A new test is being conducted on the Biggest Loser contestants, and everyone watching at home will get to benefit too, with the introduction of the Biggest Loser Know Your Number HealthScore. The test is being introduced on the January 12 episode of Biggest Loser, season nine episode two.
For the first time, contestants will learn their HealthScore number and their risk of the three most deadly diseases: stroke, diabetes and heart disease. With Dr. Huizenga, Medical Advisor on The Biggest Loser, the contestants will also learn how many years of life they can recover when they make the necessary habit changes to their health. Then, at mid-season, the contestants will be tested again to reveal drastic changes in their HealthScore, no doubt stunning them and viewers and proving the benefit of fitness, proper diet and lifestyle change.
“The Biggest Loser Know Your Number HealthScore opens a new dimension to the show because it provides a personalized health roadmap for contestants to know their current health risks and will let me track their progress toward reducing those risks through the season,” says Dr. Robert Huizenga. “I believe the HealthScore can provide the same guidance to anyone wanting to take charge of their health.”
The federal government’s stimulus plan isn’t just for the fat cats of Wall Street. It’s also being aimed at reversing our country’s obesity epidemic.
The Obama administration is going to provide states and local governments with money to control obesity, which will include investing in public transportation to encourage more walking, says Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Sebelius says that the majority of the $1 billion stimulus plan appropriated by Congress for disease prevention would go to a CDC-planned initiative to fight obesity, heart disease and other chronic conditions. Read Full Post >
As if obesity doesn’t come with enough collateral health damage – heart disease, diabetes, cancer, to name a few – now the obese may be more susceptible to the H1N1 swine flu virus.
Researchers in the U.S., including Dr. Lena Napolitano of the University of Michigan Medical Center, studied 10 patients admitted to the university’s intensive care unit with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by infection with H1N1.
“Of the 10 patients, nine were obese (body mass index more than 30), including seven who were extremely obese (BMI more than 40),” the experts wrote in the report published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly report on death and disease. Read Full Post >
Many of the diseases and cancers seen in our society could be preventable or postponed if we shifted our focus to prevention rather than treating a disease. Too often people go on medication to lower their cholesterol or help with their blood pressure, but had they considered diet and exercise years before it’s likely that they wouldn’t have to depend on medication at all.
Obesity is another medical issue that could probably be avoided if we paid more attention to what we put into our mouths and how much exercise we get. The cost of prevention (eating right and exercising) is far cheaper than the cost of medical expenses (doctor visits, hospital stays, medications, etc.).
All this being said, what can you do to start this road of prevention? In my eyes, it’s never too late to start getting healthier. So what can you do? Read Full Post >
As more of our population become obese and overweight, obesity diseases become much more prevalent. Hypertension is one such disease, and here I explain what it is, why it affects the overweight, symptoms and prevention.
What is it?
Hypertension is one word meaning elevated or high blood pressure. Known as the “silent killer” due to it being asymptomatic (not showing significant signs or symptoms). It typically leads to having a fatal stroke or heart attack. High blood pressure is defined as having a consistently elevated arterial blood pressure. When a doctor or nurse takes your blood pressure, they measure the systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Being hypertensive means you have a systolic blood pressure above 140mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure is above 90mm Hg (normal blood pressure = systolic of 130mm Hg and diastolic of 85mm Hg). Untreated hypertension can result in heart failure, renal disease, and peripheral vascular disease. Read Full Post >
