Obesity Prevention Sources

May 10, 2014

Obesity Prevention Sources-Developmental Origins

Obesity does not discriminate on any line prevention of obesity is better than cure especially in children

Obesity is a condition which has been for a long time been seen to be a problem of choice and an unfortunate failure of will and self-restraint by many in the society. However it has much deeper and more complex roots, which we are going to discuss in this article so that we get to know more about the origins of obesity. For instance genes clearly play a role in driving an individual’s propensity to gain excess weight, as does the environment and gene environment interactions. Early-life influences, beginning with the intrauterine environment and continuing through the first few years of life, also shape the trajectory of weight gain and body fatness throughout the life course.

If a mother smokes during pregnancy or gains too much weight, there’s a greater chance that her child will be obese. Lack of sleep or too-rapid weight gain during infancy may also increase obesity risk. A proposal has been made by researchers that coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and other chronic diseases develop in part due to inadequate nutrition during life and infancy.

The gathered data is showing that higher birth weight is also associated with obesity, diabetes, and other adult diseases has helped extend this concept into the developmental origins hypothesis which encompasses the preconception period as well as many critical periods of fetal and infant development. During each of these periods, several factors appear to have a substantial impact on obesity in childhood and adulthood. I will be discussing some of the outlines of the key prenatal and early life influences on the development of adult weight and obesity, I want therefore to request you to keep reading and be adequately informed at the end of this article.

Obesity Prevention Sources-Prenatal Influences on Obesity

The warm, nutrient- and hormone-rich environment of the uterus has a profound effect on fetal development. Brief or fluctuating changes in the intrauterine environment at critical or sensitive periods of the developmental process, as well as longer term alterations, could have irreversible, lifelong consequences. Three modifiable prenatal factors that appear to shape fetal nutrition and health in later life are:

The mother’s smoking habits during pregnancy.
The mother’s weight gain during pregnancy.
The mother’s blood sugar levels during pregnancy, specifically, when she develops pregnancy-related (gestational) diabetes.

It makes intuitive sense that the mother’s diet during pregnancy should also affect fetal development and birth weight, but evidence for this is inconsistent.

Obesity Prevention Sources-Maternal Smoking during Pregnancy and Child Obesity Risk

Although smoking during pregnancy tends to slow the rate of fetal growth children born of women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to be obese than the children of women who don’t. In a meta-analysis of 14 studies, maternal smoking during pregnancy was associated with a 50 percent higher risk of childhood obesity. Most of the studies looked at children’s obesity status at ages 3 to 7; one study assessed obesity at age 14, and another tracked the children all the way to young adulthood.

Obesity Prevention Sources-Gestational Weight Gain and Childhood Obesity Risk

Excessive weight gain during pregnancy is more common now than it was in 1990 when the Institute of Medicine (IOM) first offered recommendations for pregnancy-related weight gain. In addition, more women are beginning pregnancy overweight or obese. These worrisome changes prompted the IOM to reevaluate what constitutes healthy weight gain during pregnancy, with new evidence suggesting that weight gain once considered normal by the IOM actually increases the risk of childhood obesity. Further studies revealed that children born of women who gained excessive amount of weight had above four times risk of being overweight at age 3 compared with children born of women who gained an inadequate amount of weight. Even women who gained what was considered to be an adequate amount of weight bore children who were nearly four times more likely to be overweight at age 3 than children of women who gained an inadequate amount of weight.

Obesity Prevention Sources-Gestational Diabetes and Child Obesity Risk

Weight gained during pregnancy is primarily adipose (fat) tissue. Proliferation of adipose tissue is often accompanied by a state of relative insulin resistance starting in mid-pregnancy. This adaptive response allows for more efficient transfer of glucose and other fuels across the placenta, so the fetus can grow. But it may also subject the fetus to periods of high blood glucose and elevated insulin. These can lead to increased body fat, which generally manifests as larger size at birth. Many studies show that birth weight is directly associated with later BMI, so it makes sense that gestational diabetes in a mother may contribute to obesity in her child.

Maternal BMI at the beginning of pregnancy is a strong risk factor for offspring obesity and other conditions. Once pregnancy begins, however, it is not a modifiable factor and no one is recommending that women try to lose weight during pregnancy. That is why achieving a healthy BMI before pregnancy begins is one of the most important goals for preventing obesity across generations.

Postnatal Influences on Obesity

Environmental influences don’t stop with birth. Instead, they merely shift from a small, confined space largely controlled by the mother’s genes, lifestyle, and physiology to an unbounded environment with equally influential effects. Three modifiable postnatal factors during infancy that influence weight in later life include

How rapidly an infant gains weight.
How long an infant is breast fed.
How much an infant sleep.

Breastfeeding and Obesity Risk

The initiation and duration of breastfeeding may influence obesity in later life, although this is a controversial area of research. In two meta-analyses of breastfeeding versus bottle feeding, breastfeeding was associated with a 13 percent and a 22 percent reduced risk of obesity in later life. Duration of breastfeeding may matter: A meta-analysis of 17 studies of breastfeeding duration found that each additional month that infants were breastfed was associated with a 4 percent lower risk of obesity later in life.

It is not clear that breastfeeding itself actually prevents obesity, however, as both breastfeeding and obesity may be influenced by similar socioeconomic and cultural factors. Although debate lingers over whether breastfeeding protects against childhood obesity, breastfeeding has many other proven health benefits for infants and their mothers, and it should be promoted regardless of its relationship to childhood obesity.

Healthy Behaviors During and Even Before Pregnancy Can Help Prevent Obesity

Nutrition and other lifestyle factors during several early periods in the lifecycle just before conception, the months spent in utero, and the months after birth can have profound effects on an individual’s weight at birth, during childhood, and on into adulthood. These are also potentially optimal times for intervention, for two reasons:

Women may be more receptive to making lifestyle changes as they prepare to get pregnant and when they are pregnant to increase the likelihood of having a healthy baby. And after giving birth, many women are willing to make substantial changes to raise a healthy infant. Here are five key messages for clinicians to give to women of childbearing age that could help improve their health and the health of their children, and limit the current epidemic of obesity:

Strive for a healthy weight before pregnancy.
Don’t smoke during pregnancy.
Aim for a reasonable weight gain during pregnancy.
Breastfeed (preferably without other liquids for 4–6 months and some breastfeeding for at least 12 months).
Ensure infants get adequate sleep during the first few years of life.

Finally as I conclude this article, having known the causes you can evaluate yourself and if you feel disturbed by your weight you can visit AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under Doctor Akoury’s care for treatment. You will be handles with experts who will focus on Neuroendocrine Restoration (NER) to reinstate normality through realization of the oneness of Spirit, Mind, and Body, Unifying the threesome into ONE to make you get better and enjoy your life to the fullest.

Obesity Prevention Sources-Developmental Origins

Prevention of Lyme Disease

March 5, 2014

Prevention of Lyme Disease-It is possible

whatever it take avoid such places and prevent Lyme disease from attacking you and family

As it is always said that prevention is better than cure, it will be very important to take keen interest in the prevention of this problem. The best way to prevent Lyme disease would be to avoid areas where deer ticks live, especially wooded, bushy areas with long grass. You can reduce your risk of getting Lyme disease by taking some simple precautions like:

Wear long pants and long sleeves. When walking in wooded or grassy areas, wear shoes, long pants tucked into your socks, a long-sleeved shirt, a hat and gloves. Try to stick to trails and avoid walking through low bushes and long grass. Keep your dog on a leash.
Use insect repellents. Apply an insect repellent with a 20 percent or higher concentration of DEET to your skin. Parents should apply to their children, avoiding their hands, eyes and mouth. Keep in mind that chemical repellents can be toxic, so follow directions carefully. Apply products with permethrin to clothing or buy pretreated clothing.
Do your best to tick-proof your yard. Clear brush and leaves where ticks live. Keep woodpiles in sunny areas.
Check yourself, your children and your pets for ticks. Be especially vigilant after spending time in wooded or grassy areas. Deer ticks are often no bigger than the head of a pin, so you may not discover them unless you search carefully. It’s helpful to shower as soon as you come indoors. Ticks often remain on your skin for hours before attaching themselves. Showering and using a washcloth may be enough to remove any unattached ticks.
Don’t assume you’re immune. Even if you’ve had Lyme disease before, you can get it again.
Remove a tick as soon as possible with tweezers. Gently grasp the tick near its head or mouth. Don’t squeeze or crush the tick, but pull carefully and steadily. Once you’ve removed the entire tick, dispose of it and apply antiseptic to the bite area.

Prevention of Lyme disease-How to reduce Tick bites

Avoid tick-infested areas, such as leaf litter under trees. Avoid brushing against long grasses and brush on edges of paths. Don’t sit on stumps or fallen logs.

Wear light-colored long pants and long sleeves so you can easily see any ticks.
Tuck shirt into pants and tuck pants into socks.
Use DEET on skin and treat clothing with spray containing permethrin.
Do a thorough tick check upon returning inside and for several days following exposure.
Check bedding for several days following exposure for ticks that drop off.
Ticks, especially nymphal ticks, are tiny. Find and remove them before they bite.

Prevention of Lyme disease-What to do if you are bitten

Use fine-point tweezers or a special tick-removing tool. Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible. If you don’t have tweezers, protect your fingers with a tissue.

Pull the tick straight out with steady, even pressure to view a Tick’s Mouth and why it is so important to pull out the tick correctly.
Avoid squeezing the tick, breaking it, or allowing any blood to remain on your skin.
Place the tick in a small plastic bag or vial with blades of grass, leaf, or moist (not wet) piece of tissue.
Label the bag with your name, date, site of bite and how long tick was attached.
Have the tick identified and tested by a lab, health department or veterinarian.
Wash your hands, disinfect the tweezers and bite site.
Educate yourself about tick-borne diseases and consult a doctor to see if treatment is warranted.

Considerations for Prophylactic (Preventive) Treatment

The tick infection rate in the area where you acquired the tick. An area may still labeled as “no risk” despite lack of scientific studies.
The relative risk of transmission, depending on whether the tick was a nymph or adult, duration of attachment and how it was removed.
Whether the tick tested positive for a tick-borne infection.
The Lyme germs may spread widely in the body, including to the brain, within hours/days.
The cost of prophylactic treatment vs. risk of infection.
The risks and benefits of prophylactic treatment vs. risks of infection.

Other protective ways

Reduce ticks on your property by

pruning trees
clearing brush
removing litter
Mowing grass short, and letting it dry thoroughly between watering.
Move shrubbery and overgrowth farther away from areas frequented by people.

Make your property unattractive to animals that are hosts to ticks by:

Eliminating birdfeeders, birdbaths, and salt licks;
Erecting fencing around the property;
clearing away woodpiles, garbage, and leaf piles;
Removing stonewalls that provide homes to wildlife.
Have your property chemically treated.
You can kill ticks on your property by applying chemicals. Seek professional advice before application. Carefully timed applications increase effectiveness.

Also Consider These Important Facts:

If you tuck pants into socks and shirts into pants, be aware that ticks will climb upward to hidden areas of the head and neck, so spot-check clothes frequently.
Clothes can be sprayed with DEET or treated with permethrin. Follow label instructions carefully.
Upon returning home, clothes can be put in a high temperature dryer for 20 minutes to kill any unseen ticks.
Any contact with vegetation, even playing in the yard, can result in exposure to ticks. Frequent tick checks should be followed by a whole-body examination and tick removal each night. This is the single most effective method for prevention of Lyme disease.

Prevention of Lyme Disease-Safely removal Tick

If you DO find a tick attached to your skin, do not panic. Not all ticks are infected, and your risk of Lyme disease is greatly reduced if the tick is removed within the first 36 hours. To remove a tick, ensure that you:

Use a pair of pointed tweezers to grasp the tick by the head or mouth parts right where they enter the skin. DO NOT grasp the tick by the body.
Pull firmly and steadily outward. DO NOT jerk or twist the tick.
Place the tick in a small container of rubbing alcohol to kill it.
Clean the bite wound with rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide.
Monitor the site of the bite for the next 30 days for the appearance of a rash. If you develop a rash or flu-like symptoms, contact your health care provider immediately. Although not routinely recommended, taking antibiotics within three days after a tick bite may be beneficial for some persons. This would apply to deer tick bites that occurred in areas where Lyme disease is common and there is evidence that the tick fed for more than one day. In cases like this you should discuss the possibilities with your doctor or health care provider.

Prevention of Lyme Disease-It is possible

Relapse prevention and healthy nutrition

February 24, 2014

relapse occurs when the addict resumes his or her addictive behavior after a period of abstinence.

Relapse prevention and healthy nutrition

Relapse prevention and healthy nutrition-what is relapse

Relapse is the deterioration in someone’s state of health after a temporary improvement. However, in the context of addictive behaviors, a relapse occurs when the addict resumes his or her addictive behavior after a period of abstinence. For people trying to control their behavior rather than trying to quit entirely, a relapse is a period of uncontrolled behavior. For example, for someone trying to control their drinking, a relapse could result in a session of binge drinking. For a shopaholic who is trying to follow a spending plan, a relapse could be going on a shopping spree.

Relapse prevention and healthy nutrition-Relapse Prevention

The way to prevent a relapse is to recognize and deal with some of the things that could get in the way of recovery. If you learn how to overcome these challenges, you will be more likely to keep up the changes you’ve made during treatment. There are several things that a person can do to prevent relapse. Below are some strategies that you may find helpful: Develop a support system – and use it! It is very important to surround yourself with people who love, support and encourage you. These people can be members of your family, your friends, or your care providers. They will be there to help you when you are struggling with a difficult situation or experience. It’s not always easy to reach out, but you should feel comfortable asking for help when you need it. Some people find it useful to make a list of names and phone numbers to call if they start to slip back into old thought patterns or unhealthy eating behaviors. Reduce negative influences Try to get rid of any negative influences in your life. That includes people who make you feel bad about yourself or who constantly obsess about their own weight and appearance. Your own thoughts can also be a bad influence. Learn to question any destructive thoughts you have about yourself. Make a list of all of your good qualities and use it when you feel critical or pessimistic. Identify your “triggers” A “trigger” is anything that can cause you to return to disordered eating or thoughts about disordered eating. Each person has their own triggers. They can include feeling stressed, anxious, depressed or lonely. Sometimes a traumatic experience, such as the death of a loved one can be a trigger. Some people are more likely to relapse at certain times of the year, such as during holidays or exams. To identify your triggers, think of times when you were tempted to relapse. Try to figure out what made you feel that way. Make a personal coping plan Make a list of different triggers that could cause you to relapse. Then, come up with a plan for dealing with each of these triggers in a healthier, more constructive way. Your coping plan might include calling a friend, taking a walk, or writing in a journal. Eat meals regularly A meal and snack schedule can prevent you from going back to disordered eating. Plan your meals and snacks ahead of time, and don’t skip any! Eat three meals a day, plus snacks, at regular times (about every 3 hours). A consistent schedule will be good for both your emotional and physical health. Your family may be able to help by making sure that you eat meals together as often as possible. Keep busy and stay involved Get involved in a hobby or activity that you enjoy and that makes you happy. It can be anything from arts & crafts, to volunteering, to nature walks, to joining a club. If you make time to do the things you enjoy, or to do nice things for others, your focus will shift away from your eating disorder. It can also help to keep you motivated to recover and to stay connected to your surroundings and the people in your community. Make time for yourself It is important to take time to do something good for yourself every day. Some people find it helpful to use this time to relax or reflect. Some do yoga or meditation, some draw, paint, write, or listen to music. No matter what you choose, remind yourself that you are important. You deserve to take this time to do something that is just for you!

Relapse prevention and healthy nutrition-Quick tips for healthy living

Nutrition is the process of breaking down food and substances taken in by the mouth to use for energy in the body or it is the process of obtaining and consuming food. By practicing a healthy diet, many of the known health issues can be avoided. With good nutrition comes healthy living. Therefore, healthy living is all about moderation, balance and flexibility. Attaining this may be difficult because there will be some days when you don’t eat healthy foods and some days when you don’t do enough exercise. This is totally normal in your busy, sometimes stressful, life. You get a more accurate picture of how you’ve been doing if you look back over the past month or so. For the month ahead, aim to make small changes that will improve your health, both mental and physical. Here are some ideas:

Nourish your body throughout the day—avoid skipping meals
Eat a variety of foods and aim for a balance over the month
Rather than worry about ‘good’ versus ‘bad’ foods, remember that moderation is the key
Try to eat more fruits and vegetables
Drink lots of water. It helps reduce fatigue and replenishes the body
Use caffeine in moderation, particularly if you are prone to anxiety or sleep problems
Listen to your body’s signals—it will let you know when you are full or hungry. Become more conscious of why you eat when you are not really hungry. Try to find other ways to cope with feelings of boredom, unhappiness, loneliness or social pressure
Use exercise as a way to deal with stress
Slowly increase your physical activity level
Consider joining a gym or other formal exercise program
Check out your local community centre for a range of fun options and programs people of all ages
Try adding in extra activity throughout your normal day, such as parking a block from work and walking the rest of the way or using the stairs instead of the elevator. Even getting up to change TV channels can make a difference!
Remind yourself that weight and shape are not the only way to evaluate your self-worth—think of at least one other way that shows you are a worthwhile, loveable, talented person who has something to offer the world

Tag Archives: prevention