Healthiest city in the U.S.

I promise, I'm not all about depressing news. How about the nation's healthiest city? Drum roll please, and the award goes to Burlington, Vermont!

A distance of about 32 marathons away from the round town of Huntington, West Virgina, the nation's unhealthiest. Check the article for some comparisons on how both 'ton towns measure up; then tell me about your city!

I posted at my MLive blog with my thoughts on the fit life in Michigan, but my workout routines have rarely ventured out from there.

Check it out and let me know what's up with your town. Tell me where you're from or where you've been; conducive environment to a chiseled six-pack, or more likely to see townie guts with remnants from last night's six pack?

A look at the fattest city in the US

Wanna know where I'm not going to move when I graduate? Huntingington, West Virginia. The tiny town on the west edge of the state is among the many nationwide struggling with the weak economy. Among the financial issues is one of a bigger size; obesity. Nearly half Huntington adults are over weight, making them the most obese city in the country.

How does this happen? Five foot nine, 233 pound mayor David Felinton says in an Associated Press article at comcast.net there's more important issues at hand for Huntington. "We've got a lot of economic challenges here in Huntington. That's usually the focus."

Usually when the top obese city list comes out, I shurg in my couch, thinking; how can it get that bad? There's no excuse for forgetting about your health, but the article was very well put together. Take a look at what life has been like in Huntington, and put yourself in those steal toed work boots. What would you do? I try to promote healthy eating and exerising on a budget, but environment has a great effect on us all. With so much on their plate (literally and figurativly) is there hope for Huntington?

Do you want 4-year-old fries with that?

Ewwwwwwwww. Not much left to say, ladies. If you have had time to hit up the fast food drive through in the last month, then you can make time for this 5 minute video. This is another gem sent to me (keep 'em comin', mom!) from Hungry Girl.

I know I'm not the only one whose come across a little left over from a long lost Happy Meal; hmm, how long has this been here? It doesn't look too old. Maybe just four years old? You've GOT to check out this video on how fast food vs. real food ages.

What do you think? Does proof like this and movies like Supersize Me stop you dead in your tracks, make you re-think your Big Mac or not phase you a bit?

Wondering why a head of broccoli is more than a happy meal?

Ready to tear your hair out if one more person brings up the election? At ease, hair follicles, no political chatter here. If you're paying attention to the election or living under a rock, odds are you're fairly knowledgeable on where the two popular candidates stand, but what about their opinion on food?

I came across a pretty cool New York Times blog interviewing author Michael Pollan who says talking about the nation's food policies are just as important as any other hot topic.

One of Mr. Pollan’s concerns is that national policies subsidize the least healthful calories that we eat. He notes that the “building blocks” of fast food are soy and corn, used to make hydrogenated soy oil, the protein and starch in cattle and chicken feed, and high-fructose corn syrup used in sodas and sweets.

“That’s what we’ve been heavily subsidizing, encouraging farmers to grow more of, and that’s what makes fast food so cheap,” he said. “Meanwhile over in the produce section, the head of broccoli costs more than a fast-food hamburger. Why is that? We do very little to encourage farmers to grow what are called specialty crops, which is actual food you can eat. We need to level the playing field between the unhealthy and healthy calories.”

Any living, breathing, eating, grocery shopping American should take some time out to think about national food policies. The NYT blog is only a snippet of a 20 minute interview with Pollan. What do you think? Voice your opinions in comments or email me!

MSNBC Interactive

I came across this while fumbling for material on the ever so faithful MSNBC health page. It's a very cool interactive page where you can learn about how women's bodies change over time.

Check out what changes your bones, skin, heart, hair, mind and other areas. Doesn't hurt to do a little damage control now so you don't end up like this later!

Kiddie equipment

Get your kids moving on their own workout equiptment?

Some experts are saying this is a horrible idea, and may be pushing kids too hard in the direction of fitness. Parents however seem to like the idea.

I think the equipment is awesome! While its been argued that kids using this equipment are missing out on the fun of social interaction sports like tag and kickball, I think the pros outweigh the cons. The last time I saw neighborhood kids out playing tag and kick-the-can was when I was doing it. There are too many toys that coax kids to stay inside, and the idea of playing outside is as foreign to kids now as a typewriter.

Most children want to emulate their parents, or older siblings. I don't think any child should be made to spend 20 minutes on a kiddie treadmill, but when mom or dad is on the in home stationary bike, giving junior the option to ride along to can be an empowering experience. Even for physically active children, there is an appeal to kid equipment. Eventually Billy is too old to play on the school soccer team, but if he grew up with a familiarity to exercise equipment, will he be more prone to going to the gym on his own?

What's your stance?

Slim down or pay up!

True if you're a state worker in Alabama. The down south government is looking to combat their status as second largest state by charging overweight employees.

Smoking state workers in 'bama are already getting slapped with a monthly fee; now those overweight can expect to shell out $25 per month for otherwise free insurance if they don't slim down by January 2011.

"We are trying to get individuals to become more aware of their health," said state worker Robert Wagstaff, who serves on the insurance board.

E-K. Daufin of Montgomery, a college professor and founder of Love Your Body, Love Yourself, which holds body acceptance workshops, said the new policy will be stressful for people like her.

"I'm big and beautiful and doing my best to keep my stress levels down so I can stay healthy," Daufin said. "That's big, not lazy, not a glutton and certainly not deserving of the pompous, poisonous disrespect served up daily to those of us with more bounce to the ounce."

The program will include health screenings to deem which employees need to pay up. The whole program will cost the state about $1.6 million, will apparently pay off in the long run.

Ashmore said research shows someone with a body mass index of 35 to 39 generates $1,748 more in annual medical expenses than someone with a BMI less than 25, considered normal.

What do you think? Some people are naturally overweight, or become obese due to medial conditions and medication. Is it fair to impede on the choices of employees to save money for the state?

Reaction: ‘Obesity is suicide’ campaign

I ran across the debate on Leslie’s blog, The Weighing Game at ivillage.com. These images, part of an advertising campaign by what I believe is a student, has sparked up controversy.

Can you really compare obesity to such a serious topic as suicide?

Personally, while I understand the underlying message, I don’t think of suicide and obesity in the same boat. Obesity is a slow killer, more comparable to smoking in my mind.

Suicide is a serious issue, and while obesity is too, I don’t agree with the comparison being made in the ads. The ads are shocking, creative, edgy, but in my opinion, slightly distasteful.

The mental illness associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors is too distantly disconnected from the mental and emotional connections to overeating.

More so, I disagree with the cause behind the campaign promoting this message. Tiny print at the bottom of the ads reviles that this is for the Northern Bariatric Surgery Institute. Bariatric surgery is an option for obese individuals, but it’s not the only way to ‘save’ oneself from ‘suicide’.

What do you think about the ads? Is a message this sensitive necessary?

Gaming to replace exercise?

Trying to fight against claims that they might be to fault for child obesity, video game systems are wasting no time trying to alter games to encourage kids to get moving.

Systems like Nintendo’s Wii and the game Dance Dance Revolution have transformed the old way of gaming into virtual activity. Cranky Fitness posted a great article with a link to a Science Daily article on the replacement of activity based gaming as exercise for children.

The recent change in gaming to an interactive, athletically inspired gaming have temporarily given gaming companies like Playstation and Nintendo a break from the dog house. Their response to child obesity and new habits of idle behavior is nice to see. However, as the Science Daily article concludes, these games should not be thought of as a replacement for exercise.

In a time where obesity trends are threatening the health and well being our society, modifications for healthy living should not substitute traditional habits of healthy eating and physical exercise. Games including activity do not practice full ranges of motion. Also, most games do not meet cardio fitness characteristics. More so, these games continue to hinder social interaction with others, and promote a lifestyle of staying indoors.

The idea that gaming may replace activity is ultimately another sign of the changes in our society. One aspect of society that stays uniform however, is a child’s admiration of older children, adults and role models. Encourage your children, siblings or younger friends to engage in an active lifestyle by demonstration. Video games should remain seen as toys, not alternatives for social skills or healthy behavior.

Lack of activity more life threatening than obesity

I found a great article on CNN health a few weeks ago with a similar headline as this post. It talked about the danger of being idle, and the benefits of activity for all of your organs. I found it interesting, especially since we hear so much about the health risks of obesity, to find that those who are naturally slim without working out may be actually less healthy.

I couldn't find the same CNN article, but I did find a little bit of a dated study from 5 years ago that stated the same idea. Exercise boosting the immune system, improving insulin sensitivity and increased bone density were more valuable to long lasting lives than lack of activity all together.

These findings are of public health significance because both physical inactivity and obesity have been cited by the Surgeon General as two of the top 10 public-health priorities for the nation. In this study, inactivity was a significant predictor of all-cause mortality, and overweight men who exercised reduced their risk of premature death compared with overweight men who did not exercise.

Just more proof of the overwhelming good a little daily activity will get you, and in addition, doctors in this study found that the amount and intensity of activity was not nearly as relevant as the benefits all together.

BMI- TMI

My take on health sites that depend on user information and hidden formulas to determine health statistics.

After all the health hunting I've done on the internet, I've come across many pages that promise to help you with this, that, and figure out exactly what you need based on your plug ins. I've been told what my body age is (as apposed to to my annual calendar age), what my exact workout plan should be, my daily calorie intake number down to a tee, and now my body mass index as well.

While some of these sites are obviously more legit than others, it's an interesting thought to plug in minimal information about yourself to be chugged through a hidden system and provided with a figure. What do you believe? If you run with the information from every site, you're a fool of the system. What kind of calculator and system are these sites using? Is someone behind the site a legitimate health figure, or someone after your visit?

I've always tried to pass along sites that I believe are the most accurate and well handled. However I'm not a doctor and I only have what I've learned through blogging, nutrition and my web knowledge. I hope that as readers, you visit every site with a grain of salt and take nothing as a serious end all be all word.

That said, the latest site I've come across, offers a body mass index finder which uses your height and weight to determine your standings. This site actually shares their equation, plus backs their information up with a government health site. While their calculator cannot determine your fat to muscle ratio, it does warn at the bottom that they may incorrectly place you depending on your athletic build.

While I always think relying on a computer program to give you such important health figures is dangerous (a doctors visit is always best), keeping a general figure in mind is good to have in mind for those health conscious.

Obesity In The States

Earlier this month, CNN posted an interactive map showing the growth of obesity in the states over the past 20 years.

Watching the map change from light blue colors to the growth of bright red- high obesity states is alarming. However, as researchers and scientists explain all their hypothesized ideas on the growth of obesity, I’m not buying in.

Most stand by fast food joints have been around long before the 1980’s, and health awareness has been ever growing for the past 5 years at least. Personal trainers are the new in-town celebrities, and it seems that everybody knows of at least one super self-motivated success story living in their neighborhood.

And although we’ve grown into a society more reliant on cars the planes to move us around, information has been pouring out like a landslide about the risks and causes of obesity. It’s not just America either. Research shows that very few countries are living without the obesity epidemic.

So, my question is what’s really going on here? Is this a case of extreme stubbornness, denial and disbelief, or is losing weight too hard? Changing your lifestyle is not easy, but it’s do able, and it appears, for more than half of Americans, necessary.

What’s your take? Why does obesity continue to rise despite the growth of information discussing the dangers? What changes have you made in your life to keep in shape, and what sort of solutions would you offer others?

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