Downsize Not Supersize :: Weight Loss

Downsize Not Supersize
by author Rand Smith, Cl.H

Living in a land of plenty comes with a price that we’re only now discovering. With one out of three Canadians now overweight, Canada appears to have one of the worst obesity problems in the industrialized world.

Statistics prove that it’s time to get active: Obesity among young people has nearly doubled since 1980, and is linked with dramatic increases in conditions such as asthma and type 2 diabetes in children. It’s second only to smoking as a cause of preventable death, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. But if current trends continue, it may soon become the leading cause, declared United States Surgeon General David Satcher in a report issued last December.

Obesity is linked to arthritis, osteoarthritis, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, respiratory problems and gallbladder disease. It is even implicated as a promoter of cancer of the prostate and colon in men and of the breasts, endometrium, ovaries and gallbladder in women.

In Canada alone, treating this formidable array of obesity-related medical problems, experts say, costs somewhere in the region of $15 billion a year.

Tracing The Cause

According to Dr. James Hill of the University of Colorado, "Contemporary obesity is a natural and appropriate response to the environment in which we live."

Imagine your grandparents as children. No television, no fast food, no drive-thrus. They walked to school and were physically active with daily chores. Now look at how kids live today–automated to the extreme. Bussed or driven to school. An average of 25 hours per week watching television. Playing video games. Not enough exercise.

Food manufacturers have also learned to make tasty, reasonably priced products as rich in calories as they are low in nutritional value–and can we have that super-sized, please? The media continually bombard us with ads that praise the "virtues" of food products that we don’t need or–worse–are dangerous to our health.

Not surprisingly, as Dr. Mark Tremblay of the University of Saskatchewan suggests, "The predictable outcome of these changes in an incredibly short period of time is an increase in the prevalence of obesity."

Reversing The Trend

A nutritious diet, of paramount importance to good health, is the key to stemming obesity. This means much less junk food (or none), fried food, pop and sweets. Instead, choose a varied diet rich in greens and other vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains and healthful fats (see box). In addition to losing weight, the high levels of antioxidants in a junk-free diet will help prevent free radical damage, which normally causes your immune system to decline with age.

Proper exercise goes hand-in-hand with good nutrition. Go for a brisk walk or bike ride daily for a minimum of 30 minutes, and take your daughter or son with you. You may be administering the best medicine available for obesity. It is also a good idea to consult with a health-care professional to determine whether there’s a medical reason for your weight gain.
Tend To Your Liver

Your liver performs many digestive and energy-balancing feats. It stores glycogen (a ready source of energy), detoxifies your blood and manufactures bile to process, filter and digest the fats you eat. But if your liver is congested with excess toxins and fats, it can’t perform its vital functions efficiently. After years of filtering out fats and toxins from fast food and second-hand smoke, your liver may become exhausted and diseased.

Dandelion is the liver remedy par excellence, and it has the side benefit of being a weight-loss aid. Dandelion will improve liver function by enhancing the flow of bile. It also acts as a diuretic and mild laxative, is a rich source of nutrients that are easily assimilated, and aids the body during the cleansing process.

Weight-Loss Supplements

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A herbalist with 10 years of experience, Rand Smith is a writer, lecturer, local television and radio guest, and contributor to several health magazines. He currently works at Spectrum Health Centre, an integratedpractice in Winnipeg, MB.

Source: alive #240, October 2002

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