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Being called fatty is not the problem. It isn’t even being charged for two airline seats, or being asked to get off the flight. It is that by being a fatty, you’re on fire literally and figuratively.

Those extra pounds cause inflammation, which is akin to a fire within. The consequence of this is chronic health conditions, and accelerated aging. Your shape is the precursor of things to come.

APPEARANCE 

The outward appearance is the least of the problem. What is of concern is the increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and cancer risk. Your weight is a precise and accurate measurement of your loss in function, not gain.

There is a debate going on that says you can be overweight and healthy. That is true, but you can’t rely on this fact to be consistent. The reason is that most people who are overweight rely on inflammatory foods for nutrition.

HEALTH

It is a sub-group that has outstanding health and is grossly overweight. In a study published in the May 2009 “Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology” it suggested an increased occurrence of food allergies may be liked to the rising rate of childhood obesity. It is known that obesity is associated with a greater development of atopic diseases such as eczema and psoriasis. Also a 59 percent increase in food sensitization was noted. “The analysis of continuous Body Mass Index (BMI) with total igE levels supports the concept that increased weight is associated with increased allergic predisposition.” IgE is a class of antibodies produced in the lungs, skin, and mucous membranes and responsible for allergic reactions.

Medical research suggests that obesity (BMI), allergy (igE) and inflammation (C – reactive protein) are related. Inflammation is the foundation for the development of allergies, and degenerative diseases.

FAT CELLS

Fat cells produce inflammatory hormones. The question scientists ask is whether inflammation precedes obesity or obesity leads to inflammation and allergy. This is like asking which came first the chicken or egg. Of course inflammation is a cause of obesity, and obesity sets you up for more inflammation. An anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle is the answer to both possible scenarios.

Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 2005-2006, were analyzed and the key findings were:

• Allergies are more prevalent among obese and overweight children.
• Obesity is associated with chronic inflammation.
• Allergy is also associated with inflammation.

AGING

There are a lot of people who are aging and manage to remain healthy. These people can gain weight with less repercussions. It is even thought to be protective to put on a few pounds.

The aging population is the first generation of pill poppers, which say that they have serious afflictions. So their extra weight is not necessarily good if it is coming from nutrient deficient foods. Seniors are also suffering from inflammatory conditions, which are being treated with pharmaceuticals.

CONCLUSION

Being overweight is less about appearance and more about substance. The effect of the extra fat is where the problem resides. Obesity is associated with chronic, low-level inflammation in fatty tissue. Double jeopardy is when you see it and then do nothing about it. Seeing the weight as a cosmetic issue doesn’t make sense, when everything points to a lifetime of nagging health problems. That is the real shape of things to come.

When a house is on fire you get out, when your body is on fire you stay and put it out.

Metabolism is a convient catch phrase; it really is taken out of context most times.

METABOLISM-ONE PART

If you just look at one part of weight loss you lose the whole picture. Your metabolism is influenced by chronological age, sex, genetic make-up, and proportion of lean body mass.  A few facts that will show you that this is a small part of most weight loss plans.

“Some people just burn calories at a slower rate than others” says Barrie Wolfe-Radbill, RD, a nutritionist specializing in weight loss at the New York University Medical Center. There are a few intriguing reasons for this.

YO-YO DIETING

What most people do not realize, the heavier you are the chances are your metabolism is running faster.

It may only be a small amount faster, but the fact is your body has to work harder to sustain itself.  

For that reason it is sometimes easiest to loss weight at the start of a diet. A small cut in calories when you are obese results in a fast weight loss at first.

But, then as you lose both muscle and fat you need fewer calories to sustain body functions. This makes it easy to put on the pounds again if you go back to your regular eating.

Yo-yo dieting: you loss weight and then gain back more than you lost, when you return to your old eating habits.

LIFESTYLE

At the end of the day, what it comes down to is lifestyle. As engaging as all the theories are, weight follows your lead. To change weight you have to change your habits. You have to handle stress, food, and activity differently than previously. The thing that matters is the way you work with the metabolism that you have. This is a realistic goal.

Walking and any type of physical activity help speed up your metabolism.

Eating the right foods, at the right time of day often helps boost your metabolism.

PLATEAU

If your binge after you drastically cut calories your body will hold on to the calories as if you are in a famine.

With that said, the answer really is in a healthy lifestyle. It is not just calories in and calories out. It is where you are getting your calories from. To boost your metabolism should not be the focus of your dieting plan. Here is the key the modern processed food diet that we gobble up is the culprit not a slower metabolism. Previous generations did not know all the buzz words for weight loss yet; they were not nearly as overweight as we are.

HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP

Here is a clue high fructose corn syrup can switch metabolism from a fat-burning one to one that stores fat.

It promotes the formation of long chain fatty acids that are resistant to oxidation.

The amount of long chain fatty acids you produce is directly related to the amount of fat in and on your body.

We need to stop talking about a slow metabolism and concentrate on what is your source of energy. Yes, that source is from the food you ingest.

The fructose in fruit is a small amount and it is ingested with the vitamins, minerals, enzymes and fiber which are present along with any fructose.

What we are talking about is the high fructose syrup that is in our food in epidemic proportions. This is the first generation to consume processed food with high fructose corn syrup. Coincidentally, this is the generation that is facing an obesity epidemic, and a laundry list of chronic health problems.

ANSWER

The answer to becoming slimmer, is to become healthier. The way to do that is through an individualized nutrition plan, one that becomes a lifestyle. To keep using the metabolism excuse will keep you from being healthy. By concentrating on a healthy lifestyle, everything will work as it is mean to, including your metabolism.

Fiber alone is the wrong answer for intestinal health. With all the information out there, it is still not easy to find the truth. We know that the Eskimos had good health on a low to no fiber diet. There have never been so many intestinal problems than here in the high fiber touting U.S.A.

DIETARY FIBER

Most doctors, nutritionist, and food manufactures recommend a high fiber diet. Dietary fiber is considered not only good, but necessary. Fiber is in many whole foods. The American assumption is if this is true, than let us manufacture more.

This recommendation is based on the assumptions of Dr. Dennis Burkitt, a British surgeon working in Africa a half century ago. It was his theory that the barley bread eaten by his African patients was what made their digestion system work so well. The Englishmen living in Africa and England lived on a diet of refined food.

INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE

The real difference was in the diet. Inflammatory bowel disease wasn’t a fiber shortage, but a lack of good fats and whole foods.

The English ate large quantities of sugar. The Africans ate none.

The English ate large quantities of flour. The Africans ate none.

The English ate large quantities of breakfast cereals made from grain. The Africans ate none.

The English ate large quantities of potatoes. The Africans ate none.

The English ate salt cured meat when meat was eaten. The Africans ate no cured meats.

The English ate very little fresh meat or raw meat. The Africans ate a generous supply of both.

The English were most likely to be protein deficient. The Africans had a generous supply of protein from meat.

The English diet was deficient in omega-3 fatty acids. The Africans had omega-3 fatty acids in the fresh meat.

The English diet of processed food was deficient in vitamins and minerals. The Africans had an abundance supply.

The English diet caused tooth and gum problems.

The English drank large quantities of sugar sweetened soft drinks. The Africans drank none.

The English ate a significant amount of honey. The Africans ate none.

The English ate molasses and maple syrup. The Africans ate none.

The English ate a significant amount of canned fruit. The Africans ate very little fresh fruit and none canned.

LOW-CARB DIET

Dr. Burkitt’s assumption that the fiber made the African’s so healthy. The real reason for their good health was from the benefits of eating a relative low-carbohydrate diet, which consisted of fresh meats, animal fats and some vegetables. The barley bread was a relatively small part of their diet.

They were not vegetarians; their diet had a large quantity of meat. They raised domestic cattle, sheep, and goats, while hunting and eating wild animals. The diet was high in protein and fat.

ESKIMOS

The Eskimos had good intestinal health with a diet of primary animal protein and fat. The Arctic Eskimos ate an all meat diet with almost zero fiber. They had very healthy digestive systems, and were without cancer of any kind in the entire population. The digestive health of the Eskimos was much better than that of Dr. Burkitt’s African patients who ate the higher fiber barley bread diet. Eskimo is an American Indian word which translates to “eaters of raw meat.”

MASAI TRIBE

Dr. Weston A. Price visited the Masai tribe in 1935, and noted that they had excellent health. They herded cattle, and ate little to no fiber.

LOW-FAT DIET

Between the high carbohydrates, low-fat, high fiber diet that is recommended we still are not healthy. It must be the opposite low carbohydrates, high good fats, and hold the industrial type fiber. Manufacturers of high fiber cereal, and potent fiber over the counter laxative type products, don’t get it. Everything is in a whole food diet, which includes plenty of Omega 3 fatty acids, brings good intestinal health.

CONCLUSION

Fiber is known to make inflammatory bowel diseases worst. It actually encourages pathogenic bacteria and produces bowel diseases. Many times fiber expands and gets impacted in the intestines.

Fiber fermentation inside the intestines produces gases. The acidity from the fermentation causes intestinal inflammation. Avoiding dietary fiber isn’t easy. It is hidden behind names like cellulose, pectin, guar gum, cellulose gum, Carrageen, agar-agar, frutooligoaccharides, psyllium, and others.

These are factory-made ingredients. The sources for them are wood-pulp, cotton, husks, seeds, tubers, and other plants that may not be for human consumption unless they are processed. These add texture and volume to our faux foods. If you need these items for fiber, your diet consists of pre-packaged manufactured foods.

The human mouth is not meant to grind indigestible fibers. That is why fiber is milled or ground first so it will require little or no chewing. Manufactured fiber is not fit for human consumption.