It’s early in the New Year, ‘tis the season to contemplate our ever expanding waistlines. As you may know, 65% of Americans are considered over fat and a third are obese. The current obesity epidemic is on the minds of health care and health promotion experts everywhere. It’s also on the minds of the self proclaimed diet guru’s looking to cash in on this growing (no pun intended) market.
Who’s to blame?
Honestly, who cares? Is blaming genetics (aka the fat gene), the fast food industry, fad diets (see the debate in Business Week) or even the food guidelines (I’m not kidding, check out this debate from MedPage Today, be sure to read it all see both sides) going to help us solve the problem? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? It’s a futile argument and it doesn’t change the fact that we are fat and getting fatter. Every diet, even the most bizarre, has worked for somebody at one time or another. And that one person will defend the merits of that diet forever, while the other 99 people blame themselves and go look for something else that will “work”.
The food industry spends over $25 billion a year on advertising; “Five-a-Day” for fruits and vegetables spent $1 million; which message are consumers getting? Each year something like 80 million Americans go on a diet and spend about $40 billion dollars. The long-term success rate of the average diet is poor and most dieters regain some or all of the weight back in 3-5 years.
We eat too much, move too little and then try to buy a miracle. Then we repeat the cycle over and over. Benjamin Franklin said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” I agree!
Wake up America!
It’s time to stop letting the food industry tell you what to eat, stop letting the restaurants tell you how much to eat and stop to letting the diet industry lure you into buying the latest fad. I know that even if I wear a Nike golf apparel and use Nike golf equipment, I am not going to golf like Tiger Woods. It’s that simple. Why can’t we draw the same logical conclusions when it comes to food?
Because behavior change is hard, really hard and we want it to be easy. There is no easy button when it comes to weight loss and behavior change. I wish there was. Believe me, I will tell you if I ever find it – so will every health care and health promotion professional – we’re the one’s on your side.
What’s Next?
Trust a professional – a real one, with a degree and credentials. If you want to change your diet, talk to a Registered Dietician. If you want to exercise, talk to an exercise physiologist (ACSM or NSCA are good places to start). If you want to change your behavior, talk to an Intrinsic Coach®. If you want to learn more, research a site that’s not selling anything (web sites ending in .org or .gov). Here are a few of my favorites:
• FDA Facts About Weight Loss Products & Programs
• American Dietetics Association 2007 diet review
• ADA Good Nutrition Reading List
• My Pyramid Eating Plan
• Shape Up America
• For more links you can also visit my web site
Remember, it’s not about the product, the professional or the program – it’s about you. Here’s to your health!
2 comments:
There's no point in blaming anything. It won't do any good. What everyone needs to do is understand their body and work with its needs. By eating the right stuff and by exercising properly, weight can be fought off. I'm not saying that it's easy because it's not. But then, the fact remains that weight gain or obesity can be prevented.
Yes, my point exactly!
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