Health: Food & Exercise

Note: Before reading My Thoughts, please read My Disclaimer!

The combination of poor nutrition and inactivity are the #2 cause of preventable death in the U.S.A., behind only tobacco (with alcohol as a very distant #3).

60% of all those in the U.S.A. are either overweight or obese. Obesity has been linked to:

• Hypertension
• Coronary Heart Disease
• Adult Onset Diabetes (typically cutting 17-27 years off of a person's life)
• Stroke
• Gall Bladder Disease
• Osteoarthritis
• Sleep Apnea
• Respiratory Problems
• Endometrial, Breast, Prostate and Colon Cancers
• Dyslipidemia
• Steatohepatitis
• Insulin resistance
• Breathlessness
• Asthma
• Hyperuricaemia
• Reproductive hormone abnormalities
• Polycystic ovarian syndrome
• Impaired fertility
• Lower back pain

I don't eat as well as I should or could, but I eat a lot better than I used to. I eat far more fruit now, but I still don't have much of a taste for vegetables. Certainly, I'm not alone there. I do get quite a bit of exercise and I think that helps a lot. And, I benefit greatly from a stellar set of genes.

There are some heath-related lessons that I've learned and, when sharing some of these facts with others, I've been surprised to find that many of these facts have gone unnoticed. Here are some statistics, other facts, and suggestions from various experts regarding food, exercise, and overall health. Maybe this will help you as it has helped me.

Food - Statistics

• Each day, 1 in 4 people in the U.S. eat food from a fast food restaurant.
• French fries are the most eaten "vegetable" in the U.S.
• 40% of meals in the U.S. are eaten outside the home.
• McDonald's represents 43% of total U.S. fast food market.
• Only 9 items on the McDonald's menu do NOT contain sugar: Scrambled eggs, hash browns, sausage patty, coffee, chicken McNuggets and strips (without dipping sauce), unsweetened iced tea, french fries, and Diet Coke. But, before you order the 10-piece box of chicken strips and think that you are making a healthy choice, please know that they contain twice the daily recommendation of salt and 101% of the daily recommendation of fat. That's right, more than two days worth of salt and more than your whole day's supply of fat, in one little box. That means that the dipping sauce, the fries and the rest of the food you eat that day is all extra fat for your body to store and "display". A quick look at the McDonald's "nutrition" chart will make you cringe. While Subway is better, it still has unhealthy levels of salt. Wendy's and Jack in the Box seem better, but if they are better in one category (calories, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, cholesterol) then they seem to be bad for you in another. Check on the nutrition of all the major fast food restaurants at Fast Food Facts. Avoid them all and you'll be healthier.

Food - "Fast" and Other Facts

• The World Health Organization has declared obesity a global epidemic.
• Surgeon General David Satcher: "Fast food is a major contributor to the obesity epidemic."
• Most nutritionists recommend not eating fast food more than once a month.
• If you do continue to eat fast food, I hope you like to exercise -- a lot: You would have to walk for seven hours straight to burn off a super-sized Big Mac, fries and Coke. And, that only considers the calories and fat, not the cholesterol, sodium, etc.
• Dieting doesn't work. That is, a short-term change in eating habits cannot have long-term, positive effects. It is counterintuitive to think that any short-term change can produce anything lasting long-term. Don't bother with a "diet" that you don't want to keep for the rest of your life. It'll only result in a yo-yo effect on your weight and more frustration. Find healthier substitutes for some of the occasions when you eat less healthy food. Don't deprive yourself of things you enjoy. Just do it in moderation. That's much more feasible than saying you are never going to eat it again, holding out for a few weeks/months, and then going back to binging on it. These goofy diets (Atkins, etc.) where you exclude certain food groups or binge on others are ridiculously unhealthy. Sure, some are created by "doctors" -- bottom-feeders who are looking to make a quick buck preying upon the vulnerabilities of those who struggle with their weight. But, quick fixes and extreme diets simply don't work.
• Almost all fast food restaurants obtain their beef and chicken from a handful of large producers. These producers do not just feed grains to their animals, but actually feed leftover animal parts to them. Since the U.S. outlawed feeding cattle parts to cattle, the producers have switched to feeding cattle parts to chicken and feeding chicken parts to cattle. These producers cannot ship this meat to other countries because other countries don't allow such feeding, due to numerous health concerns. Similarly, the unsanitary conditions of how most cattle and chickens are raised and slaughtered have created a situation where if you don't cook your meat to at least "medium-well", then you stand a significant risk of E. coli, among other possibilities.
• Partially hydrogenated oils (a.k.a. trans fatty acids, trans fats) are not the kind of fats that actually have some value, but instead are little short of a poison to your body. Trans fats are actually banned in some countries, because of the recognition that they are so bad for you.

Food - Suggestions

• I don't each much fruit whole, so fruit smoothies are a quick, easy, and effective way for me to eat better. Try my smoothie recipe, which is easily adapted to your tastes.
• Few people drink enough water. My family has a history of kidney stones, which are mostly preventable by drinking a lot of water. So, I have extra motivation. But, it is a very easy and healthy thing to do. Target 1/2 gallon a day. Keep a large cup of water or pitcher on your desk and go to it often. It'll help keep your "body plumbing" running well, too, if you know what I mean...
• Drink a glass of water 1/2 hour or so before your meals -- before you leave your desk for lunch, for example. Besides helping to get more liquids in your body, this will allow your stomach to fill up faster, sending the "stop eating!" signal to your brain sooner.
• Lose the "clean plate club" mentality. You are not wasting less by over-feeding yourself. Take home the extra food from the restaurant or keep what's left of a home-prepared meal for leftovers. And, if keeping leftovers doesn't appeal to you, then you are better off using the garbage disposal for its purpose than using your mouth as one: Other than making yourself fat, what purpose are you serving by over-stuffing yourself rather than throwing the extra food away?
• Use smaller plates -- at home and at the buffet line. Our natural tendency is to fill our plate. So, fill a smaller one.
• Try to eat more slowly. Not only does it mean that you'll chew your food more, aiding in digestion, but your stomach will then have more time to realize it is full and will tell your brain to "stop eating!" sooner. You'll find that you want to eat less without having to do anything other than slow down a little.
• Dump the soda. Soda is just sugar and caffeine, really. We all know that we get too much sugar as it is. We don't need that much caffeine, either. Together, they just over-stimulate the body, only to crash later when the sugar/caffeine run out. Switch to water (and not that sugar-infused flavored water, either) and, after you break your addiction to caffeine (I had headaches for a few days -- which really convinced me that I needed to give it up!), then you'll feel much better.
• Read ingredient labels and put back on the shelf those that contain ANY partially hydrogenated oils, which may also be disguised as "shortening". Even those that claim "0g Trans Fats" often still contain trans fats, just less than 1/2 of 1 gram per serving, so they get to round down. Stick with products that contain NO trans fats.
• Wean yourself from products with excessive sugar. Compare labels and choose carefully.
• Stopping snacking entirely is unrealistic. Just try to find healthier snacks as substitutes for your current snacks. Celery doesn't work for me, either. So, be realistic. Eat crackers or chips if you want, but don't eat crappy ones. Bring your own "good" ones along with you -- those without trans fats, those that are baked instead of fried, etc. -- instead of grabbing whatever's in the over-priced vending machine. Check the ingredients and compare the numbers on the packages. You know what you should be looking to eliminate or limit: trans fats, saturated fats, cholesterol, calories, sodium, nitrates, artificial sweeteners... Look for pretzels without trans fats that aren't heavily salted. Those make great snacks that fill you up without bulking you up.
• Baskin Robbins is the only ice cream chain that I could find that doesn't have trans fats. When you do splurge, do it the healthier way...
• For inspiration, change your computer's desktop background to an "I will never eat fast food again wallpaper." 800x600 version 1024x768 version
• Watch Super Size Me and read Fast Food Nation for more inspiration.

Exercise - Suggestions

• Just like diets, short-term exercise programs don't work, either. It just doesn't accomplish much to make a new year's resolution to go to the gym, buy that year-long membership and then never go after February. I'm not a gym person. Maybe you aren't either. If not, then don't sign up with a gym. Find some sort of physical activity that you actually enjoy doing. Or, at least find one that you dislike less than the ones you know that you don't like! Try different activities, whether it is walking, biking, swimming, jogging, weights, aerobics, golf, tennis, whatever. Keep trying activities until you find which one(s) you like. Then, do what you can to meet others who also like that activity (through team sports or through clubs that you can find at athletic stores like bike stores and sporting good stores). Having a friend that'll call you and suggest exercising together is a great motivator. And, maybe you can be that motivator for some other people, too.
• As long as it is safe to do so, distracting yourself while exercising with music, TV, a book or conversation with a friend can make the time go by much quicker.
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk on the escalator or those moving sidewalks in the airports. Start by always walking down the stairs if it's just one flight. Then, walk up when it is just one flight. Keep adding on flights as time goes by.