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Slide 1: ==== ==== Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes: A Revolutionary Approach to Cooking Good Food Fast http://www.amazon.com/dp/1401324428/?tag=webzone-20 ==== ==== ''Obesity is such that this generation of children could be the first basically in the history of the United States to live less healthful and shorter lives than their parents...'' ''There is an unprecedented increase in prevalence of obesity at younger and younger ages without much obvious public health impact...but when they start developing heart attack, stroke, kidney failures, amputations, blindness, and ultimately death at younger ages, then that could be a huge effect on life expectancy." These statements were made by Dr. David S. Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children's Hospital Boston. He is one of the authors who reported on childhood obesity in the United States. This report was published in the March, 2005 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Although this report was issued 2 years ago, the matter has not gotten any better. As a matter of fact, childhood obesity is still on the rise. I was just looking at my childhood class picture from grammar school. It was taken in the late 50s or very early 60s. Out of a class of thirty-one students, there is only one that could be classified as overweight! The majority of students in today's classrooms are either overweight or obese. This is a complete reversal from four decades ago when my class picture was taken. Today's statistics are unbelievable. 1 in 3 American children, or about 30 million, are overweight. If conditions don't change soon, it will increase to 1 in 2 or 50 percent by 2010! Pediatricians are now treating children for diseases once only associated with aging adults. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, heart attacks and sleep apnea are being diagnosed in children. Medical doctors and researchers are now telling us that when these children reach their 20s, they can be expected to be diagnosed with chronic diseases that normally afflict adults in
Slide 2: their 60s and 70s. Current studies of obese preschoolers seem to indicate a disparity between racial groups and economic boundaries. Obesity seems to be affecting Hispanic children from poor families especially hard. It affects white and black children also but to a lesser degree. MSNBC.com reported that 32 percent of white and black preschoolers were either overweight or obese; the figure was 44 percent for Hispanic tots. The authors of the study couldn't explain the gap between whites and blacks and Hispanic preschoolers. But they have noticed that obese mothers have a greater tendency to produce obese children. Also, the risk for obesity is greater for children who are given bottles in bed at age 3. Other studies have found that one of the predominate causes of childhood obesity is overfeeding. As children get older, reaching the preteen and teen years, their sedentary lifestyles and poor eating habits pack on the weight. The number one product which is responsible for America's overweight and obese children is soft drinks. Soda consumption has increased 500 percent from the 50s until now. In addition to soft drinks, children are exposed to sugary fruit drinks. The major ingredient in soft drinks and fruit drinks are artificial sweeteners such as sucralose (Splenda), saccharin, and aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal.) And then there is high fructose corn syrup. Not only is this artificial sweetener stored in the body as fat as is regular sugar, but it also prevents the body from burning fat! Our children are no longer eating nutritious home-cooked meals. They're raiding the school's vending machines and patronizing fast food restaurants such as McDonald's and Burger King. When I was growing up I ate home-cooked meals. By its very nature, home-cooked meals are more nutritious than fast foods and even your upscale restaurant food. One ingredient my mother added to our meals that no restaurant could ever hope to add is 'love.' The only love you'll ever get from eating establishments is 'the love of your money.' The other obesity factor which threatens our children is a lack of activity. Today there are just too many electronic distractions which woo children from valuable play time. There are cell phones, video games, internet surfing, and 24/7 television. It is hard for good physical activity to compete with that lineup.
Slide 3: When I was coming up gym class was mandatory from grades 1 through high school. We didn't have cell phones or even personal phones in our bedrooms to interfere with play time. There were no video games, internet surfing or 24/7 TV watching. When we finally got a television, it was for the entire family. Viewing was limited to after we had to come in from playing outside. Even though I ate plenty of sweets such as ice cream, cookies, and cakes, I burned all those sugar calories by playing outside 6 days out of 7. And I wasn't exposed to modern technological food inventions such as high fructose corn syrup which wasn't invented until the 1970s. The obesity threat is all too real. Children are essentially being made old before their time by it. How? By incurring adult degenerative diseases before they become adults. They are also not going to live as long as they should. Another tragic side to the obesity threat to our children is bariatric surgery. Bariatric surgeries for the severely to morbidly obese are on the rise. Preteens as well as teens are having this procedure. The only type of surgery I knew about when I was growing up was the removal of tonsils (something I managed to avoid thank God.) There is a solution to this obesity threat to our children. There needs to be more safe areas and parks for kids to play in. There also needs to be a drastic reduction in cell phone use, internet surfing, video gaming, and TV watching. Healthy alternatives to sugary drinks and fast foods is a necessity. Sign up for free weekly health, nutrition and exercise news, tips and advice. America, along with almost every other nation on the face of the earth, is overweight. You can take steps to improve your health and quality of life. This weekly email (Your Health & Wellness) is absolutely free (a $35.00 value.) Go to following link: [http://www.spirit-of-truth.com/MyBookOptin.html] Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joseph_Elijah
Slide 4: ==== ==== Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes: A Revolutionary Approach to Cooking Good Food Fast http://www.amazon.com/dp/1401324428/?tag=webzone-20 ==== ====