Monthly Archives: May 2022
The Need to Address Obesogenic Environments to Solve the Obesity Problem
There’s a continuing prevalence of obesity in societies that have transitioned to lifestyles of consuming too many calories that only get stored and not burned. Apparently the factors driving obesity in communities are contributing to the development of toxic, obesogenic environments. Here, government and civic programs being launched to combat obesity have not been effective. If that is the case, another way to address the obesity epidemic is to modify the environment.
Location and socio-economic status are primary determinants of obesogenic environments, where the availability and capability to obtain high calorie foods do not require engaging in high levels of activity. Such conditions strengthen the belief that obesity is largely an environmental issue. While promotions of healthy human lifestyles and proper nutrition must continue, obesogenic factors not compatible with such goals must be reduced if not removed.
Examples on How Obesogenic Environments are Modified
Australia, a high-income country for one, has launched national intervention actions that largely employ strategies of promoting healthy lifestyle choices and preventing obesity by way of individual-level approaches. At the same time, Australian health authorities recognize the need to implement actions for addressing the ‘obesogenic’ influences present in modern environments, especially those that encourage high calorie intakes combined with sedentary dispositions.
While Australian regions and territories are hosts to multiple fast food outlets, customers must walk some distance to access such establishments. This forces consumers to immediately burn calorie intakes to prevent fat absorption. This indicates that obesity is recognized as a problem with interconnected and complex causes, rather than a simple cause-and-effect condition of unhealthy promotions of high-calorie foods.
In the US in the state of Maryland, the City of Baltimore is using a systems approach in preventing and controlling obesity. City planners and health officials have mapped out the major causes of obesity and the associations that link them. After which, computer models were created to represent children’s interactions with the common causes of obesity. The model breaks down data by age, gender, weight, height and food preferences, from healthy to non-healthy choices.
The model is then used as basis for designing, implementing and testing various programs for interventions such as advertisements for healthy eating, conducting cooking classes, and of giving incentives for businesses to promote healthy food products.
As an alternative strategy in addressing the global obesity problem, the alternative approach is to focus on small but achievable changes in diets, physical activities and lifestyles. Doing so initiates weight management and prevention of weight gain that would make weight reduction easier to achieve, The small reductions approach is backed by supporting data showing conscious collective efforts to reduce caloric intakes by increasing physical activities resulting in reduction of excessive weight.
The small-change approach can also apply to how consumers of weight loss supplements consider the efficiency of their chosen brand. However, it’s also important to read up on genuine reviews as some are basically promotional materials. Modere trim reviews for one, are being countered by unbiased reviews that there is no conclusive scientific data supporting the brand’s use of conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) as active weight-reducing ingredient.
How An Eating Disorder Can Affect Your Health as Well as Your Body Image
Eating disorders are mental health conditions that affect the way someone eats and views their body. It can be caused by a combination of genetic predispositions, environmental factors, and personal experiences.
Understanding Eating Disorders and How To Approach The Problem
- Anorexia is a type of eating disorder that primarily affects women. People with anorexia restrict their food intake to such an extent that it can lead to serious health complications and physical issues. They may also develop obsessive behaviors around food and weight as well as other mental health disorders like depression or anxiety.
- Bulimia is another type of eating disorder that primarily affects women in the United States but this condition is becoming more prevalent in men too. This disorder has three phases: binge-eating, purging (by vomiting, taking laxatives), and recovery which can be difficult to achieve because it often leads to weight gain.
Individuals with bulimia are not able to control how much food they consume during a binge and may quickly consume large quantities of food, often eating in secret or in large amounts at once before purging. The binge can last for hours or days and the purge starts after the binge is over. Purging may be done to avoid weight gain from the binge.
Bingeing and Purging – What it Means?
Bingeing and purging may happen five or more times a week for months at a time or stop for days or weeks. Some individuals will try to prevent weight gain by fasting, excessive exercise, vomiting, diuretics (water pills), enemas, diet pills, and other methods. There is no cure for bulimia but it can be treated.
Symptoms of bulimia may include persistent feelings of hunger despite normal or even significant calorie intake, feeling out of control around food, and eating leads to binge episodes which are followed by purging behaviors such as self-induced vomiting or misuse of laxatives, diuretics, and diet pills.
Read also: Can You Really Be Healthy While Being Obese?
How to Recognize Early Signs and Symptoms of An Eating Disorder in Kids – from the Experts at The Mayo Clinic
Early signs of an eating disorder in kids might include a change in appetite, changes in weight, frequent concern about body shape and size, and excessive exercise. The Mayo Clinic experts have compiled a list of symptoms that can help you recognize the early signs of an eating disorder.
Early signs:
- A change in appetite
- A change in weight
- Concern about body shape and size
- Excessive exercise
- Excessive dieting
Signs of an Eating Disorder in Teens
- Intense fear of gaining weight.
- Persistent dieting.
- Not eating during the day, restricting food intake, or not eating a certain type of food.
- Eating in secret.
Obsessive thoughts of food and calorie counting, obsessively monitoring and weighing foods or making sure that they are in a certain ratio with other foods.
What is the psychology behind an eating disorder?
Eating disorders are mental illness that leads people to restrict their food intake and often causes excessive concern with body image. It is important to understand the different types of eating disorders in order to be able to identify them and better support those suffering from them. There are many approaches that can help with eating disorders. While people aware of their eating disorder prefer to talk to a psychiatrist, some choose to chat with a psychic online. This approach is acceptable but it is always advised to seek a doctor’s help for appropriate medical attention.
Psychologists’ approach to eating disorders
Eating disorders are some of the most addictive, dangerous, and destructive mental disorders. A psychologist’s perspective is a helpful look into how these disorders can be treated. Research has shown that cognitive-behavioral therapy has been successful in treating bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorders.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a treatment that has the goal of changing the way you think about food and body image. It also focuses on changing your behaviors related to eating. Cognitive-behavioral therapy focuses on the present time, which is different from other therapies that focus on past events. By focusing on the present instead of the past, cognitive-behavioral therapy helps you learn to change some of your behaviors so that you can live a healthier lifestyle. Cognitive-behavioral therapy has been shown in studies to be effective for many people with eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia.
The Impact Of Oral Health To Our Body
The jaw cracks and the neck is tense – a feeling with which many people wake up in the morning. And the reason why more and more people are using a splint against teeth grinding for sleeping. Almost everyone has heard that crunching can trigger tension and headaches. What is less well known is that other dental problems can also hurt the rest of the body.
The dental team from Sky Dental explained to us what influence the health of our teeth has on that of our body and why gum inflammation plays a major role in this.
Problems with the teeth
Caries are still the number one dental disease in Germany. They and gingivitis, the so-called gingivitis, arise from a lack of dental hygiene. A disease independent of dental hygiene is tooth erosion. This is the destruction of the tooth substance – triggered by the consumption of acidic foods such as soft or energy drinks, but also by regular heartburn. These diseases can be treated well by the dentist and usually have only limited consequences for our general health. The worse effects on the body have periodontitis.
What is periodontitis?
Periodontitis is an inflammation of the periodontium. This is the tissue around the tooth. Periodontitis is an excessive immune response of the body. If the body wants to ward off unwanted bacteria in the mouth, inflammation of the gums is the result. In contrast to gingivitis, however, periodontitis attacks the bone in which the teeth are embedded. This creates so-called gum pockets around the tooth. Bacteria accumulate in them, which then trigger further inflammation and thus damage the periodontium.
From the mouth to the whole body – effects of periodontitis
The bacteria of periodontitis and also the inflammatory reaction is not limited to the mouth. Instead, both enter the entire body via the bloodstream and can cause immense damage there. So you can say:
“Sick periodontium, sick person”
ALSO READ: Can You Really Be Healthy While Being Obese?
Thus, experts have found that there is even a link between periodontitis and Alzheimer’s. In Alzheimer’s disease, inflammatory deposits in the brain occur, causing nerve cells to die. This so-called neurodegeneration can be initiated by periodontal bacteria.
In addition, they can also trigger inflammation of the vessels. Consequences of this can be various cardiovascular diseases, such as high blood pressure, calcification of the arteries, disturbances in the blood circulation of the arms and legs, to a heart attack.
In pregnant women, periodontitis can even lead to premature birth. The reason for this is that the bacteria and the inflammatory mediators they trigger enter the uterus via the bloodstream and can thus trigger premature birth.
In addition, the bacteria can cause pneumonia in people with a weak immune system or bedridden people, among other things.
For this reason, these groups of people should pay particular attention to adequate oral hygiene and go to the dentist as early as possible to exclude or treat possible periodontitis.
Diabetes – a relationship of a special kind
There is one disease that has a special effect on periodontitis: diabetes. In contrast to high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s, etc., the two diseases influence each other. “This goes both ways,” explains the expert. “A lack of dental hygiene can promote diabetes. And if you have diabetes, get periodontitis faster.” But how does it work? The bacteria that enter the bloodstream through periodontitis inhibit the important hormone insulin. In diabetes, on the other hand, inflammatory bacteria are released, which increases periodontitis.
However, the two diseases also affect recovery. It has been proven that if periodontitis improves, diabetes usually does the same. And if the blood glucose levels of a diabetic patient improve, this has a healing effect on his diseased gums.
How to recognize periodontitis
Treating periodontitis is complicated – especially if it is already advanced. That’s why you should quickly visit your dentist for these symptoms:
- Bleeding gums: If something is wrong with your gums, the easiest way to recognize it is bleeding gums. Usually, this goes away after a few days and more concentrated brushing. In the case of periodontitis, however, not.
- Bad breath: If the body fends off unwanted bacteria with gingivitis, the resulting pus leads to a somewhat sweet bad breath, which can not be brushed away.
- Loosened teeth: With advanced periodontitis, the periodontium is so damaged that even teeth can loosen.
Many dental problems can be recognized by toothache or gum pain. With periodontitis, however, pain often occurs hardly or not at all. That’s why it’s important to take the other symptoms seriously and go to the dentist earlier than usual.
