Obese Kids Twice as Likely to Die Before Age 55

     A newly published study followed almost 5,000 American Indian kids from their childhoods till adulthood.  They found that kids who were fat were twice as likely to die before age 55 from related diseases.

     They measured the kids for body mass index, blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood glucose levels from 11 years old and up. The most telling were the high body mass index and the glucose levels.

     Michelle Obama wants to tackle this problem with a new program of her own, called " Let's Move". It is her hope to encourage kids and families to eliminate junk food, get the proper nutrition, and to exercise as part of a daily routine.

     It was also mentioned that studying American Indians is both a good thing and a bad thing. American Indians are usually poor and a lot of them end up with alcoholism before they even reach adulthood. The good thing about studying this group is that their bodies are built more like Hispanics who tend to be a shorter group and have a higher body bass index than taller people. Let's face it, I'm heavy at 5'2. If I were a foot taller I would look thinner even though I ate the same.

     It was also noted that an important similarity is they are poor like many African and Hispanic Americans, and either don't have access to or can't afford to eat more nutritious foods. Also who wants to play outside or take a walk in the neighborhoods in which they live, when they get gunned down on their own front porches or in their homes?

Photo by Colros

Lite Stuffed Peppers

     I'm going to start posting recipes on this blog that are lite on calories, fat, and cholesterol. This is the first. You'll need,

• 6 medium green bell peppers
• 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 cups of lo-sodium tomato juice, divided
• 1-6oz. can tomato paste
• 1 tsp. oregano, divided
• 1/2 tsp. crushed basil leaves
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, divided
• 1 lb. ground beef, lean
• 1 1/2 cups oats, uncooked, quick
• 1 medium tomato chopped
• 1/4 cup carrot, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped onion

     Preheat oven to 350F. Rinse and cut peppers lengthwise in half and set aside after removing seeds and membranes. In saucepan combine water, 1 cup tomato juice, tomato paste, 1/2 tsp. oregano, basil, and 1/4 tsp. garlic powder. Simmer this for about 13 minutes.

     Combine, beef, oats, 1 cup tomato juice, 1/2 tsp. oregano, and 1/4 tsp. garlic powder with tomato, onion, and carrots. Mix very well.  Fill each pepper half with about 1/3 cup of this meat mixture. Put in glass baking dish and pour the sauce mixture evenly over the peppers. Bake for between 45 and 50 minutes.
Serves 12,  each serving has 175 calories, 9 grams fat, 28mg cholesterol, and 145mg sodium.

The First Hurdle

     I find for myself that once a see a few pounds drop I am very motivated to drop more. As anyone will tell you the first few pounds you do drop are from water. Thin people think that doesn't count, but for me it does. I've learned that eating the same keeps that water trapped in your body. That eating high sodium foods makes me so bloated I look like a Thanksgiving day balloon and feel like one too. The bags under my eyes are filled and puffy and my hands are still with that swelling. So for me the first step is to get rid of this water by eating less and staying away from salt and high sodium foods.

     That means not bagged snacks like chips, no canned foods, and no fried or prepared foods. Yes it is hard at first but a few days will change what you eat forever if you stick with it.

The Fast

     I'm not giving this as advice because I'm sure health professionals will tell you it's either unhealthy or dangerous. I'm only telling you what I've done in the past when I was younger and healthier and what seemed to work for me.

     I would go on a week long fast. Now before you run away here me out. I would start on a Monday and would only eat fruits and veggies. As much as I wanted but not too much potato or corn. Tuesday would only allow myself liquids. No not ice cream shakes. Coffee, tea, water, and fruit juices. Wednesday was just water day. Thursday back to allowing all drinks again, and Friday back to just fruits and veggies.

     After that week I found that I felt like my stomach had shrunk, like it took less to fill it up. This was the goal. You want to eat smaller portions to feel just as full as you did before when you were only satisfied with larger portions.

     I didn't do it, but I suppose you could eat clear soup or broth on your liquid days, just make sure it's no or low sodium. The sodium holds in water. More on this on the next post.

Important Step in Weight Loss

     I believe that the next important step in changing your eating habits to lose weight is getting full on smaller portions.

     I think that your body is so smart it knows exactly how much food it needs to maintain the weight you are at right now, be it thin or fat. So let's assume you are heavy. You've eaten small portions all day, but now you're going crazy because your body is asking for more food. It wants more to maintain your current weight. If you don't give in you'll see your weight start to drop. If you do give in you'll see it stay the same.

     The first choice and best thing to do is to just have some water to drink. Flavor it with lemon and lime add a packet of artificial sweetener. It's really good.

      The next best thing is to snack on things like celery or carrots, or even a piece of fruit. The thing is, that you don't want to fill yourself up. You want to let your stomach "want for more".

See my next post to see how I "retrain my stomach to be satisfied with less", and remember to seek your medical health professional before you change your diet. I am not a doctor or nutritionist, just a common sense been there done that average person.