| Fast foods...Prepackaged
convenience dishes...Frozen entrees...Microwave meals...Mexican mixes...Chinese
take-out...That old standby - TV dinners...Frozen pizzas...Toaster pop-ins...Instant
breakfasts...Healthy bars...and on and on! As a population, Americans have
developed very poor eating habits that result in health problems associated
with poor weight control.
Data from the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention confirms that Americans are growing
more obese and sedentary. There is an "obesity epidemic" in America today. In the period from 1978-1995, male obesity increased
72% and female obesity increased 58%; the above age 50 group had the quickest
weight gains. According to the data, excess weight claims over 300,000
American lives prematurely each year by contributing to heart disease,
strokes, high blood pressure, diabetes and certain cancers. Individuals
who are overweight by 40 pounds or more double their risks of getting cancer,
increase risks of stroke 2.5 times and increases risks of developing diabetes
ten times! But the number one killer due to obesity is heart attack;
the first symptom of most heart attacks is sudden death. Millions
suffer from a wide range of conditions from hemorrhoids to diverticulitis
to high cholesterol to colon cancer from fiber-poor diets and obesity.
Obesity related premature death figures are rising faster than smoking
related premature deaths. At the current rate, obesity will surpass smoking
as the leading cause of premature deaths in America within ten years.
If the past 10,000 years of human history are any indication of the future, obesity is our inevitable fate. According to one
theory, evolution favored those who craved high fat, high carbohydrate foods and stored excess calories in fatty deposits
against times of famine. So our heavy thighs, pot bellies, love handles and rotundness is part of the grand scheme of things.
Mother Nature's plan worked reasonably well for thousands of years because only a small fraction of people had access to unlimited food supplies and servants to do everything. It is only in the twentieth century that improvements in agriculture and work saving inventions combined to permit most Americans to live like royalty. The result is inevitable: too many Americans look like Henry VIII! In 1950, 25% of Americans were overweight;
today more than 50%. If the trend continues, over 75% will be overweight by 2025! Why? In spite of the warnings, Americans continue to eat too much and exercise too little.
Most Americans eat too little fruit and vegetables. Too many people consume
foods from the Dairy, Meat and Sweets group, groups in the upper half of
the Food Pyramid. 40% of the average American diet is dairy! Unaware that people "are what they eat", people consume
according to convenience, tastes, schedules and appetites rather than their
health and body requirements. Too many Americans are not mindful of what
they eat or why they eat. This is one of the motivations leading to the
establishment of the "New Pyramid Diet: Eat Right For Life!" website.
The consumer should consider
food and drink consumption a form of medication;
their grocery store is a
pharmacy;
their refrigerator is a medicine
cabinet.
Most Americans eat the wrong things. Too many consumers purchase
packages of "food artifacts" and boxes of "fake foods" loaded with anything
but food: preservatives, sweeteners, colorings, flavorings, emulsifiers,
conditioners, fresheners, leavening, enhancers, odorizers, dyes and chemicals.
Study the ingredients label: is it long or short? Healthy foods have short
ingredients lists: water and food. Beware long ingredient lists, especially
lists with chemical names that challenge pronunciation and help sell the
product more than benefit the health of the consumer. Buying and eating
"real foods" from the Vegetable, Fruit and Whole Grains groups near the
base of the Modified Food Pyramid, will form the basis and the bulk of
a healthy diet and healthier, longer life.
Overweight people should
avoid over-eating foods from the Dairy, Meat & Sweets groups. While the
Dairy and Meat groups do contain nutrients vital to good health, these
nutrients are also available from carefully and mindfully selected sources
in the Whole Grain, Fruit and Vegetable groups. Too many servings from
the Dairy, Meat and Sweets groups lead to obesity and related health problems
(most notably heart disease, stroke and cancer) because most of the choices
in these groups contain high levels of fat and cholesterol. It is not so
much an issue of selecting "good" foods and avoiding "bad" foods as it
is an awareness that too much food...too much of a good thing...IS bad. |
