Читать книгу 101 Weight Loss Tips for Preventing and Controlling Diabetes - Anne Daly - Страница 7
Оглавление| What are my health benefits if I lose weight? |
TIP:
If you lose weight, you can reduce your risk of getting diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, gall bladder disease, and breast and colon cancer. If you already have any of these health problems, losing weight improves them. When you lose weight, you’ll spend less time and money on doctor’s visits and health problems.
People who lose even small amounts of weight—5–7% of their starting weight (usually 10–20 pounds)—improve their health by reducing high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, arthritis, and depression. And their self-esteem grows. Even without weight loss, you start getting health benefits just as soon as you take steps to improve your lifestyle with a meal plan and more physical activity. Just do it.
| Which weight table should I use to find my healthy body weight? |
TIP:
Since being overweight is associated with increased risk of death, the life insurance industry has been making the public aware of it. The 1959 and 1983 Metropolitan Life Insurance Company tables of ideal body weight are still among the most popular in use, but they are very strict. In 1990, the federal government issued an updated table of suggested weights for adults based on height and age—the BMI table, which lists reasonable body weights. There is no ideal” body weight.
| What is reasonable body weight? |
TIP:
Reasonable body weight is a term that appears in the 1994 Nutrition Recommendations for People with Diabetes. This is defined as the weight that you and your health care team agree that you can probably achieve and maintain for the rest of your life. This weight turns out to be very different from ideal body weight, but it does reduce your health risks. For instance, a female who is 5'5" tall has an ideal body weight on the outdated table of 120 lbs. In real life however, if her current weight is 220, a reasonable body weight for her might be 160 lbs.
| How do I know if I’m overweight or obese? |
TIP:
Overweight and obesity are related but do not mean the same thing. Overweight refers to an excess amount of body weight for your height that includes all tissues, such as fat, bone, muscle, and water. For example, a football player with a lot of muscle might weigh a lot but it isn’t fat that makes him weigh so much. Obesity refers to an excess of body fat. You can measure obesity using the body mass index (BMI) table.
| How do I calculate my BMI? |
TIP:
Body mass index or BMI is a way to measure overweight or obesity based on weight and height.
BMI = weight in kilograms / height in meters2. To calculate your BMI, you need to know your height and your weight.
Your weight in pounds divided by 2.2 = your weight in kilograms.
For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, then you weigh 90.9 kilograms.
Your height in inches x 2.54 = your height in centimeters. Divide your height in centimeters by 100 to get your height in meters.
If you are 68 inches tall, then you are 172.7 centimeters or 1.727 meters tall.
This BMI says that you meet the criteria for obesity, and you may have some serious health problems
| How does BMI relate to health risk? |
TIP:
The health problems that come along with obesity are coronary heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, diabetes, gout, high cholesterol, arthritis, and gallstones. All overweight and obese adults (ages 18 years or older) with a BMI of 25 or higher are at risk for developing these health problems. Those with a BMI of 30 or higher have serious health risks, especially for heart disease. When you lose weight, you improve your health in many ways!
Obese people may be limited in how agile they are, so they have a higher risk of having accidents. They may have difficulty getting pregnant and difficulties with pregnancy and delivery. You and your doctor should consider all of your health problems when choosing a weight loss program. NOTE: You are more likely to have health risks when your body fat is concentrated in your belly rather than in your hips. To check the location of your body fat use the waist-to-hip measurement (What is the waist-to-hip ratio?).
| What is the waist-to-hip ratio? |
TIP:
The waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) is the comparison of your waist measurement to your hip measurement. It is a way to see whether your weight is primarily in your hips and buttocks (in what is known as a “pear” shape, common in females) or in the abdomen (making an “apple” shape, common in males). Measure your waist with a nonstretchable measuring tape at the smallest point (between the rib cage and navel), and measure your hips at the widest point (around the buttocks). A WHR of more than 1.0 in males and 0.8 in females suggests that you have increased health risks. As an example, a woman who weighs 300 lbs has a waist measuring 53 inches and hip measuring 60 inches.
The waist/hip ratio is 0.9.
The risk is higher for women with a waist measurement of 35 inches or more and higher for men with a waist measurement 40 inches or more.
| I tend to have a belly. Is being shaped like an apple bad? |
TIP:
Yes, because where your body stores fat makes a difference in your health. People who have a larger waist are more likely to develop heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Health risks seem to come with having a waist measurement of greater than 35 inches in women and greater than 40 inches in men. Abdominal fat is worse than fat on your buttocks or thighs, because that extra fat surrounds important organs such as the liver and pancreas. When you have fat in this area of the body, your body can’t use the insulin produced by your pancreas very well. This is called insulin resistance, and it causes high blood sugar levels. High blood sugar levels put your organs at higher risk.
If you lose weight, the amount of fat stored around your waist and important organs will decrease, and they will all work better.
| Everybody in my family is heavy. How can I ever expect to be thin? |
TIP:
You may not ever be thin, but you can certainly lose weight and get fit. It may help to think of your family’s gift this way: you may have inherited genes that make you more energy efficient. People who survive a famine are likely to have a “thrifty gene” that allows them to get by on fewer calories. When the food supply is more plentiful, people who are more energy efficient gain weight.
The second thing you inherit from your family is your lifestyle. When the Pima Indians, who had low rates of obesity until 50 years ago, adopted the “Western” lifestyle, food was plentiful and they exercised less. They now have an epidemic of obesity and diabetes.
Families pass on habits that may lead to weight gain. Your parents played a strong role in the development of your food preferences, physical activity habits, and eating habits. But you can make new habits. And pass them on to your children, too.
