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Weight
Loss and Breast Cancer
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by:
Kim Beardsmore
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We
hear it all the time…lose weight for your health. Few people however,
realize the extent to which a healthy body weight is critical to their
physical and mental well-being and ultimately, their life expectancy.
Just how does obesity lead to disease and death?
At the risk of oversimplifying a complex set of interactions, the
typical Western diet - high in saturated fats, sugar and refined flours
- which may lead to obesity; may also act to stimulate the growth of
cancer cells.
The interaction of diet and the development of cancer is an active
field of research and Dr David Heber, M.D., Ph.D. and author of "What
Color is Your Diet", says "It appears that diet has its most
significant effects after the cancer has already formed, acting to
inhibit or stimulate the growth of that cancer".
Women who are obese after menopause have a 50% higher relative risk of
breast cancer. This is just one of the notable documented links between
obesity and cancer.
It is never too late to improve your health through healthful eating
and adopting a more health-giving lifestyle. Here are simple steps to
follow which can make an immediate improvement to your health and
vitality.
1. Check your Body Mass Index (BMI) to determine
if weight has become health risk. A sijmple search on the
net will bring up a number of sites offering a body mass index.
2. Match your diet to your body's requirements. If
you eat and drink more calories than your body requires you will put on
weight. Learn to control calories and portion sizes, make recipes
leaner, and eat infrequently from fast food restaurants. Also learn how
to snack with healthful choices.
3. Color your diet with a large variety of
colorful, cancer-fighting fruit and vegetables. There are
seven different color ranges of both fruit and vegetables and by
choosing between 5 to 9 daily serves from a wide range of fruit and
vegetables, we are extending our consumption of cancer (and other
disease) fighting nutrients.
4. Eat lean protein with every meal.
Protein provides a powerful signal to the brain providing a longer
sense of fullness. The right source of protein is essential to
controlling your hunger with fewer calories and necessary to maintain
your lean muscle mass. Choices of protein should be flavored soy shakes
with fruit; the white meat of chicken and turkey, seafood such as
shrimps, prawns scallops and lobster and ocean fish or vegetarians may
prefer soy based meat substitutes.
5. Rev up your metabolism with activity. If
you want to enjoy a lifetime of well-being, exercise is a key
ingredient. Adults should do something for 30 minutes each day that
takes as much effort as a brisk walk. It is also helpful to build
physical activity into your daily routine: use the stairs instead of
the escalator or lift at work, park your car in the parking bay
furthest from the super marketing and don't use the remote control to
change TV channels.
6. Get support to ensure you develop a healthful
eating plan and reach your goal weight. Whilst a small
percentage of people possess the discipline to lose weight, you may
respond better to some form of consistent encouragement and coaching
from a professional weight loss coach.
Being overweight or obese has been identified next to smoking, as the
most preventable major risk to developing cancer. Even small weight
losses have been shown to have beneficial health effects. So it's never
to late to start and you can never be too young or too old to be
concerned about your health and do something about achieving a more
healthy weight.
(c) Kim Beardsmore
About the Author
Kim Beardsmore is a weight loss consultant whose
business operates across 60 countries. This world renowned, medically
approved program will give you results you'll love and all the support
you need! Estimate your body fat percentage and register for our weight
loss ezine and further recipes at http://leanmachine.org/?refid=bc-27546
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