Overweight.
In our country, as throughout the western world (with a higher incidence in North America and Great Britain), the problem of body weight, understood as overweight, affects an increasing number of individuals. According to the latest estimates, it is estimated that the number of obese people in the world has reached the incredible number of one billion: in Italy only 53% of the population can be considered "normal weight".
The cause of this situation is twofold: on the one hand there is an increasing availability of food, on the other an increasingly sedentary lifestyle. Among the various formulas that best identify the concept of normal weight, underweight and overweight proposed, the Italian Society of Human Nutrition (SINU) adopts a monogram that is based on the Body Mass Index (BMI): Weight (kg)/Height squared (meters). Overweight or worse obesity is correlated with numerous degenerative diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, myocardial ischemia, heart failure, cholecystopathy, nephropathy and osteoarticular damage, particularly to the spine and foot. As a result, life expectancy is significantly reduced in obese individuals.
The removal of fat from our body occurs in two ways: by eating less, or by moving a lot; therefore to control weight it is essential that there is a correct energy balance, while to lose weight this balance must be negative, meaning a situation in which the expenditure exceeds the intake of calories. The most effective way to achieve a caloric deficit is represented by a proper combination of diet (reduced caloric intake) and exercise (increased caloric output), making sure that the deficit does not exceed 1000/1200 kcal per day and making sure that the diet is well balanced, with an adequate intake of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals and water. In this way it is possible to avoid the risk that weight loss involves muscle tissue rather than adipose tissue. Diets must therefore ensure not only a reduction in calories ingested but also a balanced intake of macronutrients and micronutrients: water-soluble vitamins, fat-soluble vitamins, fiber and minerals, which is very difficult without using specially formulated foods.
This principle is very important: the "hunger for carbohydrates" is controlled by the sugar cycle that develops in the blood. Generally, it is up to us to make a "guided choice": which foods rich in carbohydrates to eat: sweet or salty, pizza or cookies, etc. etc. Is it possible to feed our body in a correct way? Progress and science have made us discover in the last 100 years what are the nutritional needs of the human body... but, as these discoveries were made public..., the quality of raw materials and traditional foods was decreasing and the diet in advanced economies has been transformed, increasing the amount of fats and carbohydrates at the expense of fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, the phenetic life we lead does not facilitate healthy choices that could avoid overweight and the onset of health problems in old age.
Today, very few people are able to take the steps that science considers necessary to enjoy optimal well-being when it comes to diet, exercise and lifestyle. Added to this is often the stress that leads us to not be able to control our sense of hunger and to eat more than necessary, especially too much fat and carbohydrates.
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