Cost of Overweight and Obesity

For a long while, it's difficult to pinpoint the cost of overweight and obesity and resulting health problems. People are blindsided by the implication of huge future medical cost.

A new study has shown that the savings on medical, fuel, food and other costs would be enough to give every U.S. household more than $4,000 totalling $487 billion dollars.

I'm sure it would give a big boost to the economy and quality of life.

Whole Egg or Egg White Only??

Do you eat the whole egg or egg white only and ditch the egg yolk? - that's a debate.

Americans have consumed whole eggs until early 1970s when studies linked high cholesterol to heart disease. That's the cholesterol in the blood, not in the diet that linked to heart disease. Egg yolk is the major source of dietary cholesterol and immediately causes concern and gets the bad name.

The 212 milligrams of cholesterol in one large egg certainly catch the consumers' attention. They started to cut back on eggs. However, according to Neva Cochran, a nutrition communications consultant that thirty years of research has never linked eggs to heart disease.

Saturated fats and trans fats are the bigger concerns than cholesterol leading to coronary artery disease. Dairy products, meats and oils are potentially loaded with bad fats. So at least you can choose healthier lower fat choices if you don't want to cut them all out.

The American Heart Association's latest nutrition recommendations do not limit the number of eggs intake as long as the total dietary cholesterol is limited to about 300 milligrams per day. So one whole egg a day is good.

You Want to Shape Up Like J.Lo?

According to a report in Closer magazine, the actress/singer Jennifer Lopez (a.k.a. J.Lo) has adopted a punishing exercise regime to get back to her pre-pregancy shape.

Read more here >>

J.Lo gets up 4 a.m. every morning and starts her 3-hour workout, 7 days a week under a team of personal trainers and nutritionists. That's tremendous dedication and commitment.

Granted that J.Lo has her own personal trainers and nutritionists. But she still has to get up every morning at 4 a.m. and does all the 3-hour hard workout. Her trainers can't do the exercise for her. Her nutritionist can't eat the foods for her.

This Latin goddess is just like everyone else. She's not different. J.Lo doesn't have anything special to get in shape and stay in shape. She trains hard and eats well. Can you commit yourself something similar to her regime? You want to shape up like J.Lo? Can you work out like J.Lo?

Don't blame your fat genes!

Today you don't need to be a Hollywood celebrity to have your own personal trainer. Contact Your Dream Body WorkoutXpert to get in shape like J.Lo.

Normal Weight = Healthy Weight ?

Even if your weight is normal (BMI<25.0), you're still susceptible to heart disease, diabetes and other metabolic disorders if your body fat is too high.

According to a recent study lead by Dr. Francisco Lopez-Jimenz, a cardiologist with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., more than half (61%) of Americans are suffering from the so-called "normal weight obesity". Their body weights are within normal range (BMI<25.o), but their body fats are higher than 20% for men and 30% for women.

High body fat can affect heart and metabolic health including high cholesterol, high levels of leptin that regulates appetite and high rates of metabolic syndrome.

Normal weight is NOT equal to healthy weight.

Body weight or BMI is not a reliable gauge of obesity or health at the individual level. A muscular person may have high BMI, yet has low body fat and very healthy. On the contrary, a normal-weight person may have high body fat and is not healthy.

"Excess body fat in the belly is a menace, whatever your weight." said Dr. David L. Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine.