Creating a Healthy Life
It is no secret that our society has shifted to an exponentially more unhealthy lifestyle than we used to have. A lot of people now are considered “healthy,” who would not have been considered healthy in the 1990s. The standards of health measurements have decreased, making it much easier for people to be called “healthy” but not be as healthy as they should be, or used to be. According to a study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a “healthy” body mass index (BMI) in the 1970s was around 23.7, in 2013 it was about 27. For a frame of reference, that is about 30 pounds added to a 6-foot male now than in the seventies.The most prominent issue in our unhealthy society is obesity and its pathway to the millions of cases of diabetes that are diagnosed every year. One in three adults has prediabetes and does not even know. One in ten people over twenty, and one in four people over 65, have diabetes as well. Type 2 diabetes is a condition that causes an imbalance in your body’s blood sugar level and hinders the pancreas’ ability to process it. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes, making up over 95 percent of diabetes cases in the United States, and it is entirely preventable.
The main factors that put someone at risk for type 2 diabetes are lifestyle choices such as being overweight of older age. According to the Center for Disease Control, the most effective way to prevent type 2 diabetes is regular physical exercise and maintaining a healthy diet and body weight. Living a healthy lifestyle and taking care of your body are the best ways to stay safe from diabetes.
So what goes into a proper diet? The primary keys to following a healthy diet are the three Ps: proportions, produce, and preparation. Having right meal proportions is essential because it maintains a variety of your diet and makes sure you are not overeating. Produce, meaning fruits and vegetables, is the most important food group in your diet. Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of vitamins and minerals that help your body’s immune system remain strong and fight off illnesses. Finally, the way you prepare your food is what makes or breaks your diet. You can have a large variety of fruits and vegetables, but if you’re drowning them in sugars and salts, it defeats the purpose and negates the good they are doing for your body.
This brings up the current controversy over the production and sales of organic foods. Organic food relates to the concept of sustainable farming, which involves every step of the food production process including the food animals eat, the living conditions of plants and animals, and the types of amendments added to the soil in which produce grows. There is a great deal of controversy over how important organic farming methods are and if the quality of the organic food is worth the extra expense. There are many differences in the means of farming and production, but the question remains whether the organic food has different nutritional value than non-organic food and whether those difference are beneficial to the food.
While some consumers buy organic food because of the environmental and health benefits despite the more substantial expense, a larger group of consumers are uncertain if organic food offers enough benefits worth the additional cost. After a lot of research and many experiments, scientists have concluded that there is no noticeable difference between the health effects of organic food and conventionally processed food. However, many people who are determined to live healthier lifestyles will pay the extra dollar to ensure that their food does not have any additional chemicals or harmful compounds.
The final components of a healthy lifestyle are physical activity and exercise. It is important to exercise every day to keep your body in tip-top condition. According to the Harvard Medical School, the best exercises a person can do for their body are swimming, strength training, and walking. It is so easy to find 30 minutes out of your day to go for a swim or to the gym for a workout. And if you are one of those super busy people and can’t swing that, it is easy enough to work exercise into your daily life, such as taking stairs instead of the elevator or walking the long way to class to get in more steps. It is so easy to take care of your body and keep yourself healthy to avoid illnesses and live a longer and happier life. The most important thing is to monitor your activity and keep track of your diet. If you follow these components, you will be a much healthier person.
About the Writer
Sydney Kaltman, Online Editor
Sydney is a senior at Wheeler and this is her second year on the Catalyst staff. She plays varsity fastpitch softball and loves to spend her free time...
