Posts Tagged Weight Loss
Portion Sizes in Restaurants Quadruple Since 1950s
Posted by EndlessMemories in Aspartame / Acesulfame Potassium, Big Food & Beverage Giants, Health, News on July 7, 2012
via: NaturalSociety
by: Mike Barrett
July 7, 2012
It seems that while obesity rates have risen over the decades, so have portion sizes – not a particularly surprising connection. In fact, an incredibly alarming infographic helps to show that not only have meal sizes increased in size over the decades, but restaurant portion sizes have quadrupled since the 1950′s.
Portion Sizes Grow 4 Times Bigger Since 1950′s
Could this be the reason for the ballooning obesity epidemic? The infographic created by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention shows that hamburgers and french fry meals have tripled in size over the decades, while a cup of fountain soda is a whopping 6 times larger today than it used to be. A 2.4oz portion of french fries has grown to 6.7oz; hamburgers from 3.9oz to 12oz; and soda from 7oz to 42oz.
What may be even worse is that accompanied by this massive increase in portion sizes is the heavy use of harmful and toxic ingredients. While the ingredients used in food used to be minimal, you can find a plethora of toxic substances in the majority of food today, including MSG, aspartame, high-fructose corn syrup, artificial coloring, neotame, caramel coloring, and much more. McDonald’s chicken McNuggets, which would be expected to have nearly 0 ingredients, contains autolyzed yeast extract, dimethylpolysiloxane, sodium phosphate, to name a few ingredients. Even something as simple as ‘strawberry flavor‘ consists of nearly 50 different chemicals. These ingredients along with many more can be found throughout the mainstream food supply.
Honing in on the specific increase in portion sizes along with the average increase in weight, there has been a:
- 28 pound increase in average weight of a man since 1960s
- 24.5 pound increase in average weight of a woman since the 1960s
- 4.56 increase in size of restaurant portion compared to the 1950s
- 1,233 percent increase in chocolate bar size since early 1900s
- 223 percent increase in hamburger size since 1950s
- 500 percent increase in fountain soda size since 1950s
Given the continuous downfall of the average American diet over the decades, it is no surprise to see obesity rates (and subsequently every other illness and disease) skyrocket in recent years. Unfortunately, Americans have some of the worst diets in the world, and everyone knows it! With portion sizes increasing, toxic ingredients making their way into the food supply, and Americans continuing to consume this food, it is estimated that 50% of the population will be obese by 2030, lurking around the 60% nation-wide obesity rates in 2010.
Are Americans consuming too many calories? Unfortunately, yes. What’s more, the massive increase isn’t only leading individuals to experience health problems, but work productivity suffers as well. Obese individuals take more sick days and are less productive than health-weight individuals, with the most obese people taking 5-9 more sick days a year. Not only are hospitals, buses, and airplanes making adjustments to accommodate for large individuals, but employers are also paying the price as well. In many cases this loss is in the form of thousands of 10′s of thousands of dollars each year. Actually, the cost of obesity in this regard is thought to be nearly $73.1 billion annually.
The good news is that with a little calorie management, exercise, and organic living, obesity rates can easily begin to spiral downward.
Additional Sources:
Believing These Persistent Fitness Myths Can Sabotage Your Success
Posted by EndlessMemories in Health, News on July 6, 2012
via: Mercola
By: Dr. Mercola
July 6, 2012
There is no shortage of misinformation when it comes to diet and exercise. The fitness industry is a multi-billion dollar business based on selling you one piece of equipment or another, one supplement or another, constantly bombarding you with images of “the perfect body” if you will only do this or that.
Unfortunately, marketing perpetuates myths, and these myths are further perpetuated by word of mouth. Some of these myths will hold you back from achieving your fitness goals—or worse yet, damage to your body and your health.
- Are you under-exercising?
- Or maybe over-exercising?
- Are you on the right supplements?
Are you stuck with your progress toward your weight loss and fitness goals? Maybe you have unknowingly bought into some of the same exercise myths that I did over the years. It’s time to take a look at fact versus fiction, when it comes to diet and exercise. Let’s take a look at several of the more common exercise myths making the rounds today.
Myth #1: Long Cardio Workouts are the Key to Weight Loss
If you walk into any gym, you’ll likely observe like I do that the majority of people working out are using the cardio equipment, believing they’re getting an excellent workout. I really don’t blame them as I was caught up in the same misinformation for over 40 years. Only recently did I learn there are FAR better forms of exercise, especially if you’re 40 or above. There is a growing body of science showing that longer workouts are not better—which is great news if you are already trying to fit 25 hours of activity into every day.
Runners can rejoice—your days of spending long hours pounding the pavement each morning are finally over!
Science continues to confirm that shorter, higher-intensity burst workouts result in greater fat burning, greater development of lean body mass, and a variety of other benefits than the more time-consuming cardio routines of yesteryear.
The reason for this is that high-intensity burst exercises, like what I’ve incorporated into my Peak Fitness program, engage all the different muscle fibers in your body, including a certain group of muscle fibers that you cannot engage through conventional aerobic cardio. High-intensity burst exercises also boost your body’s natural production of human growth hormone (HGH), a hormone produced by your pituitary gland that is key for physical strength, health and longevity.
High-intensity burst exercises require only a 20-minute time investment two to three times per week for optimal benefits.
I’ve been doing high-intensity burst exercises since April 2010 and have shed over 17 pounds of fat and three inches off my waist, while gaining more than seven pounds of muscle, all while dramatically reducing the time I spend in the gym. My Peak Fitness program is a comprehensive exercise plan that also includes strength training, core exercises, and stretching. But please remember that 80% of those results were related to the foods I was choosing to ear. It is the combination of the right foods and exercise the produces the results.
FDA approves lorcaserin for weight loss; is wave of heart valve damage imminent?
Posted by EndlessMemories in FDA, Health, News on July 6, 2012
via: NaturalNews
Friday, July 06, 2012
By: Chris Martin
[NaturalNews] On June 27, 2012 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved lorcaserin hydrochloride, a weight-loss pill, for sale in the United States. A pharmaceutical drug allegedly designed to curb appetite signals to brain receptors in the hypothalamus that promote satiety. Rejected in 2010 for causing tumors in tested animals, lorcaserin hydrochloride also claims side-effects ranging from memory lapse to depression.
The FDA has approved lorcaserin hydrochloride without condition for adults with a body mass index (BMI) above 30 or above 27 BMI contingent upon having high blood pressure, type II diabetes or high cholesterol. The manufacturer of lorcaserin hydrochloride convened 8,000 patients for its study, including a focus on heart valve function. The FDA released a less than convincing statement that lorcaserin hydrochloride “does not appear” to activate the serotonin 2B receptor responsible for heart tissue.
The side-effects and potential for heart valve damage spurred the FDA to set the daily dose level at 10 milligrams twice per day. Neither the manufacturer nor the FDA tested lorcaserin hydrochloride in patients with serious heart disease, yet they only caution use among heart disease patients. The FDA-approved label restricts the use of the drug to 12 weeks if five percent weight loss is not achieved, no time restriction is imposed if the five percent weight loss is achieved. Consistent with the modus operandi of the FDA, the general public will ultimately be the clinical trial, as the FDA is requiring the manufacturer to conduct six post-market studies on the risk for heart attack and stroke.
The FDA has approved the so called “weight-loss” drug for a period of 13 years. The manufacturer in Switzerland will be collaborating with a New Jersey company for distribution. The mainstream media has signed on to promote the drug with unsupported statements such as, “many doctors have urged health regulators to give the green light to new weight-loss treatments,” and oxymoronic reassurances such as, “…but the agency [FDA] has set high standards for such medication after safety problems with previously popular weight-loss drugs.”
Craving food beyond the point of feeling full is the body craving nutrients. Vitamins activate enzymes that allow for appropriate digestion. Without the correct nutrient intake, the body cannot utilize food efficiently and this results in both anxiety and obesity. Two side-effects of lorcaserin hydrochloride are memory lapse and depression. Ironically, these side-effects may cause the patient to forget to take your daily dosage, forget to consume a full complement of daily nutrients or fall into a depression-induced eating binge. Daily consumption of a full complement of nutrients combined with consistent exercise is the most natural and effective way to lose weight.
Weight-loss pharmaceutical that caused tumors in animal studies approved for Lazy America
Posted by EndlessMemories in Big Pharma & Medical Mafia, FDA, Health, News on July 5, 2012
via: NaturalNews
Wednesday, July 04, 2012
By: J. D. Heyes
[NaturalNews] Perhaps the only thing worse than a population not motivated to cut the size of its collective waistline is approving a “weight-loss” medication that may cause cancer.
A sick joke, right? Wrong.
For the first time in 13 years (thank Big Pharma and Big Lawsuits), the U.S. government has approved a weight-loss medication. The Food and Drug Administration has given the go-ahead to Arena Pharmaceutical, of Zofingen, Switzerland, to manufacture Belviq, a drug which, according to reports, can be utilized by overweight or obese adults with at least one of those conditions.
In clinical trials, the BBC reported, the drug achieved only “modest” results, helping folks lose an average of about five percent of body weight. To put that in perspective, someone who weighed 225 pounds (but maybe should only weigh about 170) only lost about 11 pounds.
But here’s the rub: Not only does the drug appear to only minimally affect obesity, it’s potentially deadly as well. It was rejected by the FDA in 2010 because officials were concerned about tumors that had developed in animals tested with the drug.
However, somehow after the San Diego-based Big Pharma resubmitted its application with more information, the FDA suddenly found “little risk of tumors in humans using the drug,” the BBC reported. Now, the medication is expected to launch in 2013.
What the drug does – and doesn’t – do
According to published information regarding Belviq, the drug ostensibly works by blocking appetite signals in the brain, and it’s supposed to make patients feel like they’re fuller on less food. It’s recommended for obese patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater (“normal” BMIs change with age and differ by sex, but generally BMI for men should be 20-26 and women 19-25, for comparison’s sake).
The drug can also be prescribed to people with a BMI of 27 or more if they’ve got another medical condition such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or elevated (bad) cholesterol. It is not recommended for women who are nursing.
While the approval process may be a little dicey, there is a clear market for the pill (though we’ll always recommend diet and exercise at NaturalNews as the best way to fight your own personal battle of the bulge). More than one-third of the U.S. population is obese, and that has led to a resultant dramatic rise in the occurrence of other medical conditions, as well as a huge spike in healthcare costs.
“Obesity threatens the overall well being of patients and is a major public health concern,” Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a statement. “The approval of this drug, used responsibly in combination with a healthy diet and lifestyle, provides a treatment option for Americans who are obese or are overweight and have at least one weight-related comorbid condition.”
The tumor risk seems to be all but forgotten by the FDA.
Short leash for Arena
The last time a major diet drug was on the market – the so-called Fen-Phen combo of fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine – was pulled in 1997 after it was linked to heart valve damage.
“When used at the approved dose of 10 milligrams twice a day, Belviq does not appear to” cause the same kind of damage, the FDA said.
To its credit, the agency is putting Belviq – and its manufacturer – on a short leash.
Arena “will be required to conduct six post-marketing studies, including a long-term cardiovascular outcomes trial to assess the effect of Belviq on the risk for major adverse cardiac events such as heart attack and stroke,” the agency said.
But honestly, it’s almost possible to lose five percent of body weight just getting off the couch regularly and walking through the average house. While that’s an exaggeration, just think of what walking three-to-four times a week, for 30 minutes at a time, would do for you.
We’re betting much better than five percent. And you’d be drug-free.
Sources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18620860
Evidence shows diet soda is not a healthy weight loss product
Posted by EndlessMemories in Health, News on February 27, 2012
Natural News
Sunday, February 26, 2012
By: Celeste M. Smucker, MPH, PhD
[NaturalNews] Artificially sweetened drinks are often promoted as healthy alternatives for weight loss and diabetes because they are low in calories and don’t contain sugar. However, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that these diet sodas are harmful to human health. According to Sharon Fowler, MPH, an authority on this subject, “Diet soda is not a health food. In fact, it’s not a food at all, it’s simply a slurry of chemicals, a number of which may have deleterious effects on the body.” Most recently diet sodas have been tied to increased risk of stroke and heart attack, and while many people drink them as an aid to weight reduction, research suggests if you drink diet soda, weight gain may be the result instead.
Weight gain
In one study linking diet beverages to weight gain, Hazuda, et. al. at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, recorded changes in waist circumferences in 474 elderly participants in a 10-year study. As part of the study they controlled for diabetes, physical activity, neighborhood, age, sex and ethnicity. Findings showed that increases in waist sizes were 70 percent greater among those who drank diet soft drinks compared with those who did not. In addition, waist size increases were as much as 500 percent greater amongst those that drank two or more diet sodas a day.
In other research, Sharon Fowler and colleagues studied eight years of data based on individuals between 25 and 64. Of the study participants who were of normal weight in the beginning, a third were overweight or obese eight years later. In evaluating the correlation between obesity and diet drinks researchers found that every bottle of diet soda participants drank in a day raised their obesity risk by 41 percent.
Diabetes
Aspartame, a common sweetener in diet beverages, has also been linked to diabetes. In an animal study conducted at UT San Antonio, researchers fed corn oil-enriched feed to one group of mice and the same feed plus aspartame to another group. Three months later the aspartame group had elevated glucose levels but insulin levels that were equal to or less than those of the control group, suggesting that aspartame may be part of the connection between diet soda consumption and diabetes.
Corrupted Signals
What is the reason for the diet soda weight gain connection? One theory is that our bodies rely on a signaling system based on the quality of the foods we eat. In the case of diet soda, the body experiences a sweet taste and expects calories; but when they aren’t forthcoming starts to crave food, which leads to overeating. Psychologists at Purdue University tested this idea by comparing two groups of rats, one which was fed yogurt with sugar and one which was fed yogurt with saccharine. The saccharine rats ate significantly more calories, gained more weight and put on more body fat than the control group.
Sweet Cravings
Still another possibility is that eating sweets dulls our taste buds causing us to eat more sugary foods in compensation. Some 2011 research in the UK seems to support this idea. The scientists found that consumption of two cans of soda a day for a month resulted in a noticeable dulling of taste buds and increased cravings for high calorie foods. Since artificial sweeteners (which were not part of this particular study) are 200 to 300 times sweeter than sugar, it is at least possible that they may have a similar impact on our taste buds.
Top 5 best exercises to lose belly fat
Posted by EndlessMemories in Health, News on February 27, 2012
NaturalNews
Sunday, February 26, 2012
By: Aurora Geib
[NaturalNews] Who doesn’t want flat abs? People desperate to lose weight will willingly starve themselves, take expensive supplements or do the latest fad diet that promises to give them that flawless figure in 30 days. Thankfully, belly fat is metabolically active and easier to lose. However, if proper nutrition is not observed and the resort is made to low calorie diets, weight loss may not happen within the desired time frame. Hunger and calorie deprivation will eventually kick in and dieters confronted with that favorite food they have been avoiding will have the tendency to binge at the first opportunity. The likelihood of gaining more weight than they originally lost is not far-fetched.
According to Christine Rosenbloom, a nutrition professor at Georgia State University, eating a calorie-controlled diet and 60 minutes of daily moderate exercise activity will result to weight loss and can even help with the desired weight maintenance. In fact, according to Professor Michael Jensen of the Mayo Clinic, intense aerobic exercise will result to being leaner around the abdomen.
It is important to remember that keeping the body’s metabolism up and running so that the body continuously burns calories prevents it from going into the fat-storing mode that causes unnecessary weight gain.
Why exercise is necessary
Most people involved in weight loss believe that it’s all about the calories. If you burn calories more than you take in, you lose weight. If you take in more calories than you can burn, the body gains fat. While this piece of logic may make sense, it is only partly true. What burns calories nonstop is actually the lean muscle mass underneath body fat that allows more intake of calories without weight gain.
The body actually adapts to the changes it undergoes. Losing weight without exercising increases the risk of losing lean body mass, slowing the metabolism and putting the body into fat-storing mode. People who have lost body fat and muscle mass may notice that they don’t have the muscle mass they once had. Worse yet, once they overeat even a little bit, they start filling up on body fat once again.
Building up muscle mass
An important thing to remember when undergoing a weight loss program is to understand what needs to be done. Realistic and achievable goals can help in building the confidence needed to make the necessary leap for the achievement of a desired weight.
Researchers at the Biomechanics Lab at San Diego State University took a look at some popular abdominal exercises and ranked them. Results of the study revealed that exercises that require constant abdominal stabilization and body rotation resulted in the most muscle activity in the abdomen.
Below are the top five belly exercises as ranked by the study:
1. The Bicycle Exercise– best for targeting the six pack muscles and the obliques. To do this exercise, get into a supine position with hands at the back of your head. Bring knees to the chest while lifting shoulders off the floor. Slowly bring your right elbow towards your left knee as you straighten your right leg. Switch sides and continue in a pedaling motion. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.
2. The Captain’s Chair Leg Raise– This exercise requires a captain’s chair, a rack with padded arms allowing for the legs to hang free that is commonly found in gyms or health clubs. To do this exercise, stand on the chair and grip hand holds. Press back against the pad then raise knees to the chest to contract the abs then lower them back down. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.
3. Exercise Ball Crunch– For this exercise, an exercise ball is necessary. In this routine, the abdomen does more exerting but will still need the entire body to stabilize it throughout the routine. To do this exercise, lie on the ball with your lower back fully supported. Place hands behind the head. To lift the torso off the ball, contract the abs to pull the bottom of the rib cage towards the hips. Keep ball stable as you curl up, then lower back down to stretch the abs. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.
4.Vertical Leg Crunch– Performing this exercise is similar to doing a leg crunch except that the legs are straight up, forcing the abs to work and adding intensity to the routine. To do this, lie on the floor with the legs straight up, knees crossed, and place the hands beneath the head for support. Contract abs lifting the shoulders off the floor and keep legs in a fixed position to crunch. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.
5. Long Arm Crunch– This is a variant of the traditional floor crunch where the arms are held straight behind you, adding a lever to the move and making for a challenging exercise. To do this, lie on the floor or a mat then extend arms straight behind, keeping them clasped and next to the ears. Slowly contract abs and lift shoulders off the floor carefully to keep the arms straight. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.
The best strategy to weight loss is to observe a healthy diet coupled with exercise of at least an hour a day. Although there is no sure fire way to deal with belly fat, there are a number of activities from which to choose and enjoy. As long as you’re having fun, you can lose weight without realizing it. It is important to look for an exercise you enjoy. If the suggested exercises above do not suit your taste, taking a hike, swimming or biking are just as effective in burning fat and toning muscles.
Breakaway Consciousness 