By Jennifer Gregory
Oftentimes couples gain weight together because of sharing unhealthy eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. And many people find it challenging to lose weight when their other half continues to live the couch potato life.
The good news? Couples who diet together, benefit together. Here are some ways couples can start out and support each other on their mutual weight loss journeys.
Bariatric weight loss surgery is on the rise every year in America. Between 200,000 and 250,000 adults receive bariatric surgery annually. A smaller statistic that seems to carry more weight is the fact that about 1,000 American teenagers received some sort of weight loss surgery last year and the number is increasing every day.
The most common types of bariactric procedures are gastric bypass, gastric banding, and sleeve gastrectomy, and all involve surgery which is very risky, especially for teenagers.
While some of the risks for post-op teenagers come from the surgery itself, other risks come from the ability of the patient to follow rules. Since the procedures limit the amount of food one can eat, malnutrition is a very serious threat, made worse for teenagers who are still developing and need those nutrients for proper growth. Because of the risk of malnutrition, most patients are required to be on a strict vitamin regimen for the rest of their lives to ensure the body receives the vital elements it can no longer obtain from food.
The quality of Americans’ diets has declined since last year. From fruit and vegetable consumption to exercise, and even smoking, Americans are reporting worse habits than this time last year.
A Gallup poll of 1,000 Americans that was released last week reveals the 55.9 percentage of Americans reported eating five or more servings of fruit and vegetables at least four days out of a week. Last May, the poll found that number to be 57.8 percent.
The poll concluded that produce intake is specifically down among Hispanics, young adults, seniors, and women compared to 2010.
In 2010, 68.2 percent of people said they “ate healthy all day yesterday.” This year that number dropped to 66.2 percent. That percentage translates to 4.5 million less Americans eating healthy this May.
Rebecca Wilson practices cognitive & mindfulness-based therapies and researches health psychology and behavior change. Her website, habitspark.com, focuses on how to use positive habits to create healthy and happy lifestyles.
First of all, what exactly is a habit? A habit is a behavior that you do so regularly that it becomes almost automatic. Although many habits are good, like brushing your teeth, some habits are devastating to a healthy lifestyle and weight control. Here are the 3 worst habits and how to break them:
Bad Habit #1: Eating mindlessly. Eating on the run, eating without paying attention to your hunger signals, and eating to escape painful feelings.
Break It: Replace eating mindlessly with eating mindfully. Eat at a dining table and make sure you aren’t doing anything else while you are eating. Before you start eating, notice your hunger level. As you eat, pay attention to your senses: the taste of the food, the feel of it, the smell, and how it looks.
Tune in to Good Morning America tomorrow, Thursday, March 3rd to see Matt Bean of Men’s Health share some good advice for breaking bad habits.
According to the health experts at Men’s Health, bad habits set up neural pathways in the brain, which is part of what makes them so hard to break. Once a prompt arrives, the brain can easily shift into autopilot after that pathway is established. Bean, a senior contributing editor, will share some quick to tips to overcoming these bad habits for good.
