Make Small Changes for Big Results!
Spring is here, and with it comes the chance to change a few habits that will make a positive long term health difference in your life and the lives of those with whom you work. With only a little effort and a few small changes, the tide of staggering health statistics about overweight and obesity can be turned.
Dr. James O. Hill will be presenting exciting information at the May Denver Dietetic Association meeting. His presentation will describe how Americans can prevent weight problems, obesity, and the resulting chronic diseases that are associated. He will cite studies done at the University of Colorado, Denver, published in Pediatrics in 2007, that show how small changes had a positive impact on the health of families.
Consider what we already know about being overweight. It is associated with heart disease, cancer, diabetes and osteoarthritis, among other chronic diseases. To make matters worse, people who have significant extra body fat also suffer from poor self esteem and depression. Often these overweight or obese individuals feel trapped in bodies that they see declining in health and begin to experience quality of life issues. Additionally, the thousands of diet books on the market compound the helplessness and feelings of failure experienced by these individuals.
Since no one societal factor can be blamed solely for the continued rise in body weight, the issue must be addressed on multiple fronts by a variety of professionals. Dietitians must lead the way!
Incumbent upon the dietitian who works with individuals suffering from the effects of excess body fat is the need to address the core issues contributing to the problem. It is vital that overweight and obese individuals, and the entire population, be taught how to prevent unwanted weight gain. Losing weight and preventing weight regain is much more difficult than preventing weight gain in the first place. Research is beginning to show why this phenomenon occurs.
The good news is that tools are being developed to support individuals — whether at home, at work, or in their community — to assist them in making healthier choices. Health Care Professionals now have new tools at their disposal to use when counseling clients. These tools can be found in the Health Care Professional toolkit provided on-line by America On the Move. These downloadable tools are available 24/7 and free to both the practitioner and any individual willing to sign on to the America On the Move website.
Making small changes in the surrounding environment is key to successfully addressing eating and exercise habits that may be contributing to the 1- to 2-pound weight gain that most Americans experience yearly. Physical Activity Environmental Audits and Food Environmental Audits can be found on the website in both the Worksite Wellness Toolkit and the Family Toolkit. Each of these tools is geared toward a specific environment, but the questions are general enough to be relevant within almost any setting.
Visiting the website, you will find a variety of fun and interesting ideas to enable you to increase your activity, now that the weather is cooperating. Try some of the tips found in the “100 Ways to Add 2000 Steps” and get healthier this spring! Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Tour a museum, zoo, or nature preserve
- Volunteer to walk dogs for an animal shelter
- Drive to a local park (such as Washington Park in Denver), walk the trails and bend down to smell the spring blossoms
- Weed, hoe, rake and prune — gardening is an everyday means for being more active
Monica Krygowski, MS, RD, is Program Coordinator for America On the Move at The Center for Human Nutrition. She is a registered dietitian and holds her Master of Science Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas. Monica has practiced dietetics in both the clinical and community settings and spent the last eleven years providing community wellness programs, classes and counseling in the State of Texas. This includes working for over seven years as Health Education Coordinator for Nutrition at the University of Texas at Austin. Monica can be reached at 303-315-9039.