Healthy Living for Real People
Posts tagged obesity
The Right and Wrong of TV and Kids
Sep 15th
Start a conversation about TV and kids and you open a can of worms.
Gummy worms, more than likely. Maybe a bag of (couch) potato chips, too.
Research from Australia shows kids who watch TV for more than 2 hours a day are more likely to eat processed snacks, drink sugary beverages, and eat less fruit.
That one’s a no-brainer. We’re all tempted by unhealthy snacks in front of the TV.
But kids are especially susceptible to influences (advertising) on the screen, particularly when it comes to fast food. And the younger they are, the greater the influence.
In fact, additional research shows for every hour kids watch TV or music video during the week, the family is 60% more likely to eat fast food during that week.
It should come as no surprise, then, that TV, fast food, and childhood obesity have a direct correlation.
And it seems that where the TV is located makes a difference, too. A TV in the child’s bedroom is an even stronger marker of increased risk of being overweight.
But are there good aspects to TV?
It all depends on the child.
Plenty of studies show that watching TV shortens a child’s attention span and can even lead to ADD/ADHD symptoms.
However, some parents have actually been told by their physician that playing video games increases a child’s concentration.
One study found that TV viewing between ages three and five slightly helped reading scores.
So, if you feel that letting your kids watch TV has more positives than negatives, may we suggest…
- Make sure that you know exactly what they’re watching.
- Put TVs in open areas, not in bedrooms.
- Set timers to regulate how much they watch.
- Above all, make sure any snacks they have are plant-based, whole foods — no junk.
Your turn…
What are the rules in your house regarding kids and TV?
Click here to let us know!
Lap Band Surgery vs The Hallelujah Diet
Mar 22nd
According to a March 21 article in the Los Angeles Times, the safety of lap band surgery is being questioned.
The surgery involves wrapping a silicone band around the top part of the stomach to reduce food intake. It’s a widely sought after “remedy” for obesity.
According to the Los Angeles Times article, Belgian researchers found that “as many as half their patients, followed for at least 12 years, needed to have the band removed in that period. And in more than a quarter, the band had gnawed its way through the wall of the stomach.”
Though the company that makes the lap band has changed the design of the lap band in recent years (and has hotly condemned the research), the Belgian team commented that lap-band surgery’s days may be numbered as a viable weight loss treatment.
While we understand the problem of food addiction and sheer desperation to lose weight that some morbidly obese people have, dangerous lap band surgery is not the only option.
As much as obesity is about eating too much, it’s also about eating the wrong things. Simply by changing to a plant-based diet, weight will begin to normalize naturally. It’s not uncommon to hear testimonies of 100-pound weight losses from people who attend Hallelujah Acres’ free seminars on the first Saturday of every month. All these people did was change their diet.
Some people have lost even more than 100 pounds. Take for example the story of a gentleman featured in one of our Health News magazines a couple of years ago. He lost 206 pounds in 10 months simply by switching to a plant-based diet. What was even more remarkable was the lack of hanging skin after that weight loss – a phenomenon he attributed to the ability of raw foods to elasticize the skin.
If you know someone considering lap band surgery, please let them know there are simpler, safer options out there – the most simple and safest of which is switching to The Hallelujah Diet.
Read the Los Angeles Times article.
Read the research from Belgium.
Weight Control Is In YOUR Control
Dec 16th
Obesity doesn’t “run in the family.” But a tradition of eating the wrong foods and neglecting exercise might. Researchers are finding that lifestyle is more of a factor in determining weight control issues than previously thought.
A study involving more than 25,000 people in the UK examined the possibility of whether individuals with a genetic predisposition to increased obesity risk could modify this risk by increasing their daily physical activity.
“The findings of this study indicate that the genetic predisposition to obesity can be reduced by approximately 40% by having a physically active lifestyle,” the study authors note. “The findings of this study suggest that, while the whole population benefits from increased physical activity levels, individuals who are genetically predisposed to obesity would benefit more than genetically protected individuals.”
In other words, if your family has a history of being overweight, getting proper exercise is even more important for you than for other people.
The study went on to say that the findings challenge the “deterministic view” that obesity is inevitable. Exercise and proper diet really do make a difference.
Looks like you don’t have to fit into “big genes” after all. 
Soft drink ban reduces obesity in CA schools
Aug 17th
California appears to be leading the way in the battle against childhood obesity.
An analysis including more than 8 million California children and teens showed encouraging declines in obesity following a peak in 2005 among Asian and white boys and girls and among Hispanic boys — the same year that California lawmakers banned the sale of sugary soft drinks and snacks in schools and took other actions to address childhood obesity.
California is also one of the few states that require school-based BMI assessment, which is conducted in the fifth, seventh, and ninth grades.
It’s human nature to let things go until there’s a real problem. Even Rev. Malkmus didn’t stop to think about dietary behaviors before he discovered that he had colon cancer; in fact, he created The Hallelujah Diet in hopes of informing others about the perils of bad diet before it led to something like the cancer he had, or childhood obesity for that matter.
Emulate California’s actions – take the lead in your community to make people aware of dietary dangers… you may be surprised at the positive power of your suggestion!
America is “obesogenic”
Aug 5th
In light of a new report on obesity, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has defined America as “obesogenic”: where people live in environments that promote over-eating, unhealthy food, and physical inactivity.
Nine states now report more than 30 per cent of adults are obese (Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and West Virginia), yet it was only a decade ago that NOT ONE STATE had a 30 per cent or more rate of obesity in its adult population, and in just one year, since 2009, the number of states with an obesity prevalence of 30 per cent or more has tripled (from 3 states to 9).
It’s almost as if being healthy is somehow “alternative” now! If you’ve seen improvement in your health simply by adopting the “alternative” Hallelujah Diet, tell others about it (there is evidence from research that encouraging physical activity and healthy eating are linked to real increases in physical activity and dietary improvements). Your fellow Americans obviously need some help and encouragement to understand how simple it is to stay healthy!
Read the entire story on Medical News Today or read the report from the CDC.
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