Health officials announced Tuesday that the CDC’s report, released in 2000, indicating 400,000 deaths a year were attributed to obesity was flawed and that the actual number was likely 80,000 less. People, that is still a third of a million deaths a year! It’s not okay.
Obesity and smoking are vying for top honors in the “kills most people” award, and at 425,000 deaths a year, smoking may still hold the lead.
Don’t be a stastic. Make small changes like taking a bowlful of chips instead of the entire bag. Practice portion control by eating a piece of fruit and then waiting an hour before eating something else. Cut your sandwich in half and eat the other half later as a snack, instead of a candy bar.
Notice how often you put something in your mouth out of habit or because “it’s there,” and then take steps to break that pattern. It begins with awareness.
Enjoy what you eat, take time with it. Notice it, smell it, taste it. Don’t just inhale food any more! Savor it. Take teensy bites. Let a piece of chocolate melt in your mouth. Every chew releases flavor and texture into your mouth and that is where the pleasure in eating lies.
Together we can work to bring down those annual deaths from obesity by focusing on ourselves and what we choose to eat.
