Why talk about obesity? For one, obesity increases the likelihood of various diseases, particularly heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breathing difficulties during sleep, certain types of cancer and osteoarthritis. And, it also affects the way we relate to ourselves and others.
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The Centers for Disease Control define obesity as a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems. The BMI (Body Mass Index), a measurement which compares weight and height defines people as overweight when their BMI is between 25 and 30 and obese when it is greater than 30.
Many of us know the numbers, listen to news of obesity as an epidemic of devastating proportions and the dollar and cent cost of it, and have heard enough advice to make us all thin. The First Lady is strongly pushing for change, as are those of us who invest our energy and ability to bring the conversation home… where behavior change happens.
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There has been extensive research done in the field of mindful eating. Each one of us makes over 200 food-related decisions daily. That might sound like a big number, but when we break it down to all of the small decisions that are centered on eating one meal, we can begin to see how all these food decisions add up. These decisions can include things like this:
- I wake up in the morning, brush my teeth, wash my face, and think to myself, “Am I hungry?” First decision, answer, “Yes!”
- Okay, so I think to myself, “How hungry am I?” Second decision, answer, “Sort of hungry.”
- Now I am in the kitchen looking at the food that is available for me to eat, and I start thinking, “How much work do I want to put into preparing my breakfast?” Third decision, answer, “Not too much.”
These first three decisions of the day regarding food awareness inform my choice for breakfast, cold cereal with milk and banana. And here is where a bit of clear nutrition information comes in handy. So, to succeed in overcoming obesity we need to bring nutrition awareness, emotional awareness and policies that will support this process into the picture. In our next segment we will explore nutrition awareness.
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