Did you know that obesity doubles your risk of being hospitalised for COVID-19 and raises your risk of death anywhere from 3.68 times to 12 times depending on your level of obesity? There’s been several solid reports and studies that have cited this. As Bill Maher said in this VIDEO “obesity has always killed us, albeit slowly. Mixed with COVID, it kills you fast”
We’ve also known for a very long time that obesity is responsible for and linked to many cancers. Obesity-related cancers include colon, rectum, ovary, postmenopausal breast, and womb cancer. Women are at greatest risk and are twice as likely as men to develop obesity-related cancer. If the growth in obesity continues, experts believe that nearly half of the world’s adult population will be overweight or obese by 2030 which will of course mean an increase in cancer and other obesity-related diseases too such as:
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Sleep disorders
- Hypertension
- PCS
- Dementia
- Chronic renal failure
- Lymphoedema
- Stroke
- Depression
- Osteoarthritis
- Gallbladder disease
- Asthma
Whilst obesity is associated with these diseases, it is not their cause but rather a key marker.
WHAT CAUSES OBESITY?
Obesity is not simply the result of eating too much and not being active enough. It’s certainly a significant part of the equation but environmental and lifestyle factors also play a significant role such as:
- Overuse of antibiotics both as medication and in food
- Growth hormone used in animal foods and animal by-products
- Pesticides used in food production
- Artificial sweeteners
- Processed foods e.g. GMO’s such as corn, sugar beets and soy, fructose corn syrup, trans fats
All these nasties are contributing to metabolic dysfunction and weight gain and fuelling the obesity epidemic. If you want to address your weight and reduce your chances of all these diseases, you really need to clean up your diet!!!
To help you here are my very top 8 tips for preventing obesity and obesity-related diseases.
BUY WHOLE ORGANIC FOODS
By taking this one step you’ll automatically reduce your sugar consumption, which is the root cause of most insulin resistance and weight gain. Try and avoid all forms of sugar, especially fructose and refined sugars.
By buying organic produce, you’ll also massively reduce your intake of pesticides and GMO’s. By eliminating processed foods, you’ll also automatically avoid artificial sweeteners and trans fats.
Healthy fats that I really advocate include avocados, coconut butter, and coconut oil, raw unheated nut oils, and raw nuts/seeds.
REVIEW HOW YOU PREP & COOK FOOD
Consider incorporating more raw foods into your diet. Avoid frying where possible and if you do fry, use avocado and coconut oil which doesn’t change composition at higher temperatures. When possible steam food rather than boil or poach. Lastly, use cancer-fighting foods such as broccoli, cumin, turmeric, and ginger.
CONSUME A HIGHLY QUALITY OMEGA
I cannot recommend Nature’s Sunshine Super Omega 3 highly enough. CLICK HERE to find out more. Remember to reduce your intake of processed vegetable oils such as corn, soy, and canola. Always read your labels for hidden nasties.
IMPROVE YOUR GUT FLORA
Improving your gut flora will help reduce inflammation and strengthen your overall immune health. Adding fermented foods to your daily diet is an easy way to prevent obesity and disease. You can also add in a high-quality probiotic supplement such as PRO B11, but naturally fermented foods are the best. See this informative blog on 10 MUST EAT FOODS FOR A HEALTHY GUT.
EXERCISE
Exercise lowers your insulin levels, thereby promoting weight loss, and discouraging disease. I advocate that your exercise program includes a combination of balance, strength, flexibility, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) work.
VITAMIN D
Research shows that high-dose vitamin D supplementation significantly lowers your risk of disease. I recommend boosting your immune system by getting out in the sun regularly and when unable to do that, taking vitamin D3. CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOUR VITAMIN D3 NOW
SLEEP
Good sleep is instrumental to overall health and wellbeing including weight management. Make sure you are getting enough restorative sleep. Most of us need 8 hours so aim for that. Poor sleep can interfere with your melatonin production, which is associated with an increased risk of insulin resistance and weight gain. Melatonin is also a potent antioxidant. Also, practise good bedtime habits such as turning off all electronic devices before you go to bed, don’t have the room too warm and make the room as dark as possible.
AVOID TOXINS
Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins like pesticides, herbicides, household cleaners, synthetic air fresheners, and toxic cosmetics/toiletries.
My signature B-FIT 21 DAY WEIGHT LOSS PLAN will not only help you lose weight but also eliminate toxins for overall health.
All these tips are important factors and alongside tending to our emotional and mental health are instrumental to good general health and a strong immune system.
Love Gaynor x
