Macronutrients – Carbohydrates, Fats & Protein

When trying to eat healthier as part of your weight loss plan, you need to learn the basics of nutrition.  I’ll spend the next few posts covering those basics or you could click here to be taken to the www.InsightsForHealth.com Learning Center Module on Nutrition.

Nutritionists often refer to carbohydrates, fats and proteins as  macronutrients and vitamins and minerals as  micronutrients. We require a relatively small amount of the micronutrients, and they have no caloric content. The macronutrients do have a caloric content with fats having the highest caloric density. So, of the three, fat is the most efficient storehouse for energy.

Carbohydrates are classified as simple or complex. The simple sugars are smaller and include glucose and fructose. Since they are smaller molecules they get absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract very quickly. Glucose is the only source of energy used by the brain, so the body has several mechanisms to convert the other macronutrients into glucose if the glucose level is running low. Complex carbohydrates are actually simple carbohydrates linked together. They include corn, beans, root vegetables (potatoes), pasta & grains. Because they are larger, extracting energy from them takes a bit longer than from simple carbohydrates, but it is still relatively rapid. The body stores only about one day’s worth of energy as carbohydrate in the form of glycogen in the liver and muscle.

In the next post I’ll talk about fats.  Meanwhile, you can check out this information and more at www.InsightsForHealth.com.

I’ll look forward to any comments you may wish to leave..

For Your Health – Dr. Bob

As with many medical conditions & risk factors, obesity seems to have a genetic basis.  Many individuals look at their family and say that since they come from a family that is “big-boned” or that have “more fat cells” being obese is “normal” for them.  While it may be their genetic tendency, it doesn’t make it any less of a problem from a health standpoint.  Family history is a risk factor for obesity, but it does not make obesity any less a risk factor for diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease.   It is important to understand this point.  If you understand the additional risk and are willing to take that risk, by all means, live your life as you please at whatever weight you prefer.  Just don’t be deluded into thinking that with a family history of obesity, you have no additional health risk if you yourself are overweight or obese.

Also consider that if you want to maintain your size, there are other risk factors that you can lower to minimize your health risks.  For example, focus on your activity level to lower your heart disease risk.  Increase your activity to at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week.  Not only that, those 30 minutes don’t have to be done all at once.  As long as you do at least 10 minutes at a session and those sessions total at least 30 minutes, you’ll get the same benefit as if you exercised 30 minutes all at once.  Of course, if you stay overweight or obese, you still have an added risk due to that, but you may be able to lower your overall risk a bit in other ways.  Talk with your doctor about it.  It’s your body & your decision.

What do you think?  Share your thoughts!

For Your Health – Dr. Bob

In the last post I talked about how the percentage of children who are overweight or obese is increasing in the United States and how school furniture now comes in larger sizes.  We also hear stories about an increase in bullying in our schools and overweight children, among other groups of children who are considered different, often experience the pain of being teased and embarrassed.  At a vulnerable time they become the center of unwanted and hateful attention. Meanwhile, health professionals are also concerned about their size, but from the perspective of higher risk to their health.

An important message for everyone, but especially children & teenagers, is to be happy about who you are inside and out.  That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try to improve yourself where you see an opportunity, but it’s important to do it for the right reasons.  You should love yourself for who you are and who you will be!  From my perspective, the main reason to try to slim down to a more normal weight and BMI is to lower your health risks.  Our children need to always know we are on their side!

Please share your thoughts.

For Your Health – Dr. Bob

I just read an article by Madison Park updated on February 15, 2012 on www.CNN.com which is the third in a series on childhood obesity in the United States.  It stated that because of the increasing number of children who are overweight and obese, schools need to get larger desks to accommodate them.  This is done not only to enable them to fit in a desk, but also to try to lessen their embarrassment.  This just validates the findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that a third of the children in the USA are overweight or obese and seventeen percent are obese.  It impacts the effectiveness of children’s car safety seats as well.  I urge you to read the article, “Obese children outgrowing kids’ clothing and furniture.”

What do you think?  Historically, has this always been a problem for some children and was just ignored until recently?  For those of you who were overweight during childhood, how were you treated by your classmates & how did you react?  Please share your comments and experiences.

For Your Health – Dr. Bob

There are a couple of issues here.  First of all, I don’t think the use of the BMI has caused people to have a poor self-image.  If they do feel poorly about themselves, I believe it is the result of the many other instances of discrimination that they are subjected to every day.  This discrimination is unfair but it is there.  I truly believe everyone should feel good about their self-image no matter what it is or others may think.  If someone has a BMI that suggests they are overweight or obese, no one should view that as a criticism of their character or worth as a person, but as a risk factor that they should recognize and, if motivated, work on improving.  If they are aware of the truth about the health risk, and they choose to not address it, that does not diminish them.  It is their health decision.

Insights For Health Bottom Line: No one should define their self-worth by a number.  But you and your doctor should consider BMI, waist circumference and percentage body fat along with your family history to determine the best path to maximize your health.

I hope these last few posts gave you a clearer perspective on the value of the BMI.

For Your Health – Dr. Bob