I N T R O D U C T I O N

      The ideal approach to weight correction and maintinance is the multiple process of exercise, balanced food content, and caloric manipulation.

EXERCISE

      Any good reduction and maintinance program incluces the use of regular exercise.

      Almost one third of the energy used daily by the normal individual goes into muscular activity, and in the heavy laborer as much as two thirds (and occasionally three fourths) is used in this fashion.   Since muscular activity is the most important way in which energy is expended within the body, it is frequently said that being overweight results from too high a ratio of food intake to ones daily exercise.

      A good general guidline for exercise is as follows:

•    Frequency:   3 to 5 days per week.
•    Intensity:   Exercise within your planed 'target range.'
•    Time:  20 to 30 minutes of continuous exercise.
•    Type:   Aerobic and anaerobic exercise (20 - 30 minutes).

BALANCED  FOOD  CONTENT

      Individual nutritional requierments vary with genetic and metabolic differences.   Good nutrition helps to prevent acute and chronic illness, to develop physical and mental potential, and to provide reserves for stress.
        The intake of food must always be sufficient to supply the metabolic requirements of the body and yet not so much as to result in obesity.   Also since different foods contain different proportions of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, appropriate balance must be maintained among these different types of food so that all segments of the body's metabolic systems can be supplied with the required materials.

      In the human body essentially all carbohydrates are converted to glucose before they reach the cell, the proteins are converted into amino acids, and the fats are converted into fatty acids.   The physiologically available energy liberated from each gram of carbohydrate as it is oxidized to carbon dioxide and water is 4 calories;  for fat it is 9 calories;  and for protein it is 4 calories.

^«Carbohydrates^»

      Carbohydrates supply most of the body's energy needs.   Carbohydrates come in two forms:   simple carbohydrates (sugars) and complex carbohydrates (starches).   Sugars privide a quick influx of energy, whereas starches have a more lasting effect and may contain many other components such as vitamins and minerals.   The main source of carbohydrate ingestion should come from starches or complex carbohydrates, since they are more dense in nutrients.   Some of the best forms of carbohydrates include:   fruits, grains, legumes, starches, and vegetables.   Foods high in simple carbohydrates include:   cakes, candy and cookies.   The primary storage form of glucose is glycogen, mainly in liver cells and skeletal muscle.   The major storage form of energy, however is in the fatty acids of neutral triglycerides.   Carbohydrate that is not oxidized or stored as glycogen is converted to fat.

      Only a small fraction of the carbohydrate found in plants is available for human digestion and nutrition, since cellulose and certain other plant polysaccharides cannot be degraded into monosaccharides.   Most of the utilizable carbohydrates are ingested as plant starches;  as animal glycogen;  or as the disaccharides sucrose, maltose, or lactose.

^«Proteins ^»

      Proteins constitute ~20% of adult body weight.   Their amino acids are essential in the production of cellular protoplasm and are the 'building blocks' for muscles, bones, teeth, nails, and hair.   They regulate many chemical functions within the cells and build and rebuild tissues in the body.
      Proteins are classified as being 'complete' or 'partial' based upon their amino acid composition.   Some proteins have inadequate quantities of certain essential amino acids and consiquently cannot be used to form the necessary body proteins.   Such protenis are called 'partial proteins.'   In general, proteins derived from animal foodstuffs are more nearly complete than are the proteins derived from vegetable and grain sources.   Complete proteins contain all the essential amino acids necessary to produce body proteins and can be found in the following:

•    Eggs
•    Dairy Produce - milk, yogart, cheese
•    Grains
•    Nuts
•    Soy Products
•    Vegetables - collard greens, spinach

      Twenty to 30 grams of the body's proteins are broken down and used for the production of other body chemicals every day.   It is necessary, therefore, that all cells must continue to form new proteins to take the place of those that are being broken down, and a supply of protein is needed in the diet for this prupose.   The average person can maintain normal stores of protein as long as their daily intake is above 30 to 55 grams.

      It should be noted that when the diet contains an abundance of carbohydrates and fats, however, almost all the body's energy is deived from these two substances and very little is derived from proteins.   In starvation, in contrast, after the carbohydrates and fats have been depleted and the body's protein stores are then consumed rapidly for energy;  sometimes at rates approaching several hundred grams per day rather than the normal daily rate of 30 to 55 grams.

^«Fats ^»

      Fats in moderation, are an important part of good nutrition.   Fats assist in the storing of energy, manitinance of healthy hair and skin, provide essential fatty acids, and alert the body when it is full and satisfied.   Fats slso are important in the production and carrying of the fat-soulable vitamins A, D, E, and K.   Healthy fats include those that are found naturally in foods which include;  cold water fish (salmon, trout, tuna), sunflower/olive/sesame oils, avocados, and raw nuts.

CALORIC  MANIPULATION

      Correction of an overweight problem should be considered a long term project.   The immediate treatment objective is to reverse one's state of caloric excess to that of a negative caloric balance.   This desired caloric deficit may be achieved through a decrease in caloric intake along with an increase in physical activity.

      When greater quantities of energy (in the form of Food) enters the body than are expended, the body weight increases.   Excess energy input occurs only during the developing phase of obesity, and once the person is obese, all that is required to remain obese is that the energy input equal the energy output.   For a person to reduce in weight, the input must be less than the energy output.   In other words, this means partial starvation.
      The stores of some vitamins, especially the water soluble vitamins - vitamin B group and Vitamin C - do not last long during starvation.   After a week or more of starvation, mild vitamin deficiencies usually begin to appear, (expept for vitamin B₁₂ which can last in the liver for a year or longer).   The absence of vitamin C can cause symptoms within a few weeks and can cause death from scurvy in 20 to 30 weeks.   It is important to prevent vitamin deficiencines during the dieting period.
      For each 9.3 calories of excess energy entering the body, 1 gram of fat is stored.

      Reducing diets, when used for a limited amount of time, may be quite useless if the individual reverts to a habitual pattern of food intake once the objective is reached.   To achieve permanent results, a permanent lifestyle change in food habits is necessary!

^«Satiety ^»

      The ingestion of a meal should provide a sense of well-being.   Whole milk, cream, eggs, and fatty foods have high satiety values;  sugar increases the rate of flow of gastric juices and delays emptying of the stomach, thus increasing satiety.   Bread and potatoes have relatively low satiety values, as do lean meats, fish, vegetables, and many fruits.

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