Obesity, Irony, and Addiction

Oh, the irony. Today’s Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Front page—huge article entitled, “Obesity costs emerge as a major concern” and tucked within the usual assortment of ads, one page jumps out at me: The McDonald’s ad featuring pictures of huge burgers, shakes, some sort of coffee drink and some frosted other thing that I cannot really describe except as a sweet, fat-filled yucky thing people pretend is breakfast or a “coffee break” snack.

Oh, and, how nice of them—coupons for buy one, get one free, and the announcement that many McDonald’s are open 24 hours. You mean we can get all this at anytime? Cool!

I do not eat at fast food places. I do not know what some of these things are. I am a vegetarian, so I am unclear on a couple of these items. I do know this, however: These foods are made with fat, salt and sugar and to the people who eat them, they all taste really, really good. They do. People like them because they taste good.

There are a lot of people who are addicted because of the taste, the ease of getting their fix, and the prevalence and acceptance of these “food” items in our society. It isn’t just McDonald’s, of course.

It is the food industry. To quote Arun Grupa, editor of the Indypendent newspaper in New York City (www.indypendent.org), in his article entitled, “The Bacon Bomb”, “…The entire food industry has refined the science of processing the cheap commodities pumped out by agribusiness into addictive foods that represent far more than sustenance.”

According to David Kessler in “The End of Overeating,” the food industry has honed in on the ‘three points of the compass’— fat, salt, and sugar.

So I look at this ad, shake my head, and I do feel sad for the addicts. This is serious addiction.

I feel a lot of sympathy for people and that is one of the main reasons I became a Life Coach who specializes in Stress Reduction and Health Issues.

Some of these people have come to me for help in my coaching business. Many people share stories with me about problems with their health, and I truly feel bad for people. I try to help them to see how they can make different choices in their daily lives.

I have different feelings sometimes, too. Anger. I feel angry that people choose to live in a way that harms them and harms their children. These choices put a limit on how happy and healthy they can be.

They choose these limits. We all choose our addictions, and this addiction is no different than addictions to alcohol, drugs, or gambling. It is sneaky and sordid and ultimately, life threatening.

I feel especially sad and angry about the children. This is a sore point for me. I want to help adults, and I do, but I am hoping that by helping them, they in turn will help their children.

These are some of the quotes from the article written by Ed Blazina of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Sunday, August 2nd, 2009:

• “The issues converged last week when a national study estimated the cost of obesity at $147 billion annually, nearly double what it was 10 years ago.”

• “‘If obesity was an infectious disease, it would be an epidemic,’ said Dr. Daniel Bessesen, professor of medicine at the University of Colorado at Denver and chief of endocrinology at the Denver Health Medical Center.”

• “The CDC estimates nearly 40 percent of American adults are considered obese based on their body mass index….That extra weight frequently leads to additional health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and pulmonary difficulties.”

• “Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. Health & Human Services secretary told the conference [Inaugural Weight of the Nation conference], she’s particularly concerned about obese children. Statistics compiled by the CDC show that 25 percent of obese children stay obese as adults and have a raft of serious health problems. ‘If there was an epidemic of little kids getting cancer, it would be a national crisis,” Ms. Sebelius said. “But because it’s obesity and the damage doesn’t come until later in life, we’ve been slow to act. We can’t ignore this problem any longer.”

So, here’s the thing. How do you break an addiction?

1. Recognize that it is a problem. Own the problem. Do not blame it on anyone or anything else. State out loud that you make the choices that got you into trouble.

2. Write down what you want your life to look like. Really think about how you would like it to be.

3. Get help. There are support groups for every addiction, including Overeating. Ask friends for help, go to your church, and look online for groups that can support you. Hire help if you can afford it: A counselor, a coach, etc. Many insurance plans will cover some of this, but there is help out there for free if you look.

4. Take one day at a time. You didn’t get to this point overnight. It will take awhile to change your habits.

5. Change your lifestyle. Look at how you are doing things. Look at who you spend time with and what you spend your time doing.You can change, and it will take work, but it is worth it.

This is an addiction.

This is your life.

I am not trivializing addiction or obesity related problems.

This is serious.

This is important.

How good do you want your life to be?

Does This Economy Make my Butt Look Big?

It might. People beware.  If we had a problem with overweight citizens before, I fear that there will be even more of a problem soon.

You have a couple things  that are going to come into play here.

One, people are freaked out and will want to soothe their anxious souls.  What better way, they may think, then a big bowl of ice cream? I want to feel better NOW!  I am upset, so what’s the difference if I eat a whole bag of potato chips?  I have lost money, I may lose my job–I deserve to have that dessert, snack, beer, etc.

The second thing is this:  The house/food budget will shrink.  People will still want to go out to eat because it’s fast, convenient and a break from routine.  But if you cannot afford the nice restaurant, no problem.  Go fill up with junky fast food, soft drinks and all-you-can-eat buffets!

Stop.  There is a way to feel better that does not involve hurting yourselves more.  And that is exactly what you will be doing if you go down this road.  You will hurt yourself and your family.

Eating badly, eating junk, indulging in too many unhealthy foods will make you feel worse. Your health will suffer when your body cannot keep up the fight against too many preservatives, chemicals and junky stuff in your system.  You will get sick more often and need more medical care.  Can you afford that?  Can you afford the care for diabetes, heart problems and respiratory and digestive problems?  What about your children?  Is this what you want for them?

And emotionally, this is, at best, a temporary fix. Overeating and lying around watching television to escape reality is a short-lived, silly solution.

Get up. start walking, and start using your brain.

When your body moves, it is happy. You will stay healthier and strong.  Your body will be ready and your mind will clear, so that you can come up with solutions for whatever problems you feel you have.  Can you really think about new ways to solve your problems when you are in a sugar daze staring at the television?

Can you really concentrate on healthy food alternatives, when you are filling your mind and body with junk?

Again, STOP.  There are ways to eat healthy without breaking the budget.  You can make your own soups with vegetable, chicken broth and healthy frozen vegetables.  Clip coupons.  Buy canned beans and make rice. Make homemade pizza.  Watch for seasonal fruits for the best price. Get the family involved and learn how to take better care of your health together.

This is an excellent time to pull together as a family.  Instead of everybody in front of the tv,  how about everyone eating dinner at the same time, one that you made together?  How about a walk together, or play some games together?

Don’t get fat because things aren’t exactly how you want them!  Create a healthy world for yourself and your family!  You can do this! Ignore the negative things around you and make happy, healthy choices.  It’s going to turn around, and you will have made it through feeling better than you ever did before!  It’s your choice!

Aaaccckkk! Lipitor for children?!

I have to rant. I am horrified to read about the recommendation by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The academy released its new guidelines today. They are recommending that some children as young as 8 be given cholesterol-fighting drugs to ward off future heart problems. They are also advising low-fat milk for 1-year-olds. (Pittsburgh Post Gazette, July 7th, 2008).

I can barely write because I am so disgusted. Why are we being advised to give our children drugs? Why are little babies supposed to have low-fat milk? They need the fat for brain development!!

Parents—TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OVERWEIGHT CHILDREN! This is ridiculous! How are the kids getting fat in the first place? Are six, seven, and eight- year -olds driving themselves to the store to buy pop, cake and candy? Are ten-year-olds driving themselves through fast food places and ordering and paying for huge sodas and ridiculous food that has no nutritional value?

I am sorry, but I truly think, letting your child get fat, get no exercise, and eat poorly, is a form of child abuse. I know that sounds harsh, but my heart is breaking for children. And now, we are going to give drugs! Stop the kids from eating so much junk and help them get some exercise!

This isn’t rocket science. Eat properly and exercise more. No, it isn’t easy, but this problem is causing problems for everyone. Our medical costs, insurance costs, etc. are going to skyrocket if we don’t get this under control!

We have too many overweight children and overweight adults! We cannot keep treating this as if it is normal! People are eating too much! We don’t need to treat this with drugs! We need to stop pretending this is normal. It is not!

If one and two year olds weren’t already overdoing the fat in the rest of their diets, the kind of milk they drink would be a moot point. This is insane!

Why don’t people want to take better care of themselves—that may be a question for therapists. I am more concerned about the lack of concern for children. They are our future. Do we want them fat, sick, out of breath from walking up stairs, and unable to live happy lives because of it? I don’t think so. But something has to change.

Time Magazine “Numbers” and McDonald’s

I love this.  On page 16 of the May 5th issue of Time magazine—The number of calories in a McDonald’s Big Mac meal which includes a burger, fries and soda—1,435 calories. This is followed by the number 130,000–The number of New Yorkers (according to the state health department) who would “avoid obesity if chains like McDonald’s published calorie counts on their menus…”  OK.  Who doesn’t know that this Big Mac Meal is not a good use of calories?  Women, who are of normal weight, probably need 1800-2400 calories a day, depending on their activity level to maintain their weight.  Men, let’s say, 2200-3000 calories.  That meal is about a half to three quarters of the calories for the day, and we aren’t even figuring out the fat yet!!!  But, this is the part that kills me.  Who wouldn’t know that this is not healthy?  Who doesn’t know by now, that soda is one of the worst things to eat and that this meal is NOT GOOD FOR YOU?  So, if McDonald’s would only post the calories, it would stop obesity in 130,000 people?  Please, people, let’s take some responsibility for our choices!