CHAPTER NINETEEN
Neutralize Your Sedentary Lifestyle!
===========================================
A sedentary lifestyle is found mostly in modern, Western nations and is characterized by people sitting most of the day. As countries become more industrialized, the work gets easier, and the people become more involved in sedentary activities. This type of lifestyle and a lack of physical activity have led to overweight populations in many countries.
This pattern has resulted in many problems including the higher cost of medical care, health insurance, and many other problems related to obesity. As the obesity rate goes up in the United States, so does the cost of treating obesity related diseases and illnesses. This is a big problem because obesity related illnesses contribute to the rising healthcare cost and many deaths year after year.
===========================================
Research shows that inactive people are more likely to die sooner than people who exercise and maintain a healthy body weight. Scientists who study the level of physical activity in people who died after the age of thirty-four have found that more than half of them die because of medical problems related to a lack of physical activity.
This makes a sedentary lifestyle as much of a danger to your health as drinking, smoking, or abusing other drugs. And it is all because of the obesity factor. Sooner or later, people who adopt a sedentary lifestyle usually develop obesity related diseases, whether their weight reaches the level of obesity or not. This means that being a couch potato can kill you even if you are skinny.
===========================================
More and more plus-sized people are being diagnosed with chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory ailments. Most of these illnesses are related to a lack of regular, physical exercise and are found in people who are overweight or obese. To get healthy and stay healthy, you must get into the habit of doing exercise and fitness related activities.
The average individual in the Untied States, who starts gaining weight after the age of twenty-five, will put on approximately one pound of additional weight each year as a result of inactivity. This does not seem like very much, but it will result in thirty-five pounds of excess body fat by the time the person reaches the age of sixty. These statistics are causing us to take a closer look at how and why people gain weight in the first place.
===========================================
Not so long ago, the general consensus among healthcare professionals was that overweight and obese people gain weight because they are under a lot of stress, are compulsive eaters, depressed, or apathetic towards their health and wellbeing. Now, since almost everyone seems to be getting heavier, obesity has become a national problem. Both experts and the public believe something must be done to solve the problem. Some health care professionals believe that the effects of obesity are causing a medical crisis. This level of concern is causing the federal government to take a serious look at all of the problems related to obesity so they can come up with a solution.
===========================================
Reducing obesity is becoming more of a national focus because of the growing expense. The United States government is feeling the weight of the financial burden that comes with caring for a nation of overweight people. More than one third of the adults in the United States are obese. Many others are overweight and will become obese.
The old idea of losing weight just by lowering caloric intake through dieting is not working. Scientists are studying our evolutionary past in search of solutions to our present problems. There is growing evidence that lack of exercise counters the effects of food deprivation. So a person can still gain weight while dieting if he or she does not exercise. Researchers are finding that diet alone (eating properly) is not enough to maintain a healthy body weight. We must exercise regularly: three times a week or every other day.
===========================================
History tells us that our ancestors were highly active hunters and gatherers who spent the entire day searching for food in order to survive. Scientists recognize that we have been conditioned by millions of years of evolution, and during that time the human body became accustomed to a full day of physical activity. Our active past will not let us simply sit down and remain healthy. To keep our metabolism high and active enough to burn the calories we consume, we need a variety of exercise and lots of it. Also, without regular exercise we gain weight because the quality of our food keeps getting better.
===========================================
For the first time in history, a majority of the adults in the United States are overweight or obese. This is a serious problem that’s getting worse. Over 300,000 Americans die prematurely each year because of obesity related problems. If recent trends continue, it is only a matter of time before deaths from obesity related illnesses overtake the death rate from illnesses related to smoking, which total about 400,000 a year.
There is no doubt that physical activity is critical to the health of the human body. The body is tough enough to be used every day. The more you use your body, the stronger it gets. Each time your joints move, they move the muscles around them. This is how bones and tissue get their nourishment. With exercise, muscle density increases, flexibility returns, and the heart gets stronger even in older people. As long as you do not cause injury, the body will get healthier with exercise.
===========================================
Your body parts are not like the parts in a washing machine. They do not wear out with use. However, inactivity causes stiffness in the joints, which causes atrophy in the surrounding muscles. This is one reason why bed rest can be deadly for people who already live a sedentary lifestyle. Bed rest does not make muscles stronger; it makes them weaker.
Heart failure is the leading cause of death for people over 65. At one time doctors thought that heart disease was a condition that came naturally with aging. Now they know that inactivity is putting people at risk for heart disease. This condition affects eight out of every 1,000 people over the age of seventy. The good news is that the condition can be reversed. Researches are finding that a good exercise program completely prevents or reverses stiffening of the heart muscles. This means that older people can have strong, flexible heart muscles and live longer just by exercising.
===========================================
Another condition that affects older people who lead a sedentary lifestyle is arthritis. Researchers have found that a lack of vigorous physical activity in older people leads to this condition. This is a problem because a sedentary lifestyle is much more difficult to overcome when an older overweight person gets arthritis. Older, overweight people, who have arthritis, simply do not have enough strength and flexibility to exercise and lose weight. They generally get locked into a no-win situation. If they exercise, they are likely to injure themselves. If they do not exercise, they will continue to gain weight.
===========================================
Nearly 60 percent of Americans who are sixty-five and older suffer from some form of joint problem making arthritis the leading cause of disability in the United States. Researchers believe that before long arthritis will afflict over forty million Americans. Eventually arthritis will jeopardize the quality of their independent living because of limited mobility. The condition of being overweight with arthritis will eventually keep the person from performing some of the basic tasks of daily living.
===========================================
Arthritis causes problems with the following daily activities:
Preparing hot meals
Shopping for groceries
Taking medications
Walking to the mailbox
Getting in and out of an automobile
Dressing
Bathing
Using the toilet
Getting in and out of bed.
It is important for people to remain as active as possible so they can avoid a sedentary lifestyle. However it is easy to fall into a pattern of inactivity because of the pain, fatigue, and discomfort that come with exercise, especially for those who have chronic arthritis and other physical disabilities.
===========================================
At the other end of the spectrum, juvenile obesity in the United States is rising rapidly. The incidence of obesity among children has more than doubled over the last 30 years. Now at least one out of every ten children between 6 to 17 years of age is overweight.
Children can get locked into a no-win situation as well as adults. Researchers are finding that juvenile obesity usually leads to adult obesity. Childhood obesity causes metabolic changes in the person who is overweight. These changes make the disease more difficult to treat when the child becomes an adult. Knowing this information might encourage children to make healthier food choices while they are still young. Children who learn about nutrition and apply what they learn usually have a drop in weight and have the knowledge and skills necessary to keep from becoming obese.
This pattern has resulted in many problems including the higher cost of medical care, health insurance, and many other problems related to obesity. As the obesity rate goes up in the United States, so does the cost of treating obesity related diseases and illnesses. This is a big problem because obesity related illnesses contribute to the rising healthcare cost and many deaths year after year.
===========================================
Research shows that inactive people are more likely to die sooner than people who exercise and maintain a healthy body weight. Scientists who study the level of physical activity in people who died after the age of thirty-four have found that more than half of them die because of medical problems related to a lack of physical activity.
This makes a sedentary lifestyle as much of a danger to your health as drinking, smoking, or abusing other drugs. And it is all because of the obesity factor. Sooner or later, people who adopt a sedentary lifestyle usually develop obesity related diseases, whether their weight reaches the level of obesity or not. This means that being a couch potato can kill you even if you are skinny.
===========================================
More and more plus-sized people are being diagnosed with chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory ailments. Most of these illnesses are related to a lack of regular, physical exercise and are found in people who are overweight or obese. To get healthy and stay healthy, you must get into the habit of doing exercise and fitness related activities.
The average individual in the Untied States, who starts gaining weight after the age of twenty-five, will put on approximately one pound of additional weight each year as a result of inactivity. This does not seem like very much, but it will result in thirty-five pounds of excess body fat by the time the person reaches the age of sixty. These statistics are causing us to take a closer look at how and why people gain weight in the first place.
===========================================
Not so long ago, the general consensus among healthcare professionals was that overweight and obese people gain weight because they are under a lot of stress, are compulsive eaters, depressed, or apathetic towards their health and wellbeing. Now, since almost everyone seems to be getting heavier, obesity has become a national problem. Both experts and the public believe something must be done to solve the problem. Some health care professionals believe that the effects of obesity are causing a medical crisis. This level of concern is causing the federal government to take a serious look at all of the problems related to obesity so they can come up with a solution.
===========================================
Reducing obesity is becoming more of a national focus because of the growing expense. The United States government is feeling the weight of the financial burden that comes with caring for a nation of overweight people. More than one third of the adults in the United States are obese. Many others are overweight and will become obese.
The old idea of losing weight just by lowering caloric intake through dieting is not working. Scientists are studying our evolutionary past in search of solutions to our present problems. There is growing evidence that lack of exercise counters the effects of food deprivation. So a person can still gain weight while dieting if he or she does not exercise. Researchers are finding that diet alone (eating properly) is not enough to maintain a healthy body weight. We must exercise regularly: three times a week or every other day.
===========================================
History tells us that our ancestors were highly active hunters and gatherers who spent the entire day searching for food in order to survive. Scientists recognize that we have been conditioned by millions of years of evolution, and during that time the human body became accustomed to a full day of physical activity. Our active past will not let us simply sit down and remain healthy. To keep our metabolism high and active enough to burn the calories we consume, we need a variety of exercise and lots of it. Also, without regular exercise we gain weight because the quality of our food keeps getting better.
===========================================
For the first time in history, a majority of the adults in the United States are overweight or obese. This is a serious problem that’s getting worse. Over 300,000 Americans die prematurely each year because of obesity related problems. If recent trends continue, it is only a matter of time before deaths from obesity related illnesses overtake the death rate from illnesses related to smoking, which total about 400,000 a year.
There is no doubt that physical activity is critical to the health of the human body. The body is tough enough to be used every day. The more you use your body, the stronger it gets. Each time your joints move, they move the muscles around them. This is how bones and tissue get their nourishment. With exercise, muscle density increases, flexibility returns, and the heart gets stronger even in older people. As long as you do not cause injury, the body will get healthier with exercise.
===========================================
Your body parts are not like the parts in a washing machine. They do not wear out with use. However, inactivity causes stiffness in the joints, which causes atrophy in the surrounding muscles. This is one reason why bed rest can be deadly for people who already live a sedentary lifestyle. Bed rest does not make muscles stronger; it makes them weaker.
Heart failure is the leading cause of death for people over 65. At one time doctors thought that heart disease was a condition that came naturally with aging. Now they know that inactivity is putting people at risk for heart disease. This condition affects eight out of every 1,000 people over the age of seventy. The good news is that the condition can be reversed. Researches are finding that a good exercise program completely prevents or reverses stiffening of the heart muscles. This means that older people can have strong, flexible heart muscles and live longer just by exercising.
===========================================
Another condition that affects older people who lead a sedentary lifestyle is arthritis. Researchers have found that a lack of vigorous physical activity in older people leads to this condition. This is a problem because a sedentary lifestyle is much more difficult to overcome when an older overweight person gets arthritis. Older, overweight people, who have arthritis, simply do not have enough strength and flexibility to exercise and lose weight. They generally get locked into a no-win situation. If they exercise, they are likely to injure themselves. If they do not exercise, they will continue to gain weight.
===========================================
Nearly 60 percent of Americans who are sixty-five and older suffer from some form of joint problem making arthritis the leading cause of disability in the United States. Researchers believe that before long arthritis will afflict over forty million Americans. Eventually arthritis will jeopardize the quality of their independent living because of limited mobility. The condition of being overweight with arthritis will eventually keep the person from performing some of the basic tasks of daily living.
===========================================
Arthritis causes problems with the following daily activities:
Preparing hot meals
Shopping for groceries
Taking medications
Walking to the mailbox
Getting in and out of an automobile
Dressing
Bathing
Using the toilet
Getting in and out of bed.
It is important for people to remain as active as possible so they can avoid a sedentary lifestyle. However it is easy to fall into a pattern of inactivity because of the pain, fatigue, and discomfort that come with exercise, especially for those who have chronic arthritis and other physical disabilities.
===========================================
At the other end of the spectrum, juvenile obesity in the United States is rising rapidly. The incidence of obesity among children has more than doubled over the last 30 years. Now at least one out of every ten children between 6 to 17 years of age is overweight.
Children can get locked into a no-win situation as well as adults. Researchers are finding that juvenile obesity usually leads to adult obesity. Childhood obesity causes metabolic changes in the person who is overweight. These changes make the disease more difficult to treat when the child becomes an adult. Knowing this information might encourage children to make healthier food choices while they are still young. Children who learn about nutrition and apply what they learn usually have a drop in weight and have the knowledge and skills necessary to keep from becoming obese.
===========================================