to chronic health conditions. As parents we need to protect our health and that of our children.
Lets have a brief look at a few of the serious consequences of not looking after our diet and exercise requirements:
Heart Attack.Stroke. Cardio Vasular Disease. Hypertension(High Blood Pressure)
Cholestrol clogging our arteries. Heart muscles weak and atrophied through lack of use (exercise encourages our heart and lungs to get bigger stronger and more efficient). Hearts straining to pump blood through restricted vessels, hardened arteries. The list goes on.
Diabetes
Diabetes is becoming increasingly common. It is linked to being overweight and eating too much of the wrong foods. Our systems just cant handle all that junk! Young people are falling victim more and more to this largely preventable problem.
Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis means our bones become brittle as we age. Exercise and a diet with adequate calcium can prevent or lessen the effects of this shocking condition. Severe cases of osteoporosis mean major bones can break from a bump or knock. A fall can be fatal or permanently debilitating if the spine is shattered. Children need plenty of calcium- we need to build strong dense bones when we are young. Exercise also improves the structure of or bones- making then denser and less prone to breakage. Exercise also improves the muscle structure which support the skeleton and help us avoid falls.
Reduced Vo2max
This is a scary one. After the age of around 30 we all naturally start to have a reduced Vo2max. This is a fancy term for the ability of the body to take in and use oxygen. It means that as we age it is harder to breathe efficiently. In people who do no or little exercise this can result in an elderly person who is not able to breathe efficiently enough to maintain independent living. We need to preserve out ability to breathe efficiently! Exercise- something as simple as walking every day- can do this for us!
So what can we as parents do? what is our role...our responsibility.
If our pantries, fridges and freezers are stocked with chocolate, chips, sweet biscuits, pies, sausages, hamburgers, ice cream and lollies; it is no surprise that the children and adults of the family alike will reach for the quick convenient junk food hit! Change the food which is easily available ; low fat yogurt, low fat milk, fresh fruit and vegies ( cut up carrot sticks and a fruit platter for after school). Offer low fat cheese on crackers. Try plain popcorn or baked instead of fried snacks. Check the labels of foods and compare fat and sugar content.
Kids can get wrapped up in technology. Play station, Computers, Nintendo and so on can encourage life in a virtual world where exercise is optional. Provide opportunities for outdoor play- family trips to the park, the lake, the mountains. Go for a walk around the block together or walk to school. Get the kids out and playing with a basketball ring, trampoline or cricket set in the back garden. Encourage participation in local sporting activities, Auskick, Milo cricket and so on are fantastic opportunities. There are usually other options too like basketball, netball, badminton and little athletics. Maybe a treat could be horse riding or ten pin bowling. Get out and get active!
There is no more powerful message to send our children than to do it ourselves! Let them see us doing what we want them to do! Choose and eat healthy snacks in front of them- a fruit platter or yogurt. Let them see you participate in and enjoy exercise. Walk the dog together, talk about your aerobics class or set up an exercise corner in the garage! Healthy living should be a family project! Enjoy and share it with your children. If you have to fake it. Soon you will discover that you are faking it less and less- and that exercise and good food really is enjoyable! You will feel great and so will the kids. Loads of energy and less health problems, even improved moods and sleep patterns are rewards waiting!
If it all seems to hard- make sure you get yourself some support and encouragement. Join a fitness class or even try a personal trainer if you feel you need a start up boost! Or how about calling up a couple of friends and forming a walking group!
Your children will follow your lead and you will find it easier to cope with daily family living if you feel healthier and have more energy! There are resources online which have really helped me and I will list some below. Id like to share information about a new online resource to help people develop healthy habits and achieve weight loss and ongoing healthy weight
management.http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/fitnuf_rainbow/
Set up as a yahoo group it is completely free and is packed with information. It includes a very simple to use weight loss program (no
calorie counting, no points, no banned foods!) together with an equally simple ‘get up and move’ exercise program.
Not only can you save money every week that may have been spent on weight loss classes and unhealthy food maybe as much as $15 to $50; if you follow the program you will also be potentially saving yourself from health problems associated with poor diet habits and lack of exercise!
To make the resource even more useful there is a weekly ‘lesson’ covering various aspects of healthy living ( such as self awareness, safe exercising and more specifics such as good and bad ‘fats’).
Each lesson then has an associated assignment to follow for the week to help consolidate the information in the lesson and help you to apply it to your everyday life.Daily reminders gently enforce healthy habits.
Lessons are stored as archived files so you can go and read any you have missed. There are databases to record your weight/measurements if you like as well as feedback about the assignments and more. There are polls to take and space to upload and share photos of your weight management/healthy living journey if you choose to!
Best of all there is a friendly supportive group of people all doing the same thing. Discussion is encouraged about problems and triumphs along the way and the group discussion expands on the lesson/assignment material through the week.
Set up by a health professional as a companion tool to a program she developed and offers to her clients, the online course with its
support/discussion group is now being offered completely FREE to people all over the world! The author of the program used to be obese –and is now a fitness instructor, personal trainer and weight management consultant. She has turned her life around and now wants to help others to do the same thing. She is sharing the diet and exercise program that she developed! The Rainbow Program contains all the information and assistance you need to get started on the journey to healthy living and sustainable weight management!
The programs are developed and offered online by FitNuf for free, through the following site; The only stipulation is that the information is provided online for everyone for Free and it is to stay Free. People are asked to respect this and not offer it to others for financial gain. However group members are encouraged to get together in fee-free local groups and support and encourage each other!
It is also expected and requested that no part of the content of the site be reproduced on other sites or publications. Links are welcome.
- The bottom line is; if we dont exercise and we consume too much fatty sugary foods our heart and lungs become weakened and stressed. Our bones become brittle and our muscles waste away!
(March 2nd) (
