Preventing obesity involves makinghealthy lifestylechoices every day.
To prevent obesity, you should probably stay active, follow a healthy diet, and get adequate sleep.
Obesity is generally defined as a chronic disease characterized by excessive body fat.
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While obesity prevention should start in childhood, it is never too late to start making healthier choices.
This article discusses how to prevent obesity starting in childhood and later in life.
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Preventing Obesity in Childhood
Obesity often begins inchildhood.
Obesity results from a combination of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors.
They can also assess any health risks your child may have based on their weight or your family history.
Diet to Prevent Obesity
Obesity can be prevented by following basic principles of healthy eating.
Focus on filling your plate with whole vegetables and fruits at every meal.
Does a Plant-Based Diet Prevent Obesity?
Limit Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners
It is important to keep yourintake of added sugarslow.
Reduce Saturated Fats
Numerous studies show that eating foods high in saturated fat contributes to obesity.
Pay Attention to Beverages
A single, 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola contains 39 grams of sugar.
That means one can of Coke alone exceeds the recommended daily intake of sugar.
But drinks marketed as “sugar-free” and “low-calorie” aren’t much better.
Artificially sweetened drinks also carry a risk of numerous health problems, including obesity.
Rather than focusing on which artificial sweetener is best, it’s better to avoid sweeteners in general.
Make water or unsweetened drinks and your go-to instead.
Eating more home-cooked meals was also associated with having less body fat.
BMI is a dated, flawed measure.
It does not take into account factors such asbody composition, ethnicity, sex, race, and age.
That means at least 30 minutes per day, five days per week.
Look into the many healthy ways to beat stress, and find what works best for you.
Improving Sleep to Prevent Obesity
The role of sleep in overall well-being cannot be overstated.
This extends to the goal of preventing obesity, too.
Studies have linked later bedtimes to weight gain over time.
One of these studies included 137,000 people from 26 countries.
Meanwhile, the risk is up to 38% higher in people who go to bed after 2 a.m.
The fact that the two biggest onesdiet and activityare ones you’re free to influence is good news.
A healthy lifestyle that puts exercise and eating at its center can also bring myriad other health benefits.
Getting good sleep and finding ways to reduce stress is important, too.
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