Many parents view their children’s excess weight as an aesthetic issue.  They worry their kids won’t be liked in school, won’t be picked in gym, and won’t be pursued by members of the opposite sex.  According to the American Institute of Cancer Research, parents have a lot more than looks to be concerned about.  New research shows that about 100,500 new cases of cancer are caused by obesity each year.

Obesity is known to cause many deleterious health effects but this study is one of the first to conclusively link specific cancers to excess body fat.  And as the number of obese people increases in the population, so does the number of cancer patients!  According to the study, 49% of endometrial cancer (about 20,700 cases per year), 35% of esophageal cancer (5,800 cases per year), 28% of pancreatic cancer (11,900 cases per year), 24% of kidney cancer (13,900 cases per year), 21% of gallbladder cancer (2,000) cases per year, 17% of breast cancer (33,000 cases per year), and 9% of colorectal cancer (13,200 cases per year) are due to obesity.

How does being overweight increase your risk of cancer?  That depends on the type cancer.  Experts believe that the increased estrogen found in overweight women leads to endometrial and breast cancer.  Post-menopausal obese women have 1.5 times the risk of breast cancer than normal weight post-menopausal women.  Before menopause, the ovaries are the primary source of estrogen.  Fat tissue, however, also makes estrogen.  Post-menopausal women, whose ovaries no longer make estrogen, tend to have lower estrogen levels.  Obese women have estrogen levels that are 50-100% higher than normal weight women.  It is believed that this increased level of estrogen causes rapid growth of estrogen-responsive breast tumors.

Obese women are not only more likely to get breast cancer, but they are more likely to die from it.  Breast cancer is harder to detect in an obese woman and is usually diagnosed at a much later stage, leading to lower survival rates.  Weight gain during adulthood is the most consistent and strongest predictor of breast cancer risk.

It is not clear why obese people have a higher risk of colon cancer than normal weight people.  It may be that the high levels of insulin or insulin-related growth factors in the obese promote tumor development.

Gastro-esophageal acid disease (GERD), common in the obese, is the likely cause of the increased risk of esophageal cancer.

The reason for the link between other cancers and obesity is not known.  The obese tend to have higher levels of many different hormones and growth factors that likely increase the risk of cancer.

What should we take from this study?  The importance of preventing weight gain in the first place!  Parents need to teach their children proper eating habits from the very beginning.  Half of overweight school-age children and three quarters of overweight teens will become obese adults.  So start promoting a healthy lifestyle now!

Teach your children the value of eating a healthy diet and maintaining an active lifestyle and you need not worry about the increasingly-evident link between obesity and cancer.

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Our worst fears have finally come true. Overweight teens are dying from heart disease. Pediatricians have long feared that the rising number of severely obese children and teens would soon start to suffer from adult complications of obesity, like heart attacks, strokes, and death. And now it is happening.

According to the St. Louis County medical examiner, a 13-year old football player who collapsed during football practice died as a direct result of “hypertensive cardiovascular disease”, also known as high blood pressure. This young man, Anthony Troupe Jr. died last August but the results of his autopsy were just released this Wednesday. The cause of death was hypertensive heart disease, which is known to be caused by obesity. Young Anthony was 6-foot-2 and weighed 383 pounds.

Unfortunately, this comes as no surprise to those of us in the child obesity specialty. In fact, a study published in the British Medical Journal and reviewed in the New York Times earlier this year found that obese teens were twice as likely to die by age 60 as non-obese, non-smoking teens. But it is one thing to think of somebody dying at age 60 and quite another to think of a child dying at age 13. It is just so sad.

Other studies have found similar results. A Harvard study followed teens over 50 years and found that obese boys were twice as likely to die from heart disease as normal-weight boys. In fact, they learned that obesity that starts in childhood or adolescence causes a greater risk of early death than obesity that starts in adulthood

It is clear that heart disease starts at a very young age. As parents, we must protect our children from the deadly effects of obesity. Many look at obesity as an aesthetic issue. It is not. It is a disease. A disease that can kill. And we must treat it that way.

I urge any reader with an overweight or obese child at home to get help before it is too late. Children must work with physicians when starting a weight loss program. So call your pediatrician and get a referral for a child weight loss specialist. Do not wait.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joanna-dolgoff-md/child-obesity-our-worst-f_b_317380.html

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A healthy, well-stocked kitchen can be a recipe for success if you equip yourself with a master grocery list!  Certain items for the freezer, fridge and pantry are all necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle.  Here is a list of my favorite kitchen staples that no kitchen should be without.

Freezer Ready

Frozen bags of fruits and vegetables are frozen at the peak of freshness to provide the optimal amount of nutrients your body needs.  Make sure you buy the items with no added salt, sugars or sauces.  Buy lean meats and fish in bulk and freeze in healthy portions to minimize cost and time during the week!

1. Frozen Vegetables

Quick Tip: Buy in bulk at your local whole-sale market to save some money.

1. Frozen Fruits

Quick Tip: Mix frozen fruits with ice cold non-fat milk for a mid-day treat!

1. Protein

Healthy Protein Options: Lean chicken breast, lean steak, frozen large bags of shrimp,   salmon or any type of white fish (all to be bought at a wholesale supermarket)

Fridge Ready

Stock your fridge with fresh fruits and vegetables that are in season.  In season fruits and vegetables generally cost less and taste better!  Dairy items are also of utmost importance for your body because they contain Vitamin D and Calcium which help maintain bone health.  Eggs are healthy because they provide your body with protein needed to maintain strong muscles.

1. Portable fruits

Options: Apples, blueberries, pears, oranges, grapes

1. Low-fat or non-fat dairy items- yogurt and cheese

Yogurt Options: Look for plain yogurt with no artificial sweeteners or  plain Greek yogurt

Cheese Options: Part-skim mozzarella string cheese sticks or low fat cheese wedges, like             Baby-Bell Swiss Cheese.

1. Eggs

Simple Ideas: Buy eggs to make omelets or scrambled eggs.  Boil an egg for a simple       snack option.  Scramble an egg with egg whites for extra protein and no            additional fat!

Pantry Ready

Items for your pantry are important because they can stay fresh for a long time.  Usually canned good can be found on sale so do not be afraid to buy many canned items at once!

1. Beans

Simple Ideas: Beans can be added to soups and stews easily and are a vegetarian protein option.  Just be sure to rinse and drain the beans before adding to a recipe because sometimes there is a lot of added salt packed in the cans that you do not need.

Healthy Tip: pair any bean (cannellini, black, kidney, lentil) with brown rice for a healthy                side dish!

1. Tuna

Simple Ideas: Buy tuna packed in water and add to pasta dishes or salads.  Remember it is important to eat protein at every main meal and tuna is ready to go at any time, in no time at all!

1. Whole Wheat Pasta/Bread

Healthy Tip:  Always buy whole wheat pasta and bread for your family because they are excellent sources of fiber; fiber helps keep you full for a long period of time.

1. Low-Sodium Stocks

Healthy Tip: Stock up on stocks! Just make sure they are low sodium and non-fat.

Simple Idea: Use the stocks to make a quick batch of vegetable or chicken soup!

Smart Supermarket Strategies for a Healthy Family

• Shop mostly on the perimeter of the store:
  • Steer clear of the middle isles when shopping at the grocery store because the middle aisles contain all the processed foods.  The perimeter of the store contains all the fruits, vegetables, and dairy. 
  • Make a grocery list for the middle isles: stick with canned vegetables, beans, whole wheat pasta/bread and oatmeal.
  • Make a list and only shop for items on the list:
    • You will save money and time by avoiding those unnecessary impulse buys.
    • Shop on a full stomach:
      • If you shop on an empty stomach, you are more likely to grab anything that looks good.  Eat before you go so you are less likely to put unhealthy foods in your shopping cart.
      • Go grocery shopping without the kids:
        • Avoid buying the sugary snacks with the “cool” cartoons on the box; they are expensive and bad for your children’s overall health.
        • Shop in a wholesale supermarket:
          • Items bought in bulk are generally less costly for more food!

Stretch Recipes and your Budget:

Try to cook big batches of soups, stews, and pasta sauces during the weekends and freeze for quick and easy, weeknight meals.  You can also make extra portions of meals during the week and store for later use.  Buy high cost items like meats in a wholesale supermarket and freeze healthy portion sizes for during the week.

The key to a healthy lifestyle is to keep healthy foods in your house; whether it is for a snack or a meal.  Remember to always enjoy a variety of healthy foods in moderation while keeping a few go-to snacks and/or meals handy for those extra busy days!

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My four year old daughter took a ballet dancing class today.  It was adorable.  All the girls stood in their shiny leotards and soft ballet skirts, twirling around and smiling.  All except for one, that is.  There was one girl who looked very different from the others.  Her face was round, her arms were pudgy, and her belly was, well, protruding.  Needless to say, she did not have a smile on her face.  Immediately, my heart went out to her.
During the class, this girl’s mother came over to speak to me.  “I understand you work with overweight kids,” she told me.  “Yes, I do.”  “I think I need help,” she said.  “That’s one of the reasons I enrolled her in this class.  I want her to move around a bit.  She usually prefers to sit down and watch TV.  I am so glad she is getting some exercise.”

While her mother was right in suggesting a more active after-school activity, I couldn’t help but think that the girls were getting very little movement in the class.  Because it is such a beginner’s class, they were mostly learning moves and practicing them once or twice.  Nobody in the class broke a sweat or got out of breath.  In other words, you couldn’t consider this an “exercise” class.  But it definitely is better than watching TV.

But I got where the mom was coming from.  There are so few activities for kids that give them the kind of vigorous exercise recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.  We really need more outlets for our children to exercise.  But that’s another blog in itself…

So- back to dance class.  As the girls were let out, I noticed that they were each holding a piece of chocolate!  What??   Why??  That small piece of chocolate contained many more calories than what they burned through the class.  What was the point of giving out chocolate after a dance class?  The fact the the class is held in a gym just makes it more ridiculous.

I was livid.  Why must everything come back to chocolate?  Does a child need to be rewarded for a minimum amount of exercise?  Will our kids expect to eat chocolate every time they break a sweat?  Isn’t this defeating the purpose?  What’s wrong with giving out stickers, like they had done the previous weeks?

I know that the teacher was trying to be nice.  And I know my parents are trying to be nice when they take my kids for sundaes.  And, hey, even I am trying to be nice when I take my kids for frozen yogurt.  But ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!  We can not start rewarding exercise with chocolate.  It is absolutely unacceptable.  Our good intentions, special treats, and fattening rewards are only making our kids heavier than ever!  This has to end.  You can bet I will be calling the dance class first thing tomorrow to complain.

I felt sick when I saw the look on the heavy girl’s mother’s face.  Here she was making an effort to get her child healthy and it was completely sabotaged.  She just looked at me and said, “It just isn’t easy…”  And she is right.

What do you all think?  Do you agree or disagree?

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