10/05/2026
Obesity is a growing concern worldwide, and a recognized chronic disease now too. We all need to try to match what we burn off with what we eat, and not over eat.
Ways we can do so:
Scales each a.m before breakfast to monitor weight, I do this too.
Calorie count, and read labels on items you buy.
Home cooking is healthier than eating out, for one thing we know what is going in the food, but we all like a meal out too.
Food to aim to avoid:
No or far less of the Greasy, fatty foods, cakes, cream etc. Leads to higher cholesterol
Mono-saturates higher content over polyunsaturated fats is better.
Yes to Naturally oily fish twice a week, Extra virgin olive oil = Cardio and brain protective.
Reduce/ eliminate Salty foods (salt retains water, so water retention in the body is more likely than not), salt also raises blood pressure, which leads to heart disease.
So aim to buy items with no salt or the least salt in it (sodium is salt).
There is already enough salt in foods without adding more to it.
Sugar - Reduce or eliminate it. The taste buds to adapt and they do get used to it. Sugary foods, high sugar daily leads to diabetes.
Sugar, fatty foods, and salt are detrimental to the heart and to the brain and crosses the blood brain barrier leading to cognitive decline and dementia (I completed a systematic review on the links of Type 2 diabetes and dementia (Alzheimers and vascular dementia), and the causes are the same for both conditions.
Remember no one is perfect, it would not be ethical or easy to say eliminate those three fully. But. more realistic to say, reduce those three as far as possible, and try eat and match what you burn off daily.
When awake in the day, important to get off the couch and mobilize (to the washroom and back for example), each 1-2 hours.
Overweight/obesity leads to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, cancer, cognitive decline, sluggish lifestyle, less energy, poor sleep and a poorer quality of life. It leads to chronic diseases.
This is your health education for today. Help is out there and is free, if you are having a problem with your weight, it is okay and important to consult a doctor, pharmacist, health professional for help. Never be embarrassed or afraid to ask for help, remember overweight/ obesity is a global issue and increasing, a reason is a more sedentary lifestyle with modern technology, different work habits compared to e.g. 60 years ago when people were naturally more active, with manual labour as well.
Also important to note; Muscle is heavier than fat. Scales can be a good monitor but does not necessarily mean that someone is overweight.
We are responsible for our children's health not just our own too, when a child is overweight they fare worse than their grandparents by the time they reach the same age. Just to be aware of this too. Being active daily, being creative and thinking of ways YOU can keep active daily, is better and proven with evidence to be more effective than being dictated to, no one likes being dictated to either.
In cold or poor weather, an exercise bike at home, or stepper, step, using stairs, these are all examples of ways to keep active in doors, watching television while using a treadmill to walk for 30 mins on a small incline as another example, can all work.
Add some weight resistance daily, it increases metabolism which helps burn off the fat to reduce weight too.
The poorer members of society and some ethnic groups are also higher risk, a reason being cultural diet, and another being the government needs to put healthier cheaper options on the food shelves to make items more affordable, the cheaper items are not the healthiest, you can compare to see those differences too. Together we can push for change via our governments to put more healthier affordable items on the shelves in grocery stores.
