In the news

Eat more, weigh less? Are you kidding me??

            It appears that weight loss surgery is more effective over the long term than Ozempic, that new kid on the block, and similar prescription drugs. But no matter how effective these two elements may be in the short term, this is simply not the way to solve the multiple problems – now epidemics — of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Those who promote these solutions are apparently oblivious to the fact that a century ago, those four chronic, non-infectious conditions were almost non-existent. They don’t have anything to do with aging, nor does osteoporosis, the fact of which I’ll cover in a future post. Ditto cancer, the second leading cause of death, 85 percent of which is due to lifestyle factors and has nothing to do with growing older, according to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

            So if these diseases, which together account for more than one million deaths per year in the United States, are almost entirely due to lifestyle factors, the solution appears to be astonishingly simple: change the lifestyle.

            Obesity is at the root of the other diseases, via multiple mechanisms. The rate of obesity in 1900 was five percent. It is now 42 percent. Although health experts advise us to drastically reduce our sugar intake, that’s only part of the picture. The real solution is to eat foods that fill you up, not fill you out. 

            Our great-grandparents were not obese mainly because their diet was largely based on plant foods and whole grains that had a lot of bulk, giving them full bellies but few calories. The Standard American Diet does the opposite: refined sugar, refined flour and only one or two servings of plant foods per day. (If you’re a teenager you typically eat less than one serving per day of fruits and vegetables.) We take in lots of calories before our appetite is satisfied, especially if those calories come in the form of soft drinks, so we eat more.

            Sugary desserts and soft drinks should be the first to go. Next, add a small salad to one meal a day, later two meals a day when you get used to it. Instead of having a starch (pasta, potatoes, rice) at dinner, substitute a cooked vegetable for more fiber and fewer calories. You’ll be eating more food – and will weigh less.

            Now – how hard was that?

Lifestyle

How dry I am!

            Now that summer heat is here in full force it’s time for a reminder that dehydration is a risk at all ages, but especially as we get older. One reason is that our thirst mechanism is unreliable; our body may require a greater fluid intake but it fails to let us know. Especially in areas of low humidity – e.g., the American Southwest – overt sweating is minimized and thus we are not aware of the fluid loss. When we’re engaged in some activity such as gardening or athletics, we just might not be paying attention to early signs of dehydration, such as fatigue.

            Statistics regarding deaths from dehydration are hard to ascertain since heat stroke is often part of the picture. During a severe heat wave dozens of deaths may be reported in the United States. Infants and the elderly comprise most of the victims. Contributing factors include the inability of the former to express their symptoms. The latter often live alone or are visited infrequently by caretakers. Persons over the age of 65 are especially at risk. Many are taking blood pressure medications that increase the loss of water as well as the loss of electrolytes (sodium and potassium).

            Monitoring a person’s state of hydration, whether an infant in diapers, a healthy adult or an elderly person who needs to be checked at least once daily, the indicators of dehydration are the same. If urine is cloudy, orange-brown and pungent, dehydration is already in progress. Urine should always be clear, slightly yellow and with only a mild odor.

 Repeated bouts of dehydration increase the risk of kidney stones, a malady whose intensity of pain is only matched by the pangs of childbirth – so I’m told!

            You can avoid dehydration even on the hottest, driest days by keeping a glass or bottle of water everywhere – family room, bedroom, car, office. Fruit juices are fine but they all have sugar, so diluting them by about a third will give you the fluid you need with fewer calories. Fruit is mostly water; three or four pieces a day are healthy as well. If you sweat a lot during a hard workout don’t forget to replenish sodium and potassium with an electrolyte drink. Avoid sugary carbonated drinks and alcohol.