Obesity and fast foods – there’s little doubt about the link. Obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United states. And it’s an epidemic that has grown side by side, step by step with the the fast food industry.

Eric Schlosser in his brilliant and shocking book, Fast Food Nation, describes the US as “an empire of fat,” and he lays the blame for this clearly and convincingly at the door of the fast food industry.

Obesity Fast Food Data

Twice as many American adults are obese today as in the 1960s. More than half of all adults and a quarter of all children are now obese. Over this same period, fast food has become cheaper and easier to buy. Further evidence for the link between obesity and fast food can be found outside the US. Since the early 1980s, American-style fast food culture has spread like wildfire around the world… And obesity has followed, accompanied by its many unwelcome side effects: heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and other ills.

As people in countries like Japan and China have abandoned traditional healthy diets in favour of fast food, the rates of obesity and associated diseases have soared.

In countries which have resisted the spread of fast food culture, like France, Italy and Spain, obesity is far less of a problem. The good news is that there is now more awareness about the ill effects of fast food than ever before, thanks in part to books like Fast Food Nation and documentary movies like Morgan Spurlock’s popular and punchy Super Size Me.

There also seems to be a genuine change in people’s attituded to to food and how it is produced. As Schlosser says modestly of his book: “its success should not be attributed to my literary style, my storytelling ability, or the novelty of my arguments.

“Had the same book been published a decade ago, with the same words in the same order, it probably wouldn’t have attracted much attention. Not just in the United States, but throughout western Europe,people are beginning to question the massive, homogenizing systems that produce, distribute, and market their food. The unexpected popularity of Fast Food Nation, I believe, has a simple yet profound explanation. The times are changing.”

What can we do about fast food and obesity?

So what can we do to as consumers to tackle the problem of obesity and fast foods?

First, we can stop supporting the traditional, unhealthy fast food chains. Let’s rather buy from outlets that sell healthy alternatives. More and more of these restaurants and delis are opening. There should be at least one near you. Support it!

Another thing we can do is to lobby our congressperson (or MP or some other political representative if we’re in a country outside the US) to ban all advertisements that promote foods high in fat and sugar to children.

As Schlosser points out, prevention is far better than cure. “A ban on advertising unhealthy foods to children would discourage eating habits that are not only hard to break, but potentially life-threatening.”

Such a ban may sound far-fetched, until you remember that 35 years ago a ban on cigarette advertising sounded equally unlikely. Five years later Congress banned cigarette ads from television and radio. And those ads were directed at adults, not children.

Smoking has declined ever since.

It’s time we did something similar with obesity and fast food

Apple cider vinegar is fermented apple juice.  It has been used as a home remedy for different ailments since the times of Ancient Egypt.  Hippocrates the Greek physician prescribed apple cider vinegar to his patients for various health complaints.  Apple cider vinegar was employed as an antibiotic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory to fight infections.

During the times of the black plague in the Middle Ages a group of four thieves successfully protected themselves from the plague victims by drinking a decoction. This drink was made with apple cider vinegar.  The same mixture was later appropriately called the Four Thieves Vinegar.

In Ayurvedic apple cider vinegar is often used with gotu kola to revitalize skin.  Due to its antiseptic properties it is effective for treating acne.  Diluted apple cider vinegar can be used topically on bites, dry itchy skin, cuts, burns and calluses.

Apple cider vinegar is good for lowering cholesterol and blood pressure.  It is also an effective treatment for leg cramps, joint pains, osteoporosis and arthritis.  Apple cider vinegar is a digestive aid and remedy for digestive disorders such as heartburn and acid reflux.  It is a powerful weapon against infections, sinus problems, sore throat, nasal and chest congestion.

Apple cider vinegar is best known for weight control and weight loss.  It regulates and speeds up metabolism and is a powerful weapon in the fight against obesity.  Generally it is taken before meals and best result is obtained with sensible eating and exercises.  It is also important to drink plenty of water to flush out the impurities.  Many people have reported success in achieving and maintaining their weights with the help of apple cider vinegar.

You can purchase apple cider vinegar in pills, capsules and liquid form.  The standard dosage for pill is 285 to 300 mg twice daily.  It is safe and non toxic with minimal side effects.  Because of the acid content apple cider vinegar may cause stomach upset.  It must not to be used in conjunction with drugs for high blood pressure.

For dandruff treatment mixes cup of water with the same amount of apple cider vinegar. It can also be used with honey to aid digestion. Usually mix 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons of honey with 8 oz of water either warm or cold.

Today apple cider vinegar is sold by health food companies worldwide for a range of ailments.  It is an effective, natural and inexpensive remedy.  You can use it for cats, dogs and horses too.  We can no longer ignore the health benefits of apple cider vinegar.  It is a handy item that we should keep at home.

In the quest for weight loss, the diet industry puts a lot of attention on what we eat but focusing on why we eat may be more important.

After losing over 70 lbs. permanently and becoming a weight loss coach for others, I’ve found most people have a pretty good idea of what they should eat. We have no problem categorizing foods into healthy and non-healthy lists. But ask someone why they eat and the usual response is “hunger.” Unraveling the deeper reasons beneath the pre-emptive response of “hunger” may take a little detective work!

Here are a few things that might be lurking beneath the surface of hunger. Keep in mind that the categories can overlap and coexist!

Learned Behavior

Some people learn behaviors at an early age and never question them. A good example is milk and cookies at bedtime or a larger-than-usual meal on Sunday nights. We rarely think about Learned Behaviors, we simply do them unconsciously. However, the calories still count!

Availability of Food

Imagine you ate a satisfying breakfast. You don’t feel hungry at all. Then, someone brings donuts to work. Imagine further that you don’t even like the type of donuts that appeared! How many times would you eat them anyway? Nine out of 10 times? Availability of Food can be a real quagmire along the weight loss route, especially in the United States where food is abundant and relatively inexpensive.

Other examples of Availability of Food are all-you-can-eat buffets and social occasions.

Cravings

Cravings for food are chemical. For example, when the brain needs serotonin, the brain causes carbohydrate cravings. When blood sugar levels are low, we may crave sugary or sweet foods. When we experience cravings, eating what we crave will satisfy the body for a very short time, then the craving will return full force. Protein is actually a better choice when intense desire occurs because it will break the craving cycle.

Emotional Eating

Food can dilute, soften or dull emotions we term “unpleasant” like anger, resentment, frustration, guilt and hatred. Even emotions we label “desirable” can be so intense, food may be used to dull the feeling back into a manageable or tolerable level. Prime emotions for this type of eating are joy, happiness, desire, elation and excitement.

At other times, we may eat to substitute for a lack of feeling. A good example of this is boredom. Eating when you are bored can bring on feelings of self-hatred, humiliation, and shame, but the bored, empty feeling is gone!

Habits

A habit is a stable behavior formed through repetition over time. Many people ask how this is different than Learned Behavior. The difference is that Learned Behaviors are learned from other people, usually family, and have a long history. We are solely responsible for forming Habits. The good news is that good habits are as easily formed as bad habits.

Social Eating

It is rare to socialize in any way today in America without the involvement of food. Watching a football game at a neighbor’s house, meeting friends you haven’t seen for a while: these things don’t need the involvement of food but it usually becomes an integral part of any social plan. This often intersects with Availability of Food. It might be wise to ask yourself if you are really hungry or just eating because it seems the acceptable and expected thing to do.

Environmental Eating

Does a visit to the ball park always mean hot dogs? Does a movie have to include 2000 calories of popcorn? Certain environments trigger eating that is unhealthy. Sometimes it can be any environment that is not home. For instance, do you always eat more than necessary when dining in a restaurant?

Hunger

Hunger, true hunger, is another reason to eat. And, ideally, it’s the only reason. Humans were designed to eat to fuel their bodies. Fuel to survive. Fuel for the massive amounts of maintenance, healing and growth our bodies accomplish every day.

The first step in straightening out a negative eating style is to be able to recognize the why as it’s happening.

It may take a bit of work to get to the point where true hunger can be recognized but we’d all be thinner and healthier if we ate only when we were hungry.

There are things we can do daily to help us lose body fat or maintain our weight naturally. These actions and activities which will help us gradually burn fat may seem like common sense to many of us, but do we actually do them??… no! If not, here are reminders on what you can do lose fat quickly..
Just do these things daily and you will be amazed how your fat will just melt away in no time. Make the methods below your daily habit and you will be lean and trim forever.

1) Avoid All Sugary Drinks

Drink plenty of plain water instead. Do you know that that cube of sugar and milk in your coffee or tea or that can of soda you you have just drank contains a whopping 80 to 150 calories? You will lose 1-2 pounds a month by just abstaining from sugary drinks if you are a regular consumer of such beverages.

2) Eat More Regularly

By eating smaller meals more often, you are buring fat throughout the day because your digestive system is working all day long. It takes energy to keep digesting food and these energy comes from your fat store. There are many more reasons why eating regularly will help you lose weight. So eat 5-6 small meals a day.

3)Be Active

Because if you are not active and not doing anything, you may just reach out for food. Just like you naturally head for the fridge during a TV commercial or having that hotdog or popcorn with a can of soda with you whenever you are in the movies. Further more, when you are active and moving all the time, you are burning fat in the process.

4)Get Rid Of Junk Food From Your Fridge

So that you won’t reach out to these sin food when you are bored or when you are watching TV.

5)Eat Slowly

During a meal, our brain takes about 20 minutes to signal that we are full. So if you eat too fast, you would have stuffed in a lot of food before your brain can signal to you that your stomach is full.

6)No Brainer Activities To Burn Fat

Walk briskly. It will elevate your heart rate and burn more fats. Walk instead of taking transportation to nearby destinations. Take the stairs and avoid the lifts and escalators. But do remember to walk briskly.

7) Workout With Weights

Workout with weights 3 times a week if you want to know how to scuplt your body and own an attractive and desirable body shape, Don’t let your body shape be the butt of jokes ever again.

If you adopt all these healthy lifestyle habits fitness tips into your daily life, you could be dropping as much as 10-15 pounds p times a er year. Now what if you are to include more exercises into your activities? Whoever said that it is difficult to lose weight and keep the fats off permanently apparently does not know what he is talking about.

So if you want to know how to change your body and own an attractive and desirable body shape, Don’t let your body shape be the butt of jokes ever again.

Metabolic obesity isn’t a term most of us have heard of. Metabolic obese individuals are of normal weight. Their blood insulin and blood sugar levels, however, are much higher than would be expected. Metabolic obesity is probably best described as “obesity that is waiting to happen.” A recent clinical study at the University of Vermont offers a good example.

Doctors examined 71 women aged 21 to 35. Of the 71 women participating in the study, 13 were found to be “metabolically obese.”

The difference was not weight, although the metabolically obese women weighed slightly more (an average of 132 pounds) than the normal women (an average of 129 pounds). Neither was the difference body fat, although the metabolically obese women had a slightly higher percentage body fat, 32% compared to 27%.

The fundamental difference between the two groups of women was the ability of the body to clear sugar out of the bloodstream after a meal. The longer the body takes to return blood sugars to normal levels after eating, the worse the metabolic obesity.

Why is this important?

The body moves sugar into cells with the help of insulin. This vital hormone moves more than just sugars. It also helps cells store fat. In fact, insulin is 300 times more effective at storing fat than it is for storing sugars.

If cells resist the effects of insulin, the pancreas secretes more. Before the onset of diabetes, the extra insulin eventually gets the sugar out of the bloodstream. But the additional insulin results in storing even more fat.

The metabolic obesity that is caused by insulin resistance may be related to antioxidant deficiency.

certain foods are extremely rich in antioxidants. Dried prunes and raisins are among the most sources of antioxidants readily found in the market. Beans, blueberries, dried apricots, pomegranate juice, artichokes, Russet potatoes, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, ground cloves, cinnamon, and oregano are also high on the list.

The fact is, unfortunately, most of us don’t eat the antioxidant-rich foods our bodies need, and, frankly, we can eat them all the time, as any one who has ever feasted on prunes can attest. The most reliable remedy for antioxidant deficiency that leads to metabolic obesity is a simple, balanced, multivitamin supplement taken every day.

Over 340 published scientific studies confirm the role of dietary and vitamin supplement antioxidants in preventing insulin resistance and metabolic obesity. Beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, and red wine catechins all provide antioxidants that prevent insulin resistance. Alpha-lipoic acid is especially useful for offsetting the insulin resistance induced by excessive consumption of fructose, the simple sugar found in corn syrup and most soft drinks and baked goods in North America.

So what’s your best vitamin supplement?

As a general rule, it’s best to avoid overdoses of antioxidant vitamin supplements.Very high levels of antioxidants, such as 10,000 mg of vitamin C or 3,000 IU of vitamin E every day, can alter the way your body responds to vitamins. If you abruptly stop taking a megadose of antioxidant vitamin supplement, your body will act as if you were nutritionally deficient. It is never a good idea to take megadoses of antioxidant vitamin supplements over a period of weeks or months unless you are treating a specific health condition—other than metabolic obesity–that requires them.The best way to get your “vitamin insurance” is to take a multivitamin formula. Formulas balance individual ingredients. You won’t be getting your zinc without copper or your folic acid without vitamin B-6.

our metabolism is the rate at which your body burns calories and probably the easiest way to lose weight doing nothing! The faster you burn calories the more weight you can lose even if you eat the same amount, so it makes sense to do everything you can to boost your metabolic rate if you’re trying to lose a few pounds.You use about 60% of the calories you need each day just by being alive. That’s your basal (or resting) metabolism. About 30% of the calories are accounted for by how much you move (your activity metabolism). The remaining 10% are used up by the process of digesting food (your thermic metabolism).

By making some simple changes you can fire up all three types of metabolism and become leaner faster.

1. Eat little and often

Small and regular meals throughout the day will keep your metabolism high. If you eat the same amount of food in just one or two large meals as you do in five or six mini-meals and snacks you will burn fewer calories. This is because your metabolism slows down between meals. Never skip meals to save calories. Having a low-calorie snack will work much better and will also stop you falling ravenously on the nearest chocolate bar later in the day.

2. Eat breakfast

Your metabolism slows down overnight. When you have been through a period of more than eight hours without eating you need food to get your metabolism going again. So have breakfast as soon as you can after you wake up. If you’re not a breakfast person take something healthy with you when you leave the house and have it is soon as you can face it. It’s not great for your weight loss plans to have to boost your metabolism with a mid morning cookie or cake.

3. Eat enough

If you eat too few calories, your metabolic rate will automatically drop. This is a self preservation mechanism, which kicks in when your body thinks you are starving. The safest bet is to eat about 250 calories less than you need at the sedentary level and to take 250 – 500 calories of exercise each day to give a steady weight loss of between one and two pounds a week.

4. Eat Lean Protein

It takes more energy for the body to digest protein than carbohydrate or fat. Studies have shown that people who eat a high-protein diet burn more than twice as many calories in the hours following their meal as those eating a high carbohydrate diet. While the safety of high-protein diets can be disputed, it does make sense to include some lean protein as part of each meal.

5. Eat Fibre

Food with lots of fibre also gives your thermic metabolism a boost. High-fibre foods like beans, fruit, vegetables and whole grains simply take longer to digest and therefore help burn more calories.

6. Spice up your food

Spicy foods (especially chilli) raise the metabolism by as much as twenty-five per cent for a few hours after eating. So eat hot and spicy food a bit more regularly and see if this helps you. Just go easy on the refried beans and guacamole if you decide to go Mexican!

7. Drink Coffee

Caffeine speeds up your heart rate and the faster your heart rate the more calories you burn. Not great if you have heart problems or difficulty getting to sleep however!

8. Drink Green Tea

The phytochemicals in green tea are supposed to raise metabolism slightly by causing your brain and nervous system to run more quickly. Although not many sizable and conclusive studies have been done on this to date, drinking green tea rather than milky coffee or other calorie-laden beverages will definitely help you lose weight!

9. Get active

Aerobic exercise for more than thirty minutes not only burns calories but also keeps your metabolism high for several hours afterwards. The best time for exercise is in the morning as it will help kick start your metabolism for the day. If you can do 30 to 60 minutes of aerobic exercise almost every day your metabolism will soar. Interval training would help even more.

10. Walk it off

If you prefer to take light exercise, try going for a walk after lunch or dinner. This boosts the rise in metabolism you get after eating. No strenuous exercising on a full stomach though.

11. Build those muscles

Muscles burn calories even when you’re resting. For every pound of muscle you add, you burn about 50 extra calories a day without taking any more exercise. So it’s a great idea to include some resistance or weight training in your exercise regime. Twenty minutes three times a week is enough to make a big difference in your metabolic rate as well as the shape of your body.

12. Go hot or cold

Any extremes of temperature you experience will help raise your metabolism by up to 20 percent as the body attempts to cool you down or raise your temperature. Make sure it’s safe for you to go in the sauna or on the arctic expedition though before you try this one. You could have a go at keeping your home a few degrees cooler than is comfortable for sitting around in winter and restrict the air conditioning to the very hottest days in summer. In the winter it will help you get up and get moving and in summer encourage you to go to the pool to cool off!

13. Drink Iced Water

Another trick is to drink a glass of iced water a few times a day. You’ll raise your metabolism just by having to bring the water up to body temperature. Drinking water is required anyway, of course, to keep your bodily functions working smoothly (including your metabolism).

14. Watch the alcohol

On top of the empty calories that alcohol contains, it also has a dehydrating effect, which slows down your thermic metabolism. Alcohol tends to inhibit the process of metabolizing fat too, which can lower your basal metabolism. And there’s not much chance of you wanting to exercise after all that booze so it’ll have an effect on your activity metabolism too. Bad news all round!

15. Take up yoga

The chemical processes which comprise your metabolism are regulated by the endocrine system, especially the thyroid. Yoga has many postures which have a powerful twisting and compressing effect on the endocrine organs, strengthening and stimulating them and this can help to regulate and boost your metabolism.

If you boost your metabolism with these tips, you’ll be improving your general health as well as your capacity to burn calories. You’ll not only find that you lose weight more quickly but also that you will have more energy, greater strength and you’ll be able to get through everything you have to do in a day more easily.

This is well worth a read …

Are you wondering why you’re not losing weight? If you’re like me, you’ve tried every fad diet imaginable, and nothing seems to work – at least not long-term. I’ve personally tried Weight Watchers (that worked great until my schedule changed and I was no longer able to attend meetings), Atkins (not easy to follow for someone who travels a lot and loves to dine out), and crazy fad diets like the cabbage soup diet, the grapefruit diet, juice fasts, and countless others. I was hungry all the time, and I wasn’t able to sustain any substantial weight loss because there are three secrets that NONE of those diets
told me.

First, diets don’t work, PERIOD. Any plan that’s highly restrictive, structured or specialized is unrealistic for long-term maintenance. Plus, any diet that requires you to totally eliminate foods from your diet is a recipe for disaster. Personally, I don’t care for chocolate. However, when someone tells me I can’t or shouldn’t have chocolate, it’s amazing how I suddenly crave it! When someone takes away a choice, the average person wants that choice back – even if it didn’t mean much when the option was available in the first place. Additionally, most diets don’t work for everyone, and you won’t know if a diet works unless you try it. Trying many diets without seeing results can lead to “dieter’s frustration” which, in many cases, just packs on more pounds.

The second point that most diets fail to mention is that you must eat frequently to regulate your metabolism and burn fat. Extreme low-calorie and tiny “portion-control” diets put your body into starvation mode, which means your body clings to food because it doesn’t know when its next meal is coming. This explains how you can actually eat less food and consume less calories, and still not lose any weight. If your diet makes you feel hungry all the time, that’s definitely not a good sign. The best nutrition plans require that you eat five or six small meals per day, no more than four hours apart.

Finally, diets are lying to you when they say you must be “patient” and expect to lose only one to two pounds per week. For someone like me, who had fifty pounds to lose, this information was devastating. If you have a lot of weight to lose (50 pounds or more), it is not unhealthy to drop three to five pounds per week, particularly in the beginning. In my experience, the greatest motivator is early results. When you can see the fruit of your efforts, you are much more likely to press onward when the going gets tough. Early results can help you maintain focus and keep your determination alive. An excellent all-natural supplement such as NiteTrim can jump-start your results
from other weight-loss efforts. Supplements such as NiteTrim can also help you break through the dreaded “plateaus.”

Once I discovered these three secrets, I realized that the best way to get in shape and maintain a healthy body is through proper nutrition, regular exercise and appropriate supplementation. By far the best program I’ve found is a combination of Bill Phillips’ Body for LIFE and NiteTrim. Bill Phillips has truly made nutrition simple, effective, and easy to follow. Additionally, the Body for LIFE book provides step-by-step exercise and fitness guidance suitable for anyone, regardless of experience or current fitness level. NiteTrim is an all-natural supplement that effectively burns fat, and the company offers a 30-day free trial supply, as well as a money-back guarantee.

Resource Box:
Amy S. Grant, MBA
Want more information about the two recommended products?
A free sample of Nite Trim is available at www.NiteTrimDirect.com
and you can find out where to purchase Bill Phillips’ Body for LIFE
books at www.BodyForLife.com and www.EatingForLife.com

Just remember..

Your body is just a machine and weight loss or gain is determined by how much goes in compared to how much goes out!

No matter what weight loss scheme you use, or diet plan, or exercise plan … its all about in/out. If you put more in than you take out then you will gain weight… as simple as that.

Over weighted persons are at increased health risk than normal persons. They are more prone to chronic diseases like heart diseases, type-2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and few types of cancers.

Is fat necessary to our body?

Certain amount of body fat does the following functions:

1. Heat insulation.
2. Absorption of shock.
3. Storage of energy. Etc.

Ayurveda describes the functions of body fat as “Medaha sneha swedaudhrudatwam pushtim asthyancha”.

This means in normal conditions the body fat keeps the body moisturized, causes sweating, gives energy to body (by storing energy) and nourishes bones. (By protecting them from shock)

Distribution of fat

Women have more body fat than men. In women usually the fat accumulates around hips giving them a pear shape. In men it accumulates around belly giving them an apple shape. The obesity related problems start when fat accumulates around waist.

In ayurveda the distribution of fat is described as follows: “Medastu sarvabhutaanamudarenvasthi thishtathi | Ata evodare vriddhihi prayo medaswino bhavet ||”.

Fat gets deposited in and around belly in all living beings. It is also present in bone. Hence when a person becomes obese his stomach bulges out.

And also the characters of an obese person are described as “Medo mamsa ativriddhatvaachalasphigudarastanaha”.

Which means the hips, belly and breasts of an obese person sag and sagged parts flap as that person moves. An obese person will not be active.

Causes of Obesity

When a person consumes more calories than he burns then the excess calories get stored in the form of fat causing obesity.

1. Genetic factors – Obesity tends to run in families. If parents are fat then the offspring also show a tendency to accumulate fat. Even the diet and lifestyle habits which are practiced in family also contribute to obesity.

2. Environment – A person’s eating habits and the level of physical activities a person has also contribute for excess deposition of fat. When a person eats food containing more calories and has a sedentary work then the calories consumed are more than calories burnt. The excess amount calories are stored as fat.

3. Psychological disturbances – There is a tendency to over eat in response to negative emotions like boredom, sadness or anger. This leads to obesity.

4. Binge eating disorder.

5. Diseases and conditions like Hypothyroidism, Cushing’s syndrome, Depression, and certain neurological problems lead to overeating which in turn leads to accumulation of fat.

6. Medicines such as steroids and some antidepressants may cause weight gain.

Causes of obesity according to Ayurveda

The causes of obesity are very clearly explained in ayurveda. The following reasons which are mentioned in ayurveda increase the deposition of fat.

“Avayamadivaaswapnashleshmalaaaharasevinaha | Madhuroannarasaha prayaha snehamedhovivardhati ||”

According to ayurveda the causes of obesity are defined as:

1. Avyayama: Not exerting physically.
2. Divaswapna: Sleeping in afternoon.
3. Shleshmala Ahara Vihara: The diet and life styles which increase Kapha.
4. Madhura Annaha: Consuming sweetened foods.

Health risks due to Obesity

Obesity leads to the following problems:

1. Type-2 diabetes
2. Heart disease
3. High Blood pressure
4. Stroke
5. Few types of Cancers
6. Gall stones
7. Liver diseases
8. Osteo arthritis
9. Gout
10. Infertility
11. Irregular menstruation in women

According to Ayurveda the obese persons are more prone to the following diseases.

1. Diabetes
2. Kidney related problems
3. Hepatitis
4. Low libido
5. Low energy levels
6. Skin problems
7. Fistula
8. Piles
9. Filariasis etc.

Tips to reduce Obesity

1. Determine with the help of your physician how much weight has to be reduced.
2. Set several short term realistic goals.
3. Reward yourself each time you make progress (Not food items).
4. Even small weight losses have shown to be beneficial.
5. Make gradual changes in eating habits.
6. You will lose weight when you burn more calories than you consume. Hence eating less and being more active help in losing weight.
7. Sound eating habits keep you out of putting on weight.
8. Stay motivated to lose weight.
9. Slow weight loss is the safest and most effective (one to one and half pound per week).
10. Gradual weight loss, promote long term loss of body fat.
11. A person who is moderately active needs daily, 33 calories per kg of body weight to maintain his weight.
12. Reducing calories intake by 300 per day and increasing the physical activity to burn 200 calories per day results in weight loss of 400 Gms per week.
13. To satisfy basic nutritional needs eat a variety of foods every day. Choose from each of the five food groups milk, meat, fruit, vegetable and cereals. Balanced food plans encourage making wise choices about everyday food choices. This type of diet helps to stay at your proper weight for life.
14. Allow for an occasional treat.
15. Evaluate your eating pattern.
16. Try to cut down on foods high in fats and sugar.
17. Most successful weight-loss plans stress on reduction in both calories and the amount of fat eaten.

Physical activity:

1. Determine the type of physical activity that suits your life style.
2. Regular aerobic exercise like brisk walking, jogging or swimming, is a key factor in achieving permanent weight loss and improving health.
3. Health experts recommend exercising 30 minutes or more on all, days of the week for maximum benefits. The exercises should be moderately vigorous to be most effective but not exhausting.
4. Incorporate few simple measures to burn calories effectively. Like- taking an after dinner walk, using stairs instead of escalators or elevators, parking the car farther away to have a longer walk etc.
5. Exercises also improve sense of well being, decreases stress and decreases appetite in some.

Ayurvedic tips to reduce Obesity

Numerous tips to reduce obesity have been mentioned in ayurveda. The following ayurvedic tips help you to reduce the obesity.

1. Very good exercises. Exercises like brisk walking, jogging, playing out door games etc help to reduce weight.

2. Physical and mental exertion. Exerting physically like doing house hold works, walking to distant places to bring groceries, vegetables etc, walking long distances to bring the child back from school, walking to working place, climbing stairs etc are types of physical exertion. Exerting physically as much as you can help to burn more calories. Mental exertion like worrying or involving in finding solutions to problems also restrict food consumption in some and there by reduces the intake of calories.

3. Having sex frequently is also a good physical exertion.

4. Consumption of honey. This is advisable for non diabetic patients. Consuming 2 tea spoon of honey with a glass of herbal tea which includes weight reducing herbs help a lot in weight reduction. Honey along with these herbs scrapes and dissolves the Kapha and medha (body fat).

5. Sleeping for less hours. Avoiding sleeping in afternoons help to increase the burning of calories. This avoids slowing of basal metabolic rate.

6. Avoiding the food and beverages which increase kapha and medha. The foods which increase kapha and medha are sweets, sweetened drinks, large quantities of carbohydrates and oily food.

7. Consuming wheat products than rice products help to reduce obesity.

8. Using Green gram and horse gram help in reduction of kapha and medha.

Obesity is excess body fat. It is not defined as behavior. However, many people use the term obesity as short-hand for overeating or lack of exercise and excess fat as a result. But that is not its definition. Consider this: most people can distinguish between smoking and lung cancer. One is a behavior and one is a disease. Or problem drinking of alcohol and liver disease. One is a behavior and one is a disease. Sunbathing without protection is a behavior; skin cancer is a disease.

Second, obesity – the excess accumulation of body fat – fits all the definitions of “disease.” How is “disease” defined? Most dictionaries, general as well as medical, define a disease as an interruption, cessation or disorder of a bodily function, organ or system. Obesity certainly fits this definition.

All over the world, obesity has become an unstoppable epidemic. Several people diet every year of because of obesity problems. Well, I’m here to tell you that obesity is very controllable. Many people struggle with obesity. Whether, it’s from a large build, slower metabolism, or heredity, we are all capable of obesity too. The truth of the matter is obesity will probably be with some people for their entire lives.

However, obesity can be different. A small percentage of people have medical reasons for obesity. The other percentage of people simply can’t stop eating all the bad stuff that leads to their obesity. Remember seeing those people at fast food place trying to eat their burgers and feel good about it. Well, we all know that diet coke will not make up for the bad calorie intake.

Here are some basic steps to get you pointed in the right direction of a very long road to obesity recovery. Just keep in mind that it takes time and patients but it certainly will payoff in the long run. Ok! Let’s get rid of obesity once and for all. Write this done so you can get you obesity plan started right now!

Stop eating those fatty foods! Burgers, fries, cake… you name it! Before you can fix your problem, you have to admit that you have one. If you feel the need to eat something, get some fresh fruit or vegetables sticks. Fruits and vegetables contain the right nutrients that your body needs for good health and energy. It is also a fact that it will actually burn some of that obesity.

Always consult with a Doctor. If you are more than 50 pounds overweight, Allow for your physician to give you some medical input on what the right diet and exercise program is for you.

If this is something that you’ve always struggled with and can seem to beat. You may consider surgery or personal training. There are many options so don’t beat yourself up to much. Is there a deep seated, subconscious reason for your obesity or eating disorder? Only so can find this out! When you discover the reasons for your self destructive behavior, you will be better equipped to handle your obesity. Remember that it will indeed take time and patients. But you have the power to overcome obesity. Use all your resources such as friends and family for moral support as well. In closing, beating obesity is just a matter of prevention, discipline and lots of patients. It’s about forming a new healthier lifestyle that will benefit you throughout the years.