Type 2 Diabetes

It's very important to take steps to tackle obesity because, as well as causing physical challenges as a result of reduced mobility, it can lead to a number of serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, such as: type 2 diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease, as well as some types of cancer including breast cancer and bowel cancer.

In addition to the physical impact which obesity can have, it can also affect your mental wellbeing and lead to psychological problems such as depression and low self-esteem. Tackling the problem head on can be life changing.

Many people believe that they are predisposed to weight gain as a result of their genetic make-up and while it is true that there are some genetic conditions that can cause obesity, they are extremely rare (see below).

Generally speaking, there's usually no real reason why most people can't lose weight. However, it may be more difficult to lose weight if you have developed a certain relationship with food, based on learned behaviours such as meal size or finishing every meal with a desert. It is important to understand that, with some effort, these habits can be broken.

Obesity is generally caused by an imbalance between calories consumed, particularly from fatty or sugary foods, and calories burned through exercise or any form of physical activity. Excess calories are stored in the body as fat. The problem is compounded by our modern lifestyles which are often inactive and involve the consumption of foods that are high in calories.

Everyone knows that smoking is bad for your health, but how does stopping smoking improve your life?

In order to maintain a healthy weight it is important to keep the balance of calories in and calories out, at an even level.

On average, a physically active man needs about 2,500 calories a day to maintain a healthy weight, whereas the average physically active woman needs about 2,000 calories a day. The less active you are, the less calories you burn, so the less you need to eat in order to maintain a healthy weight.

To get an idea of how many calories we consume at a single sitting, let’s compare two meal types.

 •Meal A: A medium sized salmon steak, a handful of new potatoes with a knob of butter, broccoli and carrots Approximate calorie content = 700
•Meal B: Burger, chips and a milkshake Approximate calorie content = 1,500

As you can see, one poorly chosen meal can wipe out most of your daily allowance, and that’s not even factoring in dessert!

As well as cutting your alcohol consumption, making healthier meal choices and taking regular exercise can dramatically improve your chances of weight-loss. Changing your attitude towards food will also ensure your longer-term health, as well as helping other family members to develop a healthy lifestyle.

Swap processed and prepackaged foods that are high in both fat and sugar content, for nourishing foods that are low in saturated fats and full of natural sugars, such as fruit and nuts.