Obesity- a problem of under eating

Read the headlines (link). Are we Fat? Call it what you want, but we aren't skinny. Two thirds of the people in my state are overweight and more than one third are obese. Apparently, in South Carolina, we find ourselves in eighth place nationally in these categories(full report here).  We are not doing a good job here at home.  The unfortunate reality is that wherever you live, regardless of your state, the rates of obesity continue to skyrocket.  We are losing BIG. This problem is a monster that's momentum may just be unstoppable. The costs to our society are stunning and enormous. Is there a solution? Of course there is. It starts with you. Don't be a statistic.

Step back for a moment. Why does obesity matter? It's certainly not a disease. Obesity is just a classification that helps us make observations and predictions about what is likely to happen in your health. It's a marker. If you are obese, you are more likely to have heart disease, cancer, depression, asthma, diabetes, sleep apnea, joint and back pain. The list goes on, it seems, forever. You are also probably tired and just don't feel good. But it's not necessarily the adipose tissue (the fat!) that causes these diseases. Everyday we are making choices that either promote health or promote disease. The choices that promote disease are often the ones that tend to pack on the pounds. Thus, we have  an association with our weight and our state of un-health.

Let's be frank. Doctors and nurses are often horrible examples. We might as well be naked when we counsel patients on being healthy. It's obvious that most of us don't practice what we preach. I am happy to point the finger at myself. I am one of the few that could eat a lot of whatever I wanted and not gain weight.  Maybe I didn't have to follow my own sermons.  Identical poor nutritional choices may make YOU heavy, giving you a "premature" heart attack; meanwhile, I get to stay skinny waiting 20 years longer for my pancreatic cancer. I decided to straighten up.  I want to model health. Only now am I becoming a part of the real solution.

Here is an awful picture:

This one is much better:

Our health epidemic has everything to do with WHAT we are eating. The fact is, that in spite of all the sugar, salt, and fat we swallow, we are actually starving on the inside. We have an under-eating problem. It is most simply called whole plants. Fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and leaves are what's missing, and that's where the money is. Plants are cool. People get excited about the acai berry, green tea, ginger, cinnamon, garlic, red wine, tomatoes, oatmeal, and broccoli.  We are learning fascinating things about the health power of different compounds found only in plants. Unfortunately, if you try to roll these things up in isolation and add them to your bacon and eggs or maybe your everything bagel with cream cheese the health promoting properties vanish. It only works when you eat the plant itself. But when you do, amazing things can happen. Plants are nutrient dense and calorie light. Except for nuts and seeds plants don't have a lot of calories.  I could eat three doughnuts and probably be full. But there is no way I could eat 12 or more apples which is the caloric equivalent. Simply put, you can stuff your face with the nutritious stuff. When we are hungry, our body is asking for more than a calorie. It asking for NUTRIENTS. You'll be surprised that you don't get as hungry eating this way. Over the last year my family has been eating differently. My boys like their broccoli (trees!) They like the strawberries, blueberries, and peaches they get to pick at our local farms. They work in the garden and are learning about food. There is a wonderful video that I recently put up about teaching our kids to eat and fighting obesity. Watch it, click here - Teach every child about food-Fight obesity(21min)   If you need help on what to feed your kids (and yourself), click this: www.kidsgethealthy.org

For optimum health the most important thing we can do is eat the right food. 1) EAT as much as you can of low fat whole plant based foods- fruits, veggies, whole grains, leaves. 2) STOP processed foods and STOP eating junk!!!! (Diet soda is also junk- what in the world is it? No nutritional value) 3) DON'T eat animal based foods. (It starts to get complicated with this one, too much animal protein and too much saturated fat. To learn more, watch the videos). 

Be a part of the solution. Get healthy by eating what you've been missing. Model health. Plant a garden. Teach your children to cook. Take a walk. Ride a bike. Pray. Meditate. Get involved in your community advocating healthy eating and activities. Help educate. Help someone less fortunate than you. Help . . .