America's waistline expands
America is a big country getting bigger. Big old America just let out another notch on its collective belt. The epidemic of obesity rolls on, according to the latest government statistics. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 25.6 percent of adults were obese in 2007, compared with 23.9 percent two years before.
If you think about the number of people reflected in these stats, it's staggering to consider the collective weight gain out there. Or, let's say, the collective growth of sedentary lifestyles. This comes on top of a great growth in formal programs to encourage children to eat healthy and exercise sensibly, trying to imprint healthy choices at an early age. Of course, the demographic change over the last generation is that millions of people who used to be in factories, getting some exercise on the job, are now working in cubicles every day, staring at a computer screen and often not getting up from that chair for hours at a time. It just ain't healthy.
Obesity has been linked to many diseases, including heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. I talk to way too many people who get serious about diet and exercise regimen only after they develop a serious disease like that. People need to get serious earlier, so they can avoid those diseases in the first place.
The CDC measures obesity by a body mass index (a ratio of weight to height) of 30 or above. For instance, a 5-foot-9 adult is considered obese if he or she weighs 203 pounds.
The older you are, the more likely you are to be obese. The CDC stats showed 31.7 percent of men and 30.2 of women were obese among 50-to- 59-year-olds. This compares with 19.1 percent of men and women in the 19 to 29 age group.
Education is a factor. The rates of obesity are higher among people who never got as far as a high school degree compared with those who have been to college.
Embrace lifestyle changes rather than pill bottles. I try to approach obesity with some patients with sensitivity. It takes a longer conversation than is likely in many doctors' offices. You've got to get past feelings of shame and on to practical matters — such as replacing sugary drinks with water, and making fresh fruit and vegetables a larger part of the grocery haul each week. Sometimes I pluck tomatoes from my home garden and leave them on a table for patients. Then some patients do the same for me!
To get serious about losing weight, get serious about exercising at least 30 minutes every day. Go for a jog or a power walk. Join a gym. Take up aerobics or yoga. Find the workout you enjoy and enjoy it every day. One of my patients bought a used treadmill and some headphones with a nine-foot cord; now she watches television while pacing out her three miles every day. The point is to find what works for you and do it. Repeatedly.
Then there's food. You should be eating lean meats, eliminating trans fats, and tracking the nutritional information of the foods you eat. And track five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. After a few weeks, I hope you'll find yourself coming in a notch on your belt.
