Fighting Obesity - My Pyramid Dietary Guidelines
Topic: Weight Management
United States Agricultural Department has released dietary guidelines for all Americans to choose a nutrition program based on age, physical activity etc. My Pyramid is an attempt at providing a nutrition and physical activity plan to suit different individual requirements that would help fight overweight and obesity challenge faced by U.S.

My Pyramid is also recognition of the fact that ?eat less? suggestions do not have an impact on the weight management. The food pyramid suggested by the agricultural departments is all about moderation and balancing the diets while taking personal responsibility for ones own health.

The dietary guidelines are available to the public at MyPyramid.gov. It has detailed guidelines on benefits of physical activities, calories burned with different types of physical activities, tips for increasing physical activities and more interestingly an interactive My Pyramid Tracker for an in-depth assessment of your diet quality and physical activity status.
The tool calculates the food calories/energy balance through inputting your age, sex and physical activities. The tracker is available at MypyramidTracker

The My pyramid Dietary Guidelines makes for a very interesting reading for all who are interested in choosing a healthy lifestyle with a balance of nutrition and exercise.

Srinivasan
Global Health Network

Spirulina A Wonder Food Supplement
Topic: Herbal Health
I have been writing about herbal and nutritional supplements for quite some time. But what I read in the pages of Mike Adams Newstarget.com is really awesome and and informative. You can also read a Free eBook on Spirulina and Chlorella, which is an eye opener. The best part is Mike has no financial or affiliate stakes in promoting these two products and that is perhaps why it has a ring of sincerity and conviction.

Thanks mike for putting out such a wonderful site with so much information for health lovers like me. I absolutely recommend is as a must read.

Srinivasan
Global Health Network

Obesity Control Is a Social Issue
Much has been written about obesity and globesity. Obesity is perhaps the biggest drain on any nations economic resources with a mind-boggling costs to which researchers are yet to put a final figure. But the estimates run into trillions of dollars across the world.

Governments across the world is mired in deep bureaucratic mechanisms to do anything more than put out food guidelines. Even this does not reach the public.

The issue needs to be tackled massively by the society that has spawned the problem in the first place.

So what are the social alternatives?

Dissemination of Information

This perhaps could be biggest tool to use against the fight for obesity control. Every institution from schools and collages to corporate have to disseminate, nay flood their audience with information on obesity and weight control, its evils, cost to individuals and food guidelines to control obesity. The stakes now are too high for everyone for the issue to be left to government alone to tackle.

Social Boycott of Fast food joints

A massive campaign especially aimed at the youth on the perils of a fast food culture and how it is eating into the very vitals of a healthy society. The campaign may include ‘No Fast Food’ days, creation of nutritional communities and clubs that actively protest the opening of new fast food joints in the local community. Nutritional communities may bring pressure on the fast food companies to put out nutritional information on the food they serve.

Promote Physical Activities

Every one especially children must be educated on the benefits of increased physical activities. The computer and television has been a major inhibitor of good health among children and adults alike. The community should raise funds to promote physical culture events and create awareness through public interest advertising.

Lobby the Government

There should be an effective lobbying to legislate laws against fast food and junk food companies, carbonated drinks and beverages that promote high calorie junk full of toxic chemicals disguised as fruit juices.

Promote Health Foods and Herbal Nutrition

Traditionally herbal food supplements have less cause to create trouble. Increase awareness about Herbal food items and herbal nutritional supplements that promote physical wellness, build immunity and helps in reducing body fat. Awareness of the health effects and the bio friendly nature of herbal food supplements would definitely help in combating the problem largely.

Its time for the society to act to control the menace of obesity, take responsibility so that our future generations may lead a better and more qualitative life and enjoy the fruits of all the modern scientific developments.

Srinivasan
Global Health Network

U.S. Health and Fitness Updates
Mood:  bright
Topic: Weight Management
Parents have been a major influence on their children. Who ever said “it is important that the children don’t fall into bad company but how can we prevent them from mixing with their parents?

Jokes apart a recent research has shown that parents especially mothers do influence the eating habits of their daughters.

Mothers influence daughters in their diets says a study in the Journal of American Dietetic Association as reported by Reuters Health. When mothers ate more fruits and vegetables daughters too followed suit. Get the entire story at Reuter Health

United States Department of Health & Human Services has an excellent website with the small steps you can take to lead a healthy lifestyle. Don’t forget to download the PDF ‘Informational Guide for Parents Regarding Healthy Lifestyle for the Whole Family’ at
Small Steps

Srinivasan
Global Health network

Preventing Overweight and Obesity ? Are You Responsible Enough?
Topic: Weight Management
Obesity is now assuming epidemic proportions. Worldwide there are over 1 billion overweight people and out of that more than 300 million in the obese category. With the U.S. weight loss market alone grossing over $46 Billion, and projections of 1 trillion by 2010, obesity, diet control and weight control nutrition is assuming increasing concern among health planners especially the WHO.

The fully industrialized countries account for about 80 % of the overweight with rest falling in developing countries. U.S alone accounts for whopping 150 million people in the overweight category.

Obesity and overweight puts one under the risk of various disease and disorders such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart related problems, certain types of cancer such as breast cancer, cancer of the colon and kidney etc apart from numerous problems related to respiratory and muscular systems.

Apart from these diseases, the social and financial cost of overweight and obesity is very high, affecting social, mental and financial health of this huge proportion of the world population. Loss of productivity and the attendant cost to society, low self esteem, lower quality of life adds up to immense financial burden on the individual and the governments.

There is a tremendous amount of action by various governments worldwide, NGO’s and institutions like WHO in creating the right policy framework, dispense information to increase awareness and creating the right environments to combat this epidemic.

However the responsibility of fighting this menace rests with the individual as the governments can only do so much.

So what can you do to fight overweight and obesity?

1. Prevention is the Key. If you are not overweight start right now to make changes in dietary habits and lifestyle to prevent increase in your weight.

2. Monitor your weight on a weekly basis. Any increase over 2 Kg’s in the permissible height/weight ratio set the alarm bells ringing.

3. Avoid high energy foods, packed foods, overcooked foods like pizzas and burgers which are high in calories but low in nutrients to prevent accumulation of fat.

4. Eat natural. Increase your intake of green and leafy vegetables and fruits which are loaded with nutrients. A salad bowl is much better than a burger if you are in a hurry and have no time for a proper meal.

5. Change in lifestyle. High stress lifestyles require more energy dense food which are high in fat. A rushed and stressed lifestyle may not be conducive to your future physical and financial health. Your high stress job may be high paying but extracting a huge future financial price and may not be worth it after all. A Balance in work and social life is a must to combat stress related gorging.

6. Designing and building in the required physical activities and exercises into your daily regime to improve metabolism and burn fat. A 40 minutes walk 5 days a week, a 3-4 day schedule in the gym, climbing a couple of floors rather than taking the escalator, planning an outdoor schedule during the weekends, cutting down on the television and taking up a hobby involving physical activities are all ways which will surprisingly keep off those pounds of flab and make you fitter. Weight control is better than weight loss which is a more painful process.

7. Keep height/weight charts, calorie count charts of food items, daily nutritional charts on your desk or somewhere you can see frequently to remind you constantly of your health objectives.

8. Reading regularly about obesity, diet control, weight management, nutrition, health and fitness, holistic living practices could be of great help. Knowledge is the fuel which sets in motion the prevention.

Finally it is important to remember that overweight and obesity are not mere physical or health problems but a major financial issue. Your future wealth and happiness depends on your levels of productivity in an increasingly competitive world. Fitness and good health is the key to financial freedom in term of your earning potential and your savings against all those huge medical bills.

Srinivasan
Global Health Network