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Check Health, take a hi five for life

The BMI or Mass Index gives us an indication of how much fat a person has in relation to their weight and height. It helps to determine weather a person is underweight, normal, overweight or obese. Even though it does not provide us with a distinction between the fat and the non fat components of the overall body mass (muscle to fat ratio), it is still the most practical method to evaluate one’s degree of risk associated with obesity.

Your BMI is , if your BMI is less than 18.5, based on your height, you are considered to be underweight. You should speak to your doctor or health professional to help determine the possible causes, as well as for the best advice on weight gain.

Your BMI is , if your BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9, based on your height, you are considered to have a healthy weight. A healthy/ normal body weight is one that would lower your risk of nutrition-related diseases.

Your BMI is , if your BMI is between 25 and 29.9, based on your height, you are considered to be overweight. In this group, there is a growing risk to develop chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol.

Your BMI is , if your BMI is 30 or more, based on your height, you are considered to be obese. At this point, there is a moderate to high risk of developing chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes and cholesterol.

Your BMI is , if your BMI is 40 or more, based on your height, you are considered Morbidly Obese. Suffering Morbid Obesity puts you at a very high risk of developing chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes, cardiac arrest, arthritis and other life threatening illnesses.

It is very important to put life measures in place to reduce your weight and as such improve your health. The best way is usually to combine a healthy diet with regular physical exercise. You should speak to your doctor, health care professional, and dietician, to determine the best suited way for you to lose weight.

Wean Yourself off Sugar...

Have you ever noticed that babies, when offered a taste of something sweet continuously lick their lips and stick out their tongue? In fact, in many cases they may actually try to fight you for more!

You see, from even as early as birth we have a natural liking for sweet foods. That’s because our taste buds for sweetness are located at the tip of tongue. This is why it is very important to expose babies, to a variety of tastes and foods so that they develop a liking and a tolerance for foods that are far less sweet and healthier. This will reduce their natural preference for sugar since it is the taste that they would, more than likely taste and know first.

While it is clear that we are all biologically programmed to like sweet foods, in some cases many people go way beyond the threshold of how much their sugar intake should be. If you are one of these people the good news is that even now, you can retrain yourself and your taste buds to appreciate foods that are less sweet!

You are never too old to learn new tricks, here’s how:

  • Start measuring your sugar with a teaspoon or cup measurements when adding to foods or drinks.
  • Over a two week period, gradually reduce the amount of sugar you use in hot and cold beverages, fruit drinks, yogurt, and stews etc., e.g. from two tablespoons to one tablespoon.
  • Be on the lookout for sugar's many aliases on labels; sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, confectioner's sugar, corn sweeteners, dextrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, molasses, honey, fruit and juice concentrate, invert sugar, cane sugar, raw sugar, galactose, lactose, levulose and maple sugar.
  • Reduce the sugar content of baked recipes; make sure to replace the removed sugar with an equal amount of flour to keep the liquid/solid ratio right, and/or use cinnamon and nutmeg since it brings out the natural sweetness of foods, mashed ripened bananas are also great to sweeten cakes.
  • Cut sweet cravings by including sweet vegetables as part of your diet; slow cooked root vegetables (carrots, corn, pumpkin, squash, onions) result in sweeter side dishes!
  • If you like chocolate, try a snack-size bar rather than a large bar.
  • Pack nutritiously smart lunch kits. Use naturally sweetened foods e.g. fruit and vegetables and whole grain cereals etc. as snacks
  • A complete ‘ban’ of sweets from children can backfire on you. If you allow them some sweet treats in moderation, they are less likely to overdo it. Let them know how much and when they are allowed to eat them.
  • When eating out, you can enjoy sweet things in moderation by ordering small to medium items e.g. soft drinks and fries and skip the ‘refills’!

Remember you can enjoy sweet foods, but in moderation as part of a healthy eating plan and do not forget to include exercise for good measure. Take charge of what you eat!

For more information contact Nestlé Consumer Services at 800 NEST