What are the causes of obesity? If one is depressed, he may use the wrong foods to comfort himself. If you have stopped smoking, you may also eat more high calorie food.
How does one know he is obese? You have to know if your BMI is 30 or more.
According to the CDC, at least one third of all adult Americans are obese. In my opinion, one of the main causes of obesity is the Standard American Diet. We eat far too much Protein and Fat, which are Macronutrients. Fruits and vegetables provide the vital Micronutrients which many of us are lacking in our diets.
Being obese can put many at risk for developing serious diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, various cancers and possibly some of these below…
- Arthritis
- High blood pressure
- Breast Cancer
- Colon Cancer
- Stroke
- Gallbladder disease
- Fatty liver disease
- High cholesterol
- and, many more…
You’ll likely gain unwanted pounds if you eat empty calorie snack and junk foods. In other words, if you gain a pound a month, you’ll be twelve pounds heavier a year from now. You don’t want to have a diet that’s high in fats and calories. You also want to stay reasonably active, physically if you want to lose weight and stay trim.
The way I know to lose weight and keep it off is eating a whole food plant based diet. It supplies all the macronutrients and micronutrients one needs, while high in fiber and low in calories. As you lose weight, you will likely feel better, have more energy and get healthier.
I have experienced five problems eating a diet composed strictly of fruits and vegetables.
- I got hungry because I was not eating enough calories. To fix this, I ate more fruit (Simple Carbs) in between meals making sure I ate beans, rice or potatoes (Complex Carbs) at lunch and dinner (I only eat fruit in the mornings, between meals and after dinner)
- I learned that if I was gaining weight or not losing it fast enough, to cut out processed foods like cereal, bread, chips and tortillas, etc.
- If I get tempted to eat processed empty calorie snacks and junk foods, I substitute fruit
- Sometimes, it isn’t easy sticking to this. You get tempted either by others, or simply out of habit. Snack foods and processed foods are addicting. We are bombarded by TV commercials and smell the food when we pass the fast food drive through and restaurants
- Make sure you eat before you go to the store, so you don’t buy what you know you shouldn’t
If I crave sweets and fats between meals, I eat fruit. If I crave salt, I eat more vegetables
I know to maintain my weight, as a rule of thumb, I need to consume 2000 calories a day. Once in a while, I add my food calories up to see if they go over or are under the 2000 mark. For example, eating twenty bananas will take care of this. But, who eats twenty Bananas? I know some people do, but you don’t have to. Anyway, you can’t live primarily on fruit alone. You need vegetables to provide nutrients fruit lacks.
*Note – There could be many causes of obesity. Obesity is a medical condition that can ruin your health and shorten your life. If you are obese, you need to seek medical attention.
