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Weight Loss Exercise

Weight loss plan – Getting started

I found this intro to a weight loss program sitting on the Yahoo site. It not only gives you a to height chart similar to the Body Mass Index that I hate so much (I have a bigger body type and would look kind of freaky at my mandate 180 pounds). The article that I have copied here also has lots of health benefits of having a healthy .

If you are over, you are more likely to develop health problems, such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, certain types of cancer, gout (joint pain caused by excess uric acid), and gallbladder disease. Being over can also cause problems such as sleep apnea (interrupted breathing during sleep) and osteoarthritis (wearing away of the joints). The more over you are, the more likely you are to have health problems. Weight loss can help improve the harmful effects of being over. However, many over people have difficulty reaching their healthy body . Studies show that you can improve your health by losing as little as 10 to 20 pounds.

Weight-for-height chart
Use the weight-for-height chart below to see if you are over. Find your height in the left-hand column and move across the row to find your weight. If your falls within the moderate to severe overweight range on the chart, you are more likely to have health problems. Weights above the healthy range are less healthy for most people.

Weight loss plan - Getting started

What Is Your Waist Measurement?
If you are a woman and your waist measures more than 35 inches, or if you are a man and your waist measures more than 40 inches, you are more likely to develop heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and certain cancers. You may want to talk to your doctor or other health professional about the health risks of your .

Heart Disease and Stroke
Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death and disability for both men and women in the United States. Over people are more likely to have high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke, than people who are not over. Very high blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides (blood fats) can also lead to heart disease and often are linked to being over. Being over also contributes to angina (chest pain caused by decreased oxygen to the heart) and sudden death from heart disease or stroke without any signs or symptoms.

The Good News
The good news is that losing a small amount ofweight can reduce your chances of developing heart disease or a stroke. Reducing your weight by 10 percent can decrease your chance of developing heart disease by improving how your heart works, blood pressure, and levels of blood cholesterol and triglycerides.

Type 2 Diabetes
Noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (type 2 diabetes) is the most common type of diabetes in the United States. Type 2 diabetes reduces your body’s ability to control your blood sugar. It is a major cause of early death, heart disease, kidney disease, stroke, and blindness. Over people are twice as likely to develop type 2 diabetes as people who are not over. You can reduce your risk of developing this type of diabetes by losing and by increasing your physical activity.

Controlling Diabetes with Weight Loss
If you have type 2 diabetes, losing and becoming more physically active can help control your blood sugar levels. If you use medicine to control your blood sugar, loss and physical activity may make it possible for your doctor to decrease the amount of medication you need.

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Weight Loss Exercise

Weight loss plan – Getting started

Type 2 Diabetes
Noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (type 2 diabetes) is the most common type of diabetes in the United States. Type 2 diabetes reduces your body’s ability to control your blood sugar. It is a major cause of early death, heart disease, kidney disease, stroke, and blindness. Over people are twice as likely to develop type 2 diabetes as people who are not over. You can reduce your risk of developing this type of diabetes by losing and by increasing your physical activity.

Controlling Diabetes with Weight Loss
If you have type 2 diabetes, losing and becoming more physically active can help control your blood sugar levels. If you use medicine to control your blood sugar, loss and physical activity may make it possible for your doctor to decrease the amount of medication you need.

Cancer
Several types of cancer are associated with being over. In women, these include cancer of the uterus, gallbladder, cervix, ovary, breast, and colon. Over men are at greater risk for developing cancer of the colon, rectum, and prostate. For some types of cancer, such as colon or breast, it is not clear whether the increased risk is due to the extra or to a high-fat and high-calorie diet.

Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a serious condition that is closely associated with being over. Sleep apnea can cause a person to stop breathing for short periods during sleep and to snore heavily. Sleep apnea may cause daytime sleepiness and even heart failure. The risk for sleep apnea increases with higher body weights. Weight loss usually improves sleep apnea.

Controlling Diabetes with Weight Loss
If you have type 2 diabetes, losing and becoming more physically active can help control your blood sugar levels. If you use medicine to control your blood sugar, loss and physical activity may make it possible for your doctor to decrease the amount of medication you need.

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is a common joint disorder that most often affects the joints in your knees, hips, and lower back. Extra appears to increase the risk of osteoarthritis by placing extra pressure on these joints and wearing away the cartilage (tissue that cushions the joints) that normally protects them. Weight loss can decrease stress on the knees, hips, and lower back and may improve the symptoms of osteoarthritis.

Gout
Gout is a joint disease caused by high levels of uric acid in the blood. Uric acid sometimes forms into solid stone or crystal masses that become deposited in the joints. Gout is more common in overweight people and the risk of developing the disorder increases with higher body weights.

Gout notes:
Over the short term, some diets may lead to an attack of gout in people who have high levels of uric acid or who have had gout before. If you have a history of gout, check with your doctor or other health professional before trying to lose weight.

Gallbladder Disease
Gallbladder disease and gallstones are more common if you are over. Your risk of disease increases as your increases. It is not clear how being overweight may cause gallbladder disease.

Not Too Fast
Weight loss itself, particularly rapid loss or loss of a large amount of , can actually increase your chances of developing gallstones. Modest, slow loss of about 1 pound a week is less likely to cause gallstones.

Slow and Steady
Slow and steady loss of no more than 1 pound per week is the safest way to lose weight. Very rapid loss can cause you to lose muscle rather than fat. It also increases your chances of developing other problems, such as gallstones, gout, and nutrient deficiencies. Making long-term changes in your eating and physical activity habits is the best way to lose and keep it off over time.

Eat Better
Whether you are trying to lose or maintain your , you should take a look at your eating habits and try to improve them. Try to eat a variety of foods, especially pasta, rice, bread, and other whole-grain foods. You should also eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. These foods will fill you up and are lower in calories than foods full of oils or fats.

Little weight Loss – Big Benefit
If you are over, losing as little as 5 to 10 percent of your body may improve many of the problems linked to being over, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds and are considered over on the -for-height chart, you would need to lose 10 to 20 pounds. Even a small weight loss can improve your health.

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Weight Loss Exercise

How to avoid the Avian Flu

The Avian Flu is all over the news these days and I am amazed how so many people are not taking it seriously. Sure we all get flus every once in a while but this strain of the flu is much worse than usual flus.

Bird flu is an infection caused by avian influenza viruses. These flu viruses occur naturally among birds. Wild birds worldwide carry the viruses in their intestines, but usually do not get sick from them. However, bird flu is very contagious among birds and can make some domesticated birds, including chickens, ducks, and turkeys, very sick and kill them. The latest strain of the Avain Flu is designated H5N1 virus has been a flu that has mutated over the last few years and is now to the point of being passed over to humans and actually killing people. The US CDC has a page with some useful information about the flu and where it has come from.

The last time that the world had a global epidemic of a flu otherwise known as a pandemic was in 1918. The Flu Pandemic of 1918 killed and estimated 50 million people worldwide. The world has had pandemics before and since but that 1918 pandemic was the biggest in recent history.

Now we have factors that make the spread of disease much easier and dangerous than back in the early 20th century. We have a much better transportation system, with cars and planes readily available all over the world. We also have a much higher concentration of people living in cities compared to rural populations of the 1900s And lastly our great pharmaceutical advances of the last 100 years have left people overmedicated and often much less resistant to disease because they have become resistant to the more common antibiotics such as penicillin that was so important in stopping disease 50 years ago or so. One factor that is up in the air to me is the lifestyles of people today compared to 100 years ago. As we all know people are a lot more sedentary now compared to the agrarian hard living lifestyle of 100 years or even 50 years aso but our health system infrastructure is much better now than then and peoples longevity proves that out.

The latest reports about the Avian Flu is that at least 62 people have been killed in the far east and the scary part of this stat is that almost half of the people that are becoming infected with the Avian Flu are dying from it. The people that have been infected so far are mostly people that work with livestock so their proximity to the flu is an important reason that they may have been infected.

Now that you know what the flu is and how bad it could be here are some tips to avoid the flu.

With the holidays coming Osha has the following info for travelers

GUIDANCE FOR TRAVELERS
The CDC has issued precautions for travel to countries that are reporting outbreaks of avian influenza A (H5N1) in humans and animals. Currently, CDC does not recommend that the general public avoid travel to any of the countries affected by avian influenza A (H5N1). CDC has issued the following recommendations for travel to countries reporting human or animal cases of avian influenza A (H5N1):

Before you leave:
Assemble a travel health kit containing basic first aid and medical supplies. Be sure to include a thermometer and alcohol-based hand rub for hand hygiene.