By Kelly Murphy, Health and Fitness Guru, Expert Out Loud
Food: it is creating chaos in our society. With an ever growing overweight and obese population, our struggles to find health and wellness revolve around food. “We are digging our graves with our teeth; one bite at a time”, says a respected doctor in the field of oncology. As a fitness trainer, many of my clients are committed to achieving weight loss through regular exercise and proper nutrition. Yet, with dedication, motivation, education, inspiration, and behavior modification; many of them continue to struggle with the daily challenges of staying away from all foods we know to be toxic to our bodies. Passionate about my family and the health of our nation, I dedicate my life to learning about the severe implications our daily choices have on our well-being.
Weight of the Nation, an HBO exclusive documentary, was recently released journaling the epidemic of obesity and the implications our food choices have on our health. Watching the documentary was insightful and further fuels my desire to continue to share the message of this film. Here is what we know: (source : Weight of the Nation)
- 90% of families with obese children do not seek medical help
- 63% adults are overweight or obese in America
- Sugar-sweetened beverages are the largest source of sugar in the diets of children and adolescents
- 40% of every dollar spent on food is prepared outside the home
- 79 million Americans are prediabetic
- 46% of adults added sugar intake comes from beverages
- Children spend over 7.5 hours a day watching media, 7 days a week
- Half of obese teenage girls become morbidly obese by their 30’s
- Physical Activity Guidelines recommend 60 minutes of exercise per day for children
- One in four adults receive no leisure time nor intense physical activity
- Studies show 83% of obese individuals are likely to suffer from kidney disease than those who are of a healthy weight
- #1 cancer promoter is sugar
- Production of our food supply is a large contributor to preventable lifestyle diseases
If we know that sugar, white flour, starchy carbs, trans fats, fast foods loaded with MSG, and processed foods filling grocery store isles are bad for our health, why do we continue to torture our bodies with the toxicity these foods produce in our systems? We are obsessed with losing weight to the detriment of recognizing that the foods we are eating are not only making us FAT, but are killing us! In my opinion, the four part HBO documentary summarizes the crisis we are faced with in an eye opening manner, yet neglects to pay significant contributions to the most important aspect of achieving health and wellness ~ The MIND.
Eat more of the right foods, less of the overly processed food and move more! Certainly, the words are simplistic in nature; especially regarding a problem that so many suffer from. It is difficult. Here is where the documentary falls short. As a society, we know McDonalds isn’t good for us; yet we enjoy the indulgence of a Big Mac with French fries. We are faced with the daily headlines that our portions are larger than life! Yet, we still continue to struggle! Where we fall short in the ever growing urge to get healthy is our inability to recognize the importance of the MIND. We have spent years developing habits, creating a lifestyle, and building a life pattern that is killing us. In my first blog, I suggested the importance of the mind. Until we hone in our mental thought patterns, wake up to the behaviors that are creating this problem, and make a conscious effort to fix the “inside” we will make little strides in fighting this ever growing epidemic.
Stay tuned for my next blog entry, as I share with you information regarding the mind and how our internal workings are setting us up for failure. Until we tap into the program of our mind, fix the way we think, reprogram our daily habits, we will continue to struggle with the challenges of finding a balanced healthy lifestyle. There is no pill, diet, fitness program, surgery, or, research study that will successfully create a healthy lifestyle without tapping into the subconscious. It begins with the MIND. MIND MATTERS!