Being pudgy can kill you?

A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine reveals startling statistics: being overweight can kill.

Researchers at the National Cancer Institute, analyzed body mass index (BMI) and death rates of more than half a million people ages 50 to 71, using questionnaires on body weight and health from 1995 and 1996. BMI of 25 or higher is overweight; 30 and above is obese. Generally, you must be 30 pounds overweight be to considered obese.

Of the 186,000 healthy people who had never smoked, overweight people were 20 to 40 percent more likely to die prematurely than normal-weight people. The risk increased two- to-three-fold for obese people.

If you want to calculate your BMI, go to http://diet.ivillage.com/healthcalc

Once you know your BMI, set some goals to gradually lose weight and improve your health. Even losing 10% of your weight; just 18 pounds if you weigh 180#, can lead to significant improvement.

Simple changes, such as switching from sweetened beverages to something with no calories, using a pedometer and walking 10,000 steps per day, replacing one of your daily snacks with fruit, bringing your lunch to work instead of frequenting a fast-food place, cutting your alcohol intake in half, and cutting your portion sizes by 1/4 will help you lose weight and improve your health.

We know smoking and tobacco use increases risk of lung cancer and death. We know wearing seatbelts decreases risk of death from car accidents. Now we know maintaining a healthy body weight decreases our risk of dying from diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer. Put in that perspective, using a pedometer or making a couple of changes in eating habits doesn't seem like such a bad deal.

I think I'll go for a walk.
Lynn

Eating on the bike

Yesterday I rode 59 miles on my bike, working my way through a training program to take me to riding 100 miles, a bike century, in Hampton Beach, NH, in September. It took me just under 4 hours riding time, and the big question is: what do I eat while biking to keep my energy levels up?

I use a combination of methods. One is hydration: a water bottle full of water, and a 50-ounce capacity Camelbak backpack that I fill with Accelerade. I sip on the Accelerade, a combination of carbohdyrate and protein for energy and staying power, throughout the ride. I primarily drink the water when I stop for 3-5 minutes to rest and refuel.

Eating while biking needs to be simple, easy, and definitely not messy. My solution? I broke up two different energy bars into smaller pieces: an Odwalla Peanut Crunch bar wtih 240 calories, 37 grams carbohdyrate, and 8 grams protein; and a Cliff Bar Banana Nut Bread (new flavor!) bar with 250 calories, 43 grams carbohdyrate, and 10 grams protein. I put the pieces in a ziplock sandwich bag that I stashed in my handlebar bag. I left the baggie open so I could easily reach in with one hand, grab a bite, and eat. Every 3 miles or so I'd either take a bite of energy bar and wash it down with a few sips of Accelerade, or just drink more Accelerade.

At the half-way point, I stopped and ate 1/2 peanut butter sandwich, washed down with about 8 ounces of water. I found after riding 53 miles last week that I need something that's NOT sweet at this point.

The results? I felt great the entire ride, had plenty of water and Accelerade, ate all my food, and didn't get nauseous or cramped. Success!

The key is to bring a bit more fuel than you think you need. I also take along $10, in case I need to stop for more beverage or food. Next week I ride 65 miles, so I think I'll bring along an extra energy bar (3 different flavors, so I don't get bored with just one flavor) and a whole peanut butter sandwich. I'll let you know how it goes!

Enjoy the ride,
Lynn

teens and beverages

What do you give your kids to drink?

I have two teenage boys, and while they both drink a lot of water, this summer they've been asking for something different to drink. They're not big juice drinkers, which is good, because I'd much rather they ate fruit (which they do). I don't keep soda in the house unless they're having a party. They both drink Gatorade, but I limit that to when they're practicing or playing sports or mowing the lawn. In my mind, sports beverages are for sports, not for casual thirst-quenching.

There's a new Beverage Guidance System, published in March 2006 (read the entire article at http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/83/3/529#SEC3) that ranks beverages on 6 different levels.

Level 1, the preferred beverage for everyday consumption, is water. Water can come from the tap or in bottled form, but the plain stuff with no flavorings added is the number one beverage of choice. My teens' take: plain water is fine, but sometimes I want taste.

Level 2 includes up to 40 ounces of unsweetened tea or coffee per day, with a limit of 400mg caffeine (about the amount in 4 cups of coffee). My teens' take: yuck!

Level 3 is up to 16 ounces of low-fat or skim milk/soy beverages. My teens' take: they drink skim milk with every meal at home.

Level 4 starts adding taste, as far as my kids are concerned. This is where you find sweetened beverages without calories, meaning they use a variety of sugar substitutes. Limit to 32 ounces per day. I'm not a big fan of sugar substitutes unless absolutely necessary, but I like the fact it's limited to 32 ounces. My teens' take: They pretty much hate anything with sugar substitute and say it tastes funny.

Level 5 includes up to 8 ounces of 100% fruit juice and up to one alcoholic drink for women and up to two alcoholic drinks for men. Why they put fruit juice and alcohol in the same category is a bit of a stretch, but there it is. My teens' take: they don't drink alcohol, and fruit juice isn't a favorite anyway.

Level 6 includes beverages we should really avoid: anything sweetened that contains calories. This includes regular soda, sweetened juice drinks, energy drinks, lemonade - in short, all the stuff my teens (and most Americans, it seems) love. The recommendation is no more than 8 ounces per day, less than in one typical can or bottle of the stuff.

So what is a mom to do? I encourage water, and they drink it. We all drink skim milk at meals, including myself and my husband. Juice really isn't much of a factor, and neither are diet beverages. That leaves the top level, where we're supposed to drink basically zero. I've been looking for sweetened beverages that have less sugar, and I've settled on sweetened Nestea. Yeah, it has high fructose corn syrup, but less than most sodas. We set a limit of no more than two bottles per day, and it seems to be working.

Me, I still prefer water and unsweetened ice tea.

Have a great summer!
Lynn