Nutrition and Weight Loss Ideas

There is one fact that we can no longer deny — and that is that we are a country of people with a weight problem — a serious weight problem.

Americans are putting up some numbers on the weight scales that are breaking all the records. We now have over 130 million people who are considered to be overweight or obese. What is truly frightening is this fact within a fact — half of all women aged 20 to 39 in the United States are included in these figures. We don’t get off our butts anymore. We would rather eat foods that we can find in fast-food places — most of which is extremely low in nutritional value — thereby making us eat more and more. We are eating quantities of food at our meals that are way more than we need — and this is because we either eat so fast — and/or the food is so low in nutrition that our brains never get the message that we’re full.

One of the major culprits in our overweight problem is the consumption of sodas. I don’t care what the advertisers are saying about the “wholesomeness” of sodas, these soft drinks are directly linked to both obesity and type 2 diabetes. These drinks are loaded with sugar. People who like to drink sodas also like to consume products that are filled with refined carbohydrates and high fructose corn syrup. The more they consume, the fatter they get. The really sad part is that our kids are using these products in ever greater amounts.

These soft drinks provide little or no nutritional value. We are now slurping down more of this than our bodies can handle. There is so much high fructose corn syrup (see my article on this at http://www.1healthybody.com/21/more-about-sugar/) getting onto our diets through these sodas, that we are offsetting our intake of solid foods. We are getting fat because we are consuming more of this that we can burn off. And, you’ve probably also noticed that the sizes of the soda bottles people are carrying around with them has gotten larger and larger. Well, you need to know that the size of the drinks is in direct correlation with American waistlines.

To put this dangerous pattern in perspective, one regular 12-ounce can of sugar-sweetened soda contains approximately 150 calories with close to 50 grams of sugar. If this is added to the typical American diet, one can of soda per day could lead to a weight gain of 15 pounds in one year. Currently the consumption of soda accounts for about 8%-9% of total energy among children and adults, and studies suggest that it is most certainly having a negative effect on the people who consume it in such vast quantities.

This is proving to be just as dangerous as smoking — and the people who do abuse either of these products — sodas or cigarettes — will argue — “So What?”

Here’s the answer to the “So Whats” — type 2 diabetes — heart disease — lung, bowel and colon cancer, high blood pressure, nerve damage, kidney damage, and a variety of other dangerous health issues. There is also the loss of bone density, which is related to the loss of calcium. Think about your kids — if they have a depleted calcium content (which happens when they drink these sugary soft drinks) this could lead to hip fractures and other bone problems later in life. Consuming these sodas can have deadly effects in the long run.

Sure, it’s a battle. The advertisers are spending billions of dollars to get you to drink more and more of their mouth-watering soft drinks. As someone who strives to get you to quit using these products, I’m up against some very well financed opposition. I also fight against smoking while Big Tobacco uses every kind of deceit to convince you that I’m wrong. As Michele Simon, the author of Appetite for Profit, writes, “A 2003 government survey showed that 43 percent of elementary schools, 74 percent of middle schools, and 98 percent of high schools sold food through vending machines, snack bars, or other venues outside the federally supported school meal programs … With public schools so desperate for funding, districts are lured into signing exclusive contracts (also known as “pouring rights” deals) with major beverage companies — mainly Coca-Cola and PepsiCo”.

It’s all about money — it’s not about the health of our kids and adults.

You — the readers of this blog and the multitude of others that deal with this topic — are the answer. We have the control. We don’t have to buy these products. We can get them out of our homes and we can campaign to get them out of our schools.

Doesn’t one of the soft drink manufacturers have “The Real Thing” in their slogan? Well, there’s another thing that’s real — and that is what is happening to us — we’re getting fat and we’re dying because of it.

Think about it!
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Got questions?

Contact me at: http://www.ronrink.com

My email and phone number are at that site. Feel free to contact me. I’m here to help you with your health, nutrition and fitness goals.

Have a healthy and nutritious day!

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

Ron
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Dear Friends,

Last evening (January 23rd) I had the good fortune to be on a phone conversation with Neale Donald Walsch. What an inspiring interview this was with this best-selling author of the “Conversations With God” series of books. Maybe you’ve heard about him or his books. I’ll bet many of you have.

Neale Donald Walsch never wanted his life story to become a movie — but now it has — and it will be the featured film in the February 2007 DVD for the members of the Spiritual Cinema Circle, of which I am one. I encourage you to join me and become a member today so that you can have this wonderful film to keep and to share with your family and friends — CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD.

Neale Donald Walsch didn’t “ask” to write a book, let alone have a movie made about his life. He certainly had no intention of writing 22 books, or becoming the New York Times best-selling author of the “Conversations with God” series. Neale Donald Walsch was just a man down on his luck, out of answers, and in desperate need of help, who cried out to God.

And God answered.

In what became a series of late night “conversations,” God revealed himself to Neale in an utterly earth shattering way. Walsch posed an endless stream of questions about life’s mysteries and uncertainties, and just like that, God illuminated the answers, one by one, to all of Walsch’s desperate cries. Walsch filled dozens and dozens of legal pads recording these conversations, and their messages became the basis for an internationally acclaimed book series that has sold over 7 million copies and been translated into 34 languages, and now –— a major feature film — CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD.

CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD is an original production of The Spiritual Cinema Circle, a DVD club that delivers inspiring and uplifting films – features, shorts, and documentaries – directly to your door. The Circle finds fascinating films from festivals around the world…films that will open your heart, stir your soul, and expand your mind.

Now, members of The Circle are receiving CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD. as part of the February 2007 DVD which also includes three outstanding short films. For a limited time, new subscribers to The Circle can receive a free trial membership (you pay a minimal shipping fee) by visiting: http://www.spiritualcinemacircle.com/.

If there ever was a great time to do this, it’s today.

Shanti,

Ron

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