Really fat bellies increase death rates....

Today's post: Monday, 3-16-2009

For quite some time we’ve known that one of the fastest and cheapest health tests is to simply measure waist size.

(It’s super cheap and requires no blood tests or lab or hospital visit or assistance by a doctor to do. It’s actually quite powerful and diagnostic as well, so it’s value for its cost is off the charts on the high side.)

And, it’s been reported that men who have 40 inch or more waist measurements an women who have 35 inch or over waist measurements are more likely to get heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

There is a reason for this. In our sedentary world today, as you get older, you have to stop ingesting bad for you foods; eat foods that support health instead; & get some exercise each week to avoid being fatter than that and having a too large waist measurement.

(Our past posts have covered all 3 of these areas: what to stop eating or drinking; what to eat and drink instead; & why to exercise and the most effective two kinds.)

But yesterday, I read some new information.

Given what causes a too big belly and the effects of that lifestyle on causing diseases that have a death rate in their victims, it certainly is no surprise. But it definitely shows that even bigger, fatter bellies are worse even than bellies that are too big but smaller. And, it shows that such really large, fat bellies indicate a very high degree of health risk and likely future high medical bills.

The information was in yesterday’s Parade Magazine Sunday supplement section for Sunday, 3-15-2009.

“A recent study by the National Institutes of Health found that….Measurements of more than 44 inches in men or 41 inches in women were associated with 25% higher mortality rates.”

Such measurements tend to happen in people who are 40 or more pounds overweight & who are diagnosed as obese, the fancy medical term for people who are really fat. This research shows being that fat is a life-threatening health emergency.

The three pieces of good news are that for most people, being that fat is reversible; it’s reversible without starving yourself or being hungry all the time; and those people who make the necessary lifestyle changes and simply become enough less fat to shrink their belly fat will see their capacity to have a good sex life go way up. They look better; they move better; they feel better; they have more energy; and their testosterone & libido goes up.

For those who don’t read our blog yet or haven’t read our blog before or often, here are the basics.:

1. What to completely stop ingesting to be less fat.:

All soft drinks; all refined grain foods; potatoes and other highly starchy, high glycemic foods – including popcorn, unfortunately; high fructose corn syrup; any artificial sweeteners; any hydrogenated vegetable oil; and any combination of these. These foods either add calories without making you less hungry; or they harm your health; or they spike your blood sugar; or they make you hungrier right away or later; AND they tend to NOT give you much if any actual food or nutrition. For other reasons, it’s also best to avoid fatty meats from grain fed, penned up animals or at the very least to avoid eating very much of the fat from such animals.

Many of these things taste good and are or seem relatively cheap to buy; they are still universally available and, even worse, considered normal things to eat or drink by people who don’t yet know how damaging they are – plus they are heavily advertised on TV.

Since none of these foods are necessary to support life or even to enjoy it, and, if you have a very large waist measurement, it’s quite likely you have been taking in quite a lot of them, you not only can lose as much as half or more of your excess fat by never ingesting them again without being any hungrier, you can quite literally save hundreds of dollars a month on your “food” and grocery bills by simply no longer consuming any of them.

(It also helps lose excess fat and to protect your health to dramatically reduce eating foods that have a lot of sugar or salt in them. Many people eat such things several times a day. A few times a week or a month is far safer for your health; and people who cut back or only have eaten that little of such foods are much less fat and have smaller waists as a result than those who eat several of these foods a day.)

2. What to eat and drink instead: Real food that has been grown and harvested the way it was done until about 200 years ago:

organic produce, particularly nonstarchy and green vegetables, garlic, onion, and other plant based spices and some whole fresh fruit; nuts; beans and lentils;

for people who already are moderately trim and who exercise regularly, some whole grains; but not a lot;

eggs, preferably from pasture fed chickens;

meat and poultry from only pasture and grass fed animals;

wild caught only fish and seafood;

nonfat and very low fat dairy products; tea; green tea; coffee; unsweetened cocoa; and water;

and extra virgin olive oil; and avocados.

(Small amounts of fermented and traditional forms of soy may be OK for some people; other forms of soy or large amounts of soy tend to cause health problems and are NOT as good for you as some health advisors have said.)

Even better, these foods tend to be great at turning off your hunger and keeping you well fed with quality nutrients. Plus, if they are combined by good cooks or eaten fresh, they can be remarkably enjoyable to eat.

Traditional Mediterranean and Oriental cuisines tend to be great sources of such recipes. But, by editing out the bad ingredients, and including the good ones, most recipes can be made in a good tasting version from such foods.

3. How to lose fat and keep it off while increasing the amount you can eat and still do so.:

a) Each week, do two or three days of time efficient and progressive strength training with a day or two off in between sessions (or, even better do 4 to 6 sessions with upper body sessions alternating with leg exercise sessions.) These can be as little as 7 to 15 minutes a session and done at home to make them even more time efficient. Even two 20 minute sessions a week can help a lot.

b) Do 3 or 4 interval cardio sessions each week with a day or two off between most sessions.

Even two or three 10 minute sessions a week can help a lot if you build up to doing them vigorously.

c) It’s likely not necessary to lose much of the fat that eating the wrong things has added to you to exercise more than that.

But to lose the fat faster, to lose most of it, and to keep it off the best, it’s ideal to do enough strength training, interval cardio, and less intense but active things such as walking or gardening or housework or tai chi to burn 3500 calories a week. That takes more like an hour a day seven days a week

But it’s not realistic for many people. So, particularly at first, focus on the first two kinds of exercise; and gradually add what you can of extra walks and physical activities.