Article Navigation

Back To Main Page


 

More Articles

Why You Should Burn Body Fat.


by: Terje Brooks Ellingsen

Are you overweight? Then you probably want to lose some weight. It is obvious that youll burn body fat by increasing your metabolism. But be sure that what you burn is fat, not muscles.

Some statistics

After age 25, the average person in America gains one pound or more a year, which means at the age of 50 an average person is 25 pounds or more heavier than he or she was 25 years ago.

As you age your metabolism is slowing down, causing your body to burn less fat.

Without exercising regularly, the average American loses a pound of muscle each year.

A minority of Americans exercise in a significant way, which means less than 50 minutes of exercise per week. Two out of five Americans do not exercise at all.

Motivations for weight loss

Most people's primary motivation for weight loss is to improve their appearance.

Other motivational factors are the many health benefits of proper nutrition and regular exercise.

Why obesity is dangerous

Reduction of excess body fat plays a vital role in maintaining good health and avoiding disease.

Medical evidence shows that obesity poses a significant threat to health as well as to longevity:. Excess body fat is connected to

heart disease

cancer

diabetes

gall bladder disease

gastro-intestinal disease

sexual dysfunction

osteoarthritis

stroke

Why is excess body fat linked to heart disease?

About 4/5s of deaths caused by heart disease and cancer, are linked to life-style factors, inactivity included.

Your heart has to work harder to pump blood to the lungs and to the extra fat throughout your body. Therefore it takes more energy for you to breathe. This extra workload might cause your heart to become enlarged and high blood pressure and life-threatening erratic heartbeats might be the consequences.

Overweight people often also have high cholesterol levels, making them more likely to develop arteriosclerosis. When blood vessels are so narrow that vital organs like the heart, kidneys or brain dont get enough blood, this becomes life-threatening.

It might go without saying, but the narrower the blood vessels become, the harder your heart has to pump, which results in increased blood pressure. . High blood pressure itself poses several health risks, like heart attack, stroke and kidney problems.

Does excess body fat cause cancer?

In general, research has linked cancer-causing chemicals (carcinogens) to excess, actually as a storage place for these.

Excess fat has been linked to a higher rate of breast and uterine cancer for women

Excess fat has been linked to colon and prostate cancer for men.

How is excess body fat related to diabetes?

There is a delicate balance between the relative amount of body fat, the level of blood sugar and the hormone we call insulin.

Excess blood sugar is stored in the liver and other vital organs, and converted to fat as soon as these organs have got what they need of it.

The pancreas of overweight people often produces more and more insulin. The problem is however, that the body is not able to utilize this to regulate its blood sugar levels.

This poor regulation of blood sugar and insulin causes an inbalance in the system, which results in diabetes. This disease may in its turn cause heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, amputation, and death.


How Reducing Body Fat Reduces Disease Risk

At an American University, researchers studied a sample of people following a certain weight management program. This study showed

decreased HDL cholesterol levels

decreased triglyceride levels,

decreased blood pressure.

increased waist-to-hip ratio,

an active lifestyle can slow or stop the disease process for most people, even those with a history of heart disease in the family.


Other studies have shown that programs that includes

regular physical activity,

low-fat diets

stress reduction

reverse heart disease processes.

while other studies shows that reducing body fat through an active lifestyle and low fat diets mean reduced risk for

prostate cancers for men,

breast and uterine cancers for women

non-insulin dependent diabetes for both genders.


So, what shall I do?

You have to change to a new lifestyle, by committing yourself to a long term process that gradually will lead you to a healthier life. This process requires persistence and patience, especially in the beginning. If you stay persistent, your new lifestyle will automatically take over, and it will become natural for you. This process will contain

moderate, long term fat loss

aerobic exercise

strength exercise

Here is the benefits 90 percent of overweight people following this advice has gained:

improved heart function,

improved blood pressure,

improved glucose tolerance,

improved cholesterol levels,

lowering requirements for medication,

eight times less likely to die from cancer than the unfit,

53 percent less likely to die from other diseases than the unfit

eight times less likely to die from heart disease than the unfit people.


But, how can I get started?

The first phase in such a process has shown to be the hardest it is here most people drop out. The longer you stay in the process, the more likely you are to succeed. And trust me; after you - by means of persistency and patience - have passed this critical start phase, the fun and excitement you gradually will experience will make the change well worth the effort.

You must make the decision to commit to this lifestyle changing process.

If you ever feel tempted to skip it for a day or even give up, confront yourself with your commitment, and go on.

How to stay motivated?

Allow plenty of time for the changes. You should give yourself several years for the changes to take place. If you do so, your body will adjust comfortably and the probability of maintaining this healthy lifestyle permanently, will be higher.








Latest Cancer News:



Why Cancer Is Good For You


Honestly, cancer isn't good for you. Actually, it's very, very bad for you. In fact, it can kill you. Advanced Prostate Cancer Drug May Help at Earlier Stage


WEDNESDAY, May 16 (HealthDay News) -- A drug approved to treat advanced prostate cancer appears to help men who have localized high-risk prostate cancer if given before surgery. Breast cancer vaccine shows promise in study


Breast cancer vaccine shows promise in study Houston Chronicle Copyright 2012 Houston Chronicle. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 11:16 p.m., Wednesday, May 16, 2012 Houston researchers on Wednesday reported positive results with an experimental breast cancer vaccine, a promising development in an emerging field in cancer ... Vaccine decreases breast cancer recurrence in study


Vaccine decreases breast cancer recurrence in study Houston Chronicle Copyright 2012 Houston Chronicle. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 10:54 p.m., Wednesday, May 16, 2012 Houston researchers on Wednesday reported positive results with an experimental breast cancer vaccine, a promising development in an emerging field in ... J&J drug shows promise in high-risk prostate cancer


(Reuters) - Adding Johnson & Johnson's advanced prostate cancer drug, Zytiga, to hormone therapy before surgery has been shown for the first time to eradicate tumors in some men with high-risk forms of the disease. The mid-stage trial found that six months of treatment with the combination therapy completely or nearly eliminated the cancer in a third of patients, all of whom had localized ... New York judge with cancer makes case for marijuana


NEW YORK (Reuters) - A cancer-stricken judge in New York has become an unlikely voice in support of legalizing the use of medical marijuana with the admission that he smokes pot to ease the side-effects of his treatments. Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Gustin Reichbach, who is being treated for pancreatic cancer, wrote in a New York Times article on Thursday that he had been using marijuana ... Aveo kidney cancer drug more tolerated than Nexavar


(Reuters) - Patients taking a kidney cancer drug being developed by Aveo Pharmaceuticals Inc were half as likely to need a break from the medication due to side effects than those on the widely used medicine Nexavar, according to data released on Wednesday. There were also significantly fewer patients taking Aveo's tivozanib who required a dose reduction than those on Nexavar. ... Chronic Heartburn May Boost Risk for Esophageal Cancer


FRIDAY, May 18 (HealthDay News) -- Inflammation caused by chronic heartburn may increase the risk of esophageal cancer, a new study finds. Donna Summer: Lung cancer leading cause of cancer death


Disco legend Donna Summer, 63, died Wednesday night, reportedly of lung cancer. As of press time, her family hadn?t released details about her illness, so it was unknown what type of lung cancer she had, and how long she may have been ailing. New Research Computing Cluster for Childhood Cancer Ready to Help Fast-Track Targeted Treatments


The childhood cancer research computing cluster created and donated by Dell for the Translational Genomics Research Institute is ready to support the world?s first precision medicine clinical trial for pediatric cancer. Donna Summer died of lung cancer not related to smoking - CNN


News Image
Idolator: All About The Music

News Image
Donna Summer died of lung cancer not related to smoking
CNN
By Michael Martinez, CNN (CNN) -- Donna Summer died of lung cancer, but the singer wasn't a smoker, and the cancer wasn't related to smoking, her family's representative said Friday. Summer's family issued the announcement in the wake of how "various ...
Donna Summer Died of Lung CancerPeople Magazine
Donna Summer's Cause Of Death: Lung Cancer, But Not From SmokingIdolator: All About The Music

all 3,882 news articles »
CHOP cancer doctors find success with gene drug - Philadelphia Inquirer



News Image
CHOP cancer doctors find success with gene drug
Philadelphia Inquirer
The doctors who study and treat childhood cancer walk a path fraught with heartbreak, but sometimes there's triumph as well. At Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, oncologists John Maris and Yael Mosse have spent years researching an approach to ...

and more »
Fate of 'uninsurables' hinges on Supreme Court - New York Daily News


News Image
New York Daily News

News Image
Fate of 'uninsurables' hinges on Supreme Court
New York Daily News
WASHINGTON ? Cancer patient Kathy Watson voted Republican in 2008 and believes the government has no right telling Americans to get health insurance. Nonetheless, she says she'd be dead if it weren't for President Barack Obama's health care law.
Some patients' fate could hinge on Supreme CourtKansas City Star

all 352 news articles »
NY judge battling cancer makes case for medical marijuana - USA TODAY


News Image
New York Daily News

News Image
NY judge battling cancer makes case for medical marijuana
USA TODAY
Reichbach writes that three and one half years ago, on his 62nd birthday, doctors told him he had Stage 3 pancreatic cancer and that he had four to six months to live. His grueling treatment has included "chemotherapy, radiation hell and brutal surgery ...
New York judge with cancer makes case for marijuanaReuters
Judge Gustin Reichbach of Brooklyn admits he smokes marijuana to ease ...New York Daily News

all 69 news articles »
Cancer Research Should Be a National Priority - Huffington Post


News Image
PR Web

News Image
Cancer Research Should Be a National Priority
Huffington Post
Why, then, have we not put the same effort into fighting cancer that we have into fighting wars? Cancer kills more people every day than terrorists killed on September 11, 2001. Yet our country fails to prioritize cancer as a national issue.
America's Addiction?Could Help Cure Cancer?DigitalJournal.com (press release)
Find YOUR day to help end CancerCisionWire (press release)

all 5 news articles »
Cancer test scores $75000 science prize for teen - USA TODAY


News Image
USA TODAY

News Image
Cancer test scores $75000 science prize for teen
USA TODAY
By Dan Vergano, USA TODAY A simple blood or urine test for pancreatic cancer, 90% accurate, has garnered a Maryland teen an international science prize. The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, a competition among students from 70 nations, ...
From cancer to quantum, teens' scientific feats celebratedScience News
ADDING MULTIMEDIA Fifteen-Year-Old Creates Non-Invasive Pancreatic Cancer ...MarketWatch (press release)
Crownsville student honored for pancreatic cancer testBaltimore Sun (blog)
MedCity News -The Seattle Times
all 201 news articles »
A Cancer Diagnosis Should Not Equal Poverty - WebMD (blog)


News Image
WebMD (blog)

News Image
A Cancer Diagnosis Should Not Equal Poverty
WebMD (blog)
By Heather Millar I remember clearly when I first realized that cancer too often translates into a financial meltdown: I was sitting in a New York University lobby, waiting for an MRI-guided biopsy. I picked up a copy of CURE, the cancer magazine.

American Cancer Society Brings Relay for Life Fundraiser to Dexter on Saturday - Patch.com


News Image
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

News Image
American Cancer Society Brings Relay for Life Fundraiser to Dexter on Saturday
Patch.com
By Daniel Lai Relay for Life Entertainment Director Nicky Smith (far left) poses with cervical cancer survivor Deborah Brown (purple shirt). On her left is her husband Jim, and on her right is best friend Patrick Dow. The group participated in the 2011 ...
Falls' Relay For Life giving cancer the bootNiagara Gazette
Survivors play a key role in Relay for LifeBurlington Times News
Cancer Awareness Event Goes Public with Block Party, Friday, May 18, 6:00 pm ...Celina Record
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer -The Mercury -Modesto Bee
all 221 news articles »
Album Premiere: El-P, 'Cancer for Cure' - RollingStone.com


News Image
Prefixmag

News Image
Album Premiere: El-P, 'Cancer for Cure'
RollingStone.com
By RJ Cubarrubia Constantly progressing and unapologetically ambitious, Brooklyn indie-rap icon El-P has returned with Cancer for Cure, his first solo hip-hop album in five years. Since then, the underground rap world that anointed El-P has dissipated, ...
El-P "Cancer For Cure" Album StreamHipHopDX
Stream El-P's Cancer For CureChartAttack
Stream: El-P's New Album, 'Cancer For Cure'Prefixmag
Pretty Much Amazing (blog)
all 8 news articles »
Donna Summer's Death Highlights Lung Cancer Risk For Blacks - Huffington Post



News Image
Donna Summer's Death Highlights Lung Cancer Risk For Blacks
Huffington Post
African-American men are 37 percent more likely to develop lung cancer than white men, even though their overall exposure to cigarette smoke, the primary risk factor for lung cancer, is lower, according to the American Lung Association.

and more »

 



Home | Resource Links | Contact Us
Copyright © 2006 CancerAdvice.org