We’re a country obsessed with being thin, yet two-thirds of American adults – and nearly one-third of children and adolescents – are overweight or obese and either suffering from or at risk of serious chronic illness like diabetes or heart disease. So states an article in US News & World Report that recently came to my attention.
This struck me as ironic, what with the weight-loss industry churning out a new diet book or fat-loss pill every other week. Even when dieters do succeed in slimming down, research has shown that the majority end up gaining back their losses.
So what gives? The article states that exercise and dieting aside, behavior and biology appear to have a real influence on weight. Weight-loss depends largely on getting the right balance between calories consumed and calories burned, but what the author refers to as “several sneaking factors” may be complicating that equation.
Eating late at night. Snacking at times that are out of sync with your normal eating times may be promoting weight-gain.
Consuming too much sugar. The highly-processed American diet is packed with added sugars and syrups which can contribute to metabolic abnormalities and poor health. The biggest culprits are soda and other sugary beverages like fruit juices and sports drinks.
Not getting enough sleep. One theory contends that when people get less than seven hours a night, the fatter they seem to become.
Your body desperately wants to store fat. I was intrigued with the idea that the body’s physiological drive to store energy harks back to primitive days when food was actually scarce, and our ancestors had to expend calories scavenging for their next meal. By contrast, energy-dense food is everywhere today, and too many of us sit on our duff all day while our body fat increases to the detriment of our health.
There aren’t a lot of easy answers, but understanding some of the reasons we gain weight can hopefully get us to make better decisions as to what and when we eat.
Wid
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The Grand Canyon State Games is a multi-sport Olympic Festival providing a showcase for the talents and aspirations for Arizona and America's youth regardless of age or ability and to share many of the great attributes of our state. In fact we have had a 3 year old come down the mountain in our Winter skiing event and a 99 year old gentleman throw the javelin in our Track & Field event. We truly have something for everyone.
