Thursday, May 06, 2010 #

Should children have weight loss surgery?

This month, there has been a lot of talk about whether or not it would be a healthy option for obese children to have bariatric surgeries.

It seems like a very complicated topic as the alarmingly high number of obese children in America is a strong indicator of the alarmingly high rate of obesity amongst all of the people in our country.

I do not yet have children and so I am not sure how I would feel if I were to have a child who was obese, knowing the potential health risks they have as a result of their obesity, if I would turn to a surgery like this, which also has very serious risks.

Doctors say there are many risks to subjecting a child in particular to this type of surgery, and that there is still so much that is unknown about obese children, leading them to discourage parents from turning to surgery as the first option when their child is obese.

It seems practical to me that the first option-for a child or an adult-should be to try and make a major lifestyle overhaul, changing the entire way you think about food, consume food, and exercise, before turning to any medical procedure that has significant risks.

But when it comes to children, I feel even moreso that we should consider alternative options before turning to surgery. Many children who have had the surgery have proven to have improved heart conditions and an improved quality of life.

While the surgery can help many obese children, still some doctors are hesitant to refer young patients for the surgery.

What do YOU think? Should children be able to have bariatric surgery?

posted @ Friday, May 07, 2010 7:21 AM | Feedback (3)

Is Less More?

You always hear, when it comes to a diet, that less is supposed to be more. Generally, what this means in terms of dieting is that you should practice portion control and that you will get fuller faster and have to essentially eat less to be satisfied.

But other diets have preached about eating more smaller meals (check out an earlier blog entry I wrote about how eating more, smaller meals does not necessarily speed up weight loss).

Finding the balance between eating "less" and "more" can be tricky-if you eat too little, your body hungers and you get hunger pangs, typically resulting in you snacking (or gorging) on guilty pleasure foods instead of a healthy, well thought-out option. So what do you do?

Eat a full meal until your...well...full, or eat a smaller meal, slower, and hope that fills you?

I'm on a new "healthy snack" kick where no matter what I eat for my three meals a day, I am trying very very hard to snack on only healthy things. Some examples of my healthy snacks this month have been:

* baby carrots (surprisingly sweet and delicious!)
* celery with peanut butter (yuck, I hate celery, but it's OK with peanut butter)
* almonds
* cheese sticks

I've tried to eliminate the cheese sticks because I'm trying to eat less dairy in the warmer weather (something about it bothers me), but the other snacks have served to not only tie me over in between meals, but more importantly make me feel good about the foods I'm consuming! I eat one snack in the morning and one at night.

The snacks are "less" but by eating "more" of them, I am less full throughout the day.

What do YOU think? Is less more?

posted @ Thursday, May 06, 2010 8:53 AM | Feedback (4)