It would be smart if everyone out there that needs to lose weight would get something that weighs the amount you want to lose. Each time you think of putting something unhealthy in your mouth, pick the item up and carry it around a few minutes ( if you can lift it) and then see if you still want to eat whatever it was. I seriously doubt you would. I have twenty more pounds to lose so I am on a mission to find two things around the house today weighing 10 pounds each. I will let you know if it helps me get serious about this last 20 pounds.
Food for Thought:
Obesity’s Effects on
Bones and Joints
Stephen P. Makk, M.D., M.B.A.
Obesity is an escalating health threat in the United States. It
increases the risk of developing life-shortening conditions
including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, sleep apnea and
cancer. Excessive weight also affects the musculoskeletal system.
Obesity is generally defined as being more than thirty
percent above one’s ideal body weight. The rate of obesity is
increasing across all demographic groups in the U.S. and is
especially high in children. While many factors are to blame,
certainly poor diets, fueled by processed and fast foods, and
sedentary lifestyles are culprits.
Joint and Spinal Problems
Obesity accelerates the wear on the joints and spine. In
particular, osteoarthritis (wear-and-tear arthritis) of the knees is
increased. Obese people have difficulty squatting (getting on
and off the toilet, getting out of a car), running and climbing stairs.
Biomechanically this is explained because the force on one’s
knees between the patella (kneecap) and its articulation with
the rest of the knee is about three times your body weight with
walking. When these other activities are undertaken, the forces
can reach six to 10 times body weight. That is, the force on a 200-
pound person’s knees while walking is 600 pounds, and when
they are climbing, running, squatting, etc. the force approaches
1200-2000 pounds. Multiply that by the number of years people
are overweight and you get excessive wear and thus arthritis.
The corollary is true as well, and this provides a nice
incentive to lose weight. The bang for the buck for the knees is 3-
10 pounds of wear reduction for every pound lost! Simply losing
10-20 pounds can make a real difference in one’s activity level.
Moderate exercise and leg-strengthening exercises can reduce
the effective joint forces as well.
Obesity also affects spinal mechanics. Truncal obesity with
a panniculus (doctor-speak for a big gut) causes an anterior
bending force and a compressive force on the spinal column,
thus leading to disc pathology and back pain. Imagine wearing
a backpack backwards with 50-75 pounds in it for a day and you
get the idea.
Hip and Knee Replacements
As an orthopedist specializing in hip and knee replacements,
I often see obese patients with severe knee arthritis. In fact, this
is a wide-scale, increasing problem. Some are too overweight
to physically perform surgery on, notwithstanding the inherently
higher perioperative risks that they have. Sometimes we have no
alternative but to suggest that they buy motorized scooters.
Many patients swear that they will lose weight after they get
their knees replaced. I can count on one hand and personally
remember the patients that I have operated on over the last
dozen or so years who have actually done this. There was a well-
researched paper in our most respected journal a few years ago
that showed that the average weight loss one year after knee
replacement was actually a six-pound weight gain.
Additionally, hip and knee replacements demonstrate wear in
all the patients that get them, and obese patients, especially young
ones, tend to wear out faster, necessitating additional “revision”
operations which are usually more involved, to say the least.
Research shows that obese joint replacement patients do
worse functionally than thinner patients overall. But, studies also
show that obese joint recipients in the short term have equally
high satisfaction scores with the procedures. It is clear that obese
patients have more complications in the perioperative period,
including anesthetic difficulties, infections, blood clots, medical
problems and poorer functional outcomes.
In summary, obesity is bad for the musculoskeletal system.
With the average lifespan increasing, it would be prudent to keep
your weight at a reasonable level and to keep fit so that you may
better enjoy those extra years without the pain and limitations of
musculoskeletal wear.
Recipe of the Day:
4 red potatoes
1 bunch kale
4 T. water (or more)
1 onion thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. sesame seeds
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
2 T. tamari
Instructions:
Scrub potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Steam over boiling water until just tender when pierced with a fork. Rinse with cold water, drain, and set aside.
Rinse kale and remove stems. Cut or tear the leaves into very small pieces and set aside.
Heat 2 T. water in a large skillet and add the onion, garlic and sesame seeds. Saute 5 minutes. Add the cooked potatoes, black pepper, and paprika. Continue cooking until the potatoes begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Use a spatula to turn the mixture gently as it cooks.
Spread the kale leaves over the top of the potato mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 T. water and the tamari. Cover and cook, turning occasionally, until the kale is tender, about 7 minutes
If you don't think you like kale try this. I didn't think I did but I really liked this and so did my son that never eats greens of any kind.
I served this with sweet potato cut in cubes sprinkled with cinnamon and coconut sugar and baked in the microwave until soft. Yummy
