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Dealing With Unwitting Saboteurs to Your Health

1/19/2015

So you decided you had enough of being overweight, tired all the time, and self-conscious of your appearance. You read several popular books and blogs on how to lose weight, have a good understanding of what you need to do, and are ready to move forward. You psyche yourself up, purge your pantry and refrigerator of all those sinful, sugary treats and replace them with fresh organic vegetables, lean protein and healthy snacks. For exercise, you diligently walk around your block three times every evening before dinner. To your surprise and pleasure, after five days you weigh yourself and find that you have lost four pounds– “Awesome!” you shriek to yourself– “Yeah!!” And you’re on your way to a new life, until…

…your spouse or significant other comes into the kitchen as you are chopping red leaf lettuce. “Hi Hon, how about a nice pint of Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia after dinner tonight? You deserve it, come on!” Or your co-worker drops by your cubicle at 11:30 AM and says, “Feel like going to the All You Can Eat Buffet for lunch?”

Suddenly thoughts of you eating that rich, creamy ice cream emerge, and you actually start salivating. The image of the colorful tub of ice cream right before you reinforces those memories and you forget about the lettuce for a moment. Or, you imagine rows of comfort food at the buffet line and start craving the assortment of all those sweet, salty, and fatty foods; a welcome taste after five days of salad and lean protein.

What is happening here is that your significant other/ co-worker is unwittingly acting as an enabler– a negative term used to describe someone who, through their actions, enables or encourages another person’s negative behavior. It is the opposite of a good role model. Instead of providing positive leadership and good example, the enabler is reinforcing your unwanted behavior by encouraging it in some way. It can be a difficult situation on many levels since it involves a relationship. What is one to do?

Here’s what you do: Before you start your weight loss journey, inform all the people in your immediate circle (especially the person you are living with) of your intention to reach a healthy weight and achieve optimal health, and ask them for their support. Be serious about it; no joking. Make sure you say it in a way that leaves no other possible interpretation. Don’t even be afraid to get emotional about it, because it is your life and your future well-being you are talking about. Tell your partner/roommate specifically what you’ll be doing; how your daily routine will change and how he/she will be affected. If it’s your spouse and he/she objects for any reason or attempts to downplay the need to lose weight (“I love you just the way you are”), tell him if he truly loved you, he would respect your wishes and offer encouragement. Put the ball in his court so he feels an obligation. Hopefully, your spouse will come around and choose to support your efforts.

What to say to your partner:

1. I’ll use a male spouse as an example. If you are following a particular diet plan, explain to him how it works. If there is a book you are going by, ask him to read it so he can be on “the same page” as you, be knowledgeable of the procedure and offer assistance throughout your journey. In an ideal situation, your spouse will go on the plan with you and both of you can motivate one another and serve as an accountability partner to the other.

2. If your spouse does not want to change, or doesn’t need to, and has a rather neutral or nonchalant attitude towards your decision, ask him/her to at least not tempt you with the foods you are trying to avoid; i.e. desserts, soda, refined carbs, fat laden foods, etc. Tell him to not eat it in front of you, as it will create a feeling of deprivation. You may have to eat separately while you are starting out and still vulnerable to getting sidetracked.

3. Unfortunately, some people will have spouses who will purposefully attempt to derail their weight loss efforts. These are people who have an issue in their life (low self-esteem, lazy, no self-discipline, controlling, or other negative trait) and cannot stand seeing their partner experience success or happiness. It is a “misery loves company” attitude. Such a toxic relationship can be a huge obstacle to someone trying to lead a healthy life. For situations like this, there are deeper issues that should be addressed. You will need to draw on your inner strength and determination to make yourself immune to his actions. Find people who will support your efforts; perhaps at work, in a local support group, and even on online health and weight loss forums. Most national weight loss systems have a built-in support structure that goes along with the regimen. Medifast™ has one of the best in the industry, offering a free personal health coach, online support forums, and even live weekly doctor and nurse calls to answer questions for customers.

Original article reprinted with permission, www.OptimalBodySystem.com/articles/

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Over A Third of All Adults In The U.S. Are Overweight - What Can Be Done?

1/13/2015

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According to the Centers for Disease Control, obesity statistics in the United States are not showing appreciable improvement over the past several years. The latest available stats are from 2011-2012 (it takes several years to compile such statistics, which is why there is a lag in the available data).

Here are the key findings of their study:

More than one-third (34.9%) of adults were obese in 2011–2012.
In 2011–2012, the prevalence of obesity was higher among middle-aged adults (39.5%) than among younger (30.3%) or older (35.4%) adults.
The overall prevalence of obesity did not differ between men and women in 2011–2012. Among non-Hispanic black adults, however, 56.6% of women were obese compared with 37.1% of men.
In 2011–2012, the prevalence of obesity was higher among non-Hispanic black (47.8%), Hispanic (42.5%), and non-Hispanic white (32.6%) adults than among non-Hispanic Asian adults (10.8%).
The prevalence of obesity among adults did not change between 2009–2010 and 2011–2012.
As in 2009–2010, more than 78 million adults were obese in 2011–2012. The majority of these obese adults (more than 50 million) were non-Hispanic white.

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) is a cross-sectional survey designed to monitor the health and nutritional status of the civilian non-institutionalized U.S. population. It is conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).

These statistics imply that:

(1) The environmental forces that drive obesity are alive and well;

(2) Current public health policy has not been effective in reducing the nation’s obesity rate

The food industry spends millions of dollars a year to market their products to the masses, with little regard to their products’ effects on their customers’ short and long-term health and therefore healthcare costs and economic impact. Make no mistake, advertisers invest heavily on research that seeks to find the right emotional triggers that get people to buy. Commercials and advertisements tap into pleasure centers of the brain using very specific colors, scenes, and scripts. The investment is paying off, as people get hooked to their high-sugar, high sodium and high fat products which are sometimes boldly advertised as having health benefits. The next time you are forced to watch a McDonald’s, pizza or sugary drink commercial on TV, remind yourself that you are being marketed to, and watch it with an objective, skeptical eye. Same goes with billboards and signage in public.

Public health policy and nutritional guidelines need some major changes if the obesity rate is to fall. There needs to be more high-impact outreach, especially in low income communities, on how to prevent obesity. The main culprits at work are cheap, widely available highly processed, grain-based foods full of added sugar and flavored drinks sweetened by high fructose corn syrup. Wheat and sugar have addictive effects, causing one to overeat and develop a dependency on them to maintain their energy. It’s a vicious cycle that can very quickly pile on body fat with little effort.

A return to naturally-occurring foods is needed to stem the rate of obesity. This includes grass fed, free-range animal protein and eggs (for the non-vegetarians); organic green vegetables; antioxidant-rich vegetables and fruits of bright colors; mercury-free, wild-caught deep water seafood; healthy oils from nuts, seeds, avocados, coconut and fish; and purified water. When one eats healthy for some time, the sugar addiction fades and so does the hunger craving.

Of course, losing weight is not as simple as it seems. Long-standing habits and mild addiction to certain food tastes, as well as emotional states play a big role in keeping the obesity rate at over 33% of all adults.

Secondly, lack of exercise/ physical activity is a problem. We need to make time in our schedules to exercise and move more often.

If you are overweight or obese and haven't had success with dieting, check out our Doctor-Supervised Weight Loss and Health Optimization Program -- we've done all the homework on obesity for you, and have packaged this information in a comprehensive Health Camp that will be starting soon.

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Four Simple & Powerful New Years Resolutions

1/6/2015

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Reprinted with permission from The Optimal Body System Blog

Another year is over, and we’re on to the next as life marches forward.

Perhaps like many people, you have a list of things you want to do in 2015 that will make you a better person or make your life better in some way.

Personal improvement is always a worthy goal as it inevitably leads to good things directly and indirectly. When you better yourself, the benefits often affect those you interact with in life, and often their circle as well.

For example, a mother of three children who is clinically obese decides to once and for all get down to a healthy weight, and with grit and determination accomplishes it with flying colors by the end of the year. Now she has the energy, mobility and vitality that will enable her to actively participate in her childrens’ lives, strengthening her relationship with them. She also set a powerful example of what will and determination can achieve, and the importance of living healthy. This will have a lasting impression on her children and will motivate them to achieve success in their own lives.

Or, consider the boss who decides to change his ways and manage his employees with more compassion rather than by being authoritative and abusive. Those moms and dads, who used to vent their stress to their kids, will be in a better mood and the whole family benefits.

So remember, when you set personal improvement goals for yourself and achieve them, you are doing something good not only for yourself, but those whose lives you impact.

With that, here are four New Years Resolutions that can have a profound, positive effect on your life:

1. Early to bed, early to rise. If you are a night owl, change your routine: go to bed at 10:30 pm and get up at 6:00 am. Early morning is the time of the day when the brain is most coherent. This, combined with the peace and solitude makes early morning a great time to focus on life’s priorities and the day’s agenda.

Those who sleep in as late as they can with no room to spare take about 30 minutes just to get going before they actually start working, which is wasteful and inefficient. Imagine the hundreds of lost hours of productivity a whole year of this routine causes! There is also that morning stress of rushing breakfast (bad for digestion), frantically getting your things together (which often results in forgetting something) as you rush out the door, and stressing over being late to work while stuck in traffic.

When you get up early, you can get a workout in and organize your day ahead of time so you can be more productive. Over time this habit can really be life-changing– you’ll accomplish more things and will free up more time for yourself by getting things done early and spending less time fixing emergencies caused by poor planning and mental errors.

2. Treat exercising like an ordinary activity instead of an event. Get in the habit of doing “mini-exercise” sessions in your office or home throughout the day. Oftentimes life gets too busy and we forget to exercise or it gets pushed aside as other demands take precedence. Well, instead of waiting till lunch or after work to exercise, why not spread it out in short increments throughout your day?

You don’t have to do 90 minute exercise sessions or intensive cardio classes to benefit from exercise. Doing 5-10 minute sessions every hour or two, in your regular work clothes if possible, can be beneficial as well. Squats, lunges, planks, light barbells, isometrics and calisthenics are exercises that don’t need much space or preparation. If you miss your main exercise session, at least you got some exercise in at work.

3. Reduce your e-time/ get unplugged more often. You see it everywhere in public — people fixated on their smart phones checking email, texting, checking their Facebook account, watching videos or playing games; people typing away on their laptops at Starbucks…kids playing on their mom’s ipad. It’s scary to think what all this increased exposure to electromagnetic radiation might be having on our health.

This year, make it a point to reduce your smartphone usage. After all, when was the last time you missed something absolutely critical because you did not check your email? If someone has something truly important to tell you, he/she should call and not be upset if a text or email doesn’t get an immediate response from you. People these days are spending too much time on their electronic gadgets and aren’t aware of it.

As an alternative, set times in the day where you will give yourself some e-time to check email and Facebook such as after lunch and after dinner, for 30 minutes. That’s one hour a day of e-time, which is a lot. You’ll have less eye strain, less anxiety and will have more time to experience and enjoy the real world with all its sights, sounds and smells.

4. Spend more time with the people in your life you care about the most; tell them how much you appreciate them. Now that you are spending less of your time on your smartphone, connect with the people closest to you more often — your spouse, children, siblings, parents, uncles and aunts and good friends. Tell them how much you appreciate them; even if it’s just a quick five minute call.

Think, right this moment, how you would feel if you received a phone call that ___ had died suddenly. You realize you will never have the chance to say all those things you wanted to say to that person. Don’t set yourself up for a lifetime of regret. Take the small emotional risk, and the return will be ten-fold.

That’s it! I know there are many other good New Year resolutions out there; these are ones that I personally believe get a lot of “bang for the buck” and that apply to a lot of people these days.

Do you agree that these four simple things can make life a lot better? Let me know in the comments!

Dr. Perez

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Dealing With Unwitting Saboteurs to Your Health

Over A Third of All Adults In The U.S. Are Overweight - What Can Be Done?

Four Simple & Powerful New Years Resolutions

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