Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Weight loss Treatment

Weight loss is a combined result of healthy diet, exercise and weight loss aids. If you want to lose weight, you cannot afford to ignore any of these three methods of doing so. Once you commit yourself to a calorie-controlled diet and regular exercises, you can think of using weight loss medications. Also, weight loss medications are recommended when the two conventional methods fail to support you further.

Weight loss medications
There are several weight loss medications that can help you lose weight. These medications help in different ways to assist you in weight loss. Some help in weight loss by increasing your metabolism rate, some help burn fats, some reduce fat absorption and some control appetite. The working depends on the ingredients of the medications. Most people get results, but the effects vary from person to person. Everyone who tries to lose weight will experience different speeds of weight loss, as everyone’s body is different.

Available prescription and non-prescription treatments
Some weight loss medications are available on prescription and some are available over the counter. In order to get prescription medications, you need to consult a doctor first. If your doctor finds that the medication is safe for weight loss for you, you will get a prescription. Some prescription drugs are Xenical and Reductil. Non-prescription treatments are Hoodia, Acai berry capsules, alli and many others.

Advantages and disadvantages of both
While prescription treatments are clinically tested and their safety and efficacy and proven, they may not be safe for everyone. These medications are only available on prescription because they contain certain ingredients that are not meant for people with certain medical conditions. Non-prescription treatments on the other hand are safe for everyone as they contain natural ingredients only but they are not clinically tested. Hence, there is no saying if these treatments will work effectively or not. Think carefully before you opt either of these medications.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Weight gain, its Causes and Consequences

We all know that being overweight or obese is not healthy. But what most of us don’t know is that being overweight or obese can be fatal too. Obesity has been recognised as the biggest cause of preventable death. Find out about consequences of weight gain but before that, let us shed some light on how we gain weight in the first place.

Causes of weight gain
Most slim people think that all overweight people are fat because they are lazy and overeat. However, this is a highly wrong notion because some overweight people eat much less than slim people do, and lead active lifestyles. So diet and activity are clearly not the only causes of weight gain. Genetic disorders and metabolic disorders are other common causes that lead to weight gain. Smoking and alcohol consumption are lifestyle habits that also cause weight gain. Some people gain weight after taking certain medications too.

Impacts and consequences
Whatever the cause of weight gain, its impact on health is certainly disastrous. Diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure, asthma colon cancer are just to name a few health problems that ensue with weight gain. Besides medical problems, weight gain also leads to certain other problems such as losing attractiveness, difficulty in socialising, difficulty in finding a life partner and some types of jobs. Overweight people also get tired easily and hence find regular activities like walking, cleaning and having sex difficult.

Various weight loss techniques
In order to protect your health, social life and sexual life, you need to lose weight. There are several weight loss techniques to help you lose weight such as dieting, exercising, herbal slimming pills and prescription weight loss drugs. The best approach is to exercise regularly and commit to a calorie-controlled diet. You can use the help of weight loss pills and drugs too, but be sure to consult a doctor prior to this to find out if it is safe or not.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Weight loss made easier: Tips and facts to attain your weight loss goal

There are so many myths and tales surrounding weight loss that it becomes difficult for most people to set their goal, let alone meet it. Find out why it is necessary to lose weight to lead a healthy lifestyle, and uncover the truth about weight loss.

Facts and illusions about weight loss
We all have concocted our own tales that give us solace in our fight against weight. We sometimes blame it on genes and sometimes on lack of time when we cannot lose weight for example. However, we all know that the truth will prevail at some point of time and we will have to work hard towards achieving our weight loss goal if we really want to see results. Here are some illusions that over weight people believe and literally swear by:

Illusions:

  • Dieting helps a person lose weight permanently
  • Skipping meals can help me to lose weight
  • Dairy products are fattening and unhealthy
  • Slimming pills are short-cut methods to lose weight and I can eat whatever I want if I take these pills
  • Walking from the parking lot to my office building and climbing 2 storeys to my office qualifies for minimum daily activity needed

Facts:
  • Dieting is a dangerous method to lose weight and once you discontinue the diet plan, you gain back the pounds you lost, just as faster
  • Having three meals a day is a pre-requisite for good health. All you need to skip is snacking between meals
  • Low-fat dairy products like milk, yogurt and cheese have many nutrients that our bodies need and are actually very useful. They have protein needed to build and calcium needed to strengthen bones
  • Slimming pills are not magic pills and sticking to calorie-controlled diet and exercises is very important if you need to lose weight permanently
  • You need to spend at least 30 minutes to an hour daily exercising, be it cycling, power walking, jogging, swimming etc, if you want to lose weight

Weight loss for healthy living
If your BMI test has revealed that you clearly need to lose weight or diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol problems are becoming a health risk, there is no time for excuses. In order to lead a healthy life with no heath problems, you need to lose weight.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Cholesterol

I believe that cholesterol is big cause for many of our health problems and everyone would agree with me on this. Also, weight loss can help with lowering down cholesterol problems. So i think i should also keep discussing about cholesterol often and make it a part of this blog. Let us start with its basics.

What is Cholesterol?
Cholesterol, an integral part of each cell in the body, is a waxy, fat-like substance that is made in the body by the liver. The body can make all the cholesterol it needs from the fats in the diet. Cholesterol serves many vital functions in the human body. Our bodies need cholesterol to:

  • Maintain healthy cell walls
  • Make hormones (the body’s chemical messengers)
  • Make vitamin D
  • Make bile acids, which aid in fat digestion

However, the body sometimes makes more cholesterol than is really needed. As a result the excess cholesterol circulates in the bloodstream. High levels of cholesterol in the blood can cause the blood vessels to clog as well as increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Childhood Obesity

Obesity is a serious health concern and with the rising prevalence of obesity among children, it can cause life threatening diseases including sleep problems, cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure. Overweight children have higher chances of growing up as overweight adults giving rise to mortality ratio during adulthood. Some authorities feel that social and psychological problems are the most significant consequences of obesity in children.

Causes if childhood obesity

  1. Bad Eating Habits
  2. Lack of physical activities and sedentary lifestyle
  3. Genetics - The risk of becoming obese is greatest among children who have two obese parents.
  4. Low Nutrition

Few Tips
  1. If your child is suffering from obesity, take him to a nutritionist for a perfect diet plan.
  2. Encourage him to participate in sports, playing outdoor games, waling to school to increase physical activity.
  3. Don’t let them watch too much TV
  4. Make best diet choices for your child. Best healthy choices for your child includes vegetables and fruits instead of fast food snacks.