Hidden Sources of Salt Could Mean High Blood Pressure

Calendar May 15, 2013 | Posted by laicos

Ward off high blood pressure by avoiding these hidden sources of salt.

A high intake of sodium is simply bad for your health. Too much sodium consumption can increase your blood pressure, which in turn can increase your risk for heart attack and stroke.

Surprisingly, the average American consumes about 3,400 mg of sodium each day. Lower your high blood pressure risk by avoiding or limiting these hidden sources of sodium.

Convenience foods
Processed, packaged, store-bought and restaurant foods tend to be higher in sodium. When you cook your own food from scratch, it allows you to control the amount of salt added. Convenience foods, on the other hand, have a higher salt content to preserve shelf-life and achieve uniform flavor. Convenience foods which tend to be higher in sodium include:

  • Canned soups
  • Canned vegetables
  • Frozen meals
  • Luncheon meats

Condiments
How often do you add ketchup to your already salted French fries? Adding condiments piles on the sodium. Soy Sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, relish and olives can add more sodium than you would like to admit. For example, a tablespoon of soy sauce could contain up to 1,000 mg of sodium.

Snacks
This category is a little more obvious in terms of sodium content. Eating pretzels, potato chips and nuts adds to your sodium intake really fast so opt for fruits and veggies to snack on or unsalted seeds and nuts. 

Foods with certain key words
Anything described as pickled, cured or brined tend to be high in sodium and reducing sodium intake starts with reducing your consumption of the offending foods. The DASH eating plan (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is a diet low in sodium, fat and cholesterol, and high in fruit and vegetables and low-fat dairy products and fiber.

The medical staff at the Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can find help you find an option to reclaim your health. Join us for an information session about our Bariatric program on the fourth Thursday of every month. Call (561) 568-BARI (2274) for details and registration.

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How Much Weight Gain is Reasonable During Pregnancy?

Calendar May 8, 2013 | Posted by laicos

A lot depends on your pre-pregnancy weight and health.

Gaining an appropriate amount of weight during pregnancy reduces the health risks for both moms-to-be and babies. If you’re overweight before pregnancy, for instance, you have a greater chance of developing gestational diabetes and high blood pressure, among other complications. If you gain too much or too little, your baby has a higher risk of being born prematurely.

The Institute of Medicine has issued national pregnancy weight-gain guidelines based on your Body Mass Index (BMI) before you became pregnant. BMI is a body-fat measurement based on your weight and height. Calculate yours here.

Here are the general guidelines for recommended weight gain:

  • If you are considered normal weight (a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9), aim to gain 25 to 35 pounds total during pregnancy
  • If you are considered underweight (a BMI less than 18.5), gain 28 to 40 pounds total
  • If you are overweight (a BMI of 25.0 to 29.9), gain 15 to 25 pounds total
  • If you are obese (a BMI greater than 30.0), gain 11 to 20 pounds total

Naturally, if you’re expecting twins or other multiples, you’ll need to gain more weight, from 25 to 42 pounds total if you’re considered obese before conception, to 37 to 54 pounds total if you’re considered normal weight. Consult your health-care provider to determine what’s best for you.

If you have questions about losing weight once the baby is born, the Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can help. We hold free information sessions on the fourth Thursday of each month. Please call (561) 548-BARI (2274) for details and to register.

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National Stroke Awareness Month: Will Your Weight Raise Your Stroke Risk?

Calendar May 1, 2013 | Posted by laicos

Excess weight increases your risk of stroke, but it’s a risk factor you can control.

Obesity is a major risk factor for stroke in part because of the strain those extra pounds place on your circulatory system, according to the National Stroke Association. People with excess weight also are more likely to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. May is National Stroke Awareness Month, a great time to learn more about factors that put you at risk of stroke and how you can reduce them.

Reduce your risk
Fortunately, unlike other risk factors of stroke, such as age and family history, weight is one you can manage. Here’s how:

  • Get moving: Several studies show that brisk exercise five or more times per week reduces stroke risk. Try walking for 30 minutes daily or 10 minutes three times a day.
  • Adjust your diet: Stick to foods that are low in cholesterol, saturated fats, and trans fats. Opt for lean meats such as turkey, chicken, and fish; lean cuts of beef (sirloin steak or round) and pork (pork loin, pork chops); low-fat dairy products; and whole-grain breads and cereals. Reduce your salt intake as well.
  • Eat the rainbow: One Harvard University study says that eating at least five servings daily of fruits and vegetables can cut your stroke risk by 20 percent. Try pre-sliced fruits or vegetables as snacks and add grated vegetables to pasta sauces.
  • Cook healthier: Grilling instead of frying significantly reduces a food’s fat content. If you crave the crunch of fried chicken, try baking it “oven-fried” style.
  • Take time for coffee or green tea: A recent Japanese study found these beverages daily may lower your stroke risk by 20 percent, perhaps because they keep blood from clotting.

The Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can help you on your weight-loss journey. Join us for a free information session on the fourth Thursday of the month. Reserve your spot by calling (561) 548-BARI (2274).

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Signs Your Child Could Become Obese

Calendar April 24, 2013 | Posted by laicos

It's not easy to identify whether a child’s weight is problematic; find out what you should be looking for.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend using body mass index (BMI) plotted on a growth chart to assess your child’s growth pattern and identify possible weight problems.

Here are some other lifestyle indicators that your child could become obese:

  • Are you or your partner overweight? Even one overweight parent doubles a child’s risk of obesity.
  • Do you often dine out? Restaurants tend to provide large portion sizes and processed, high-fat, high-calorie foods.
  • Do you eat five fruits and vegetables daily? Promote variety. Adding cheese to broccoli for finicky taste buds is worth a try.
  • Do you eat breakfast? Children who don’t are more likely to be overweight.
  • Do you have regular meal and snack times? Set these times at least two and a half hours apart. Combine protein (peanut butter, cheese) with carbs, fat, and fiber (an apple or grapes).
  • Do you often reward your child with food? This elevates sweets' appeal and can build an unhealthy relationship with food.
  • Does your child have asthma or another health condition? Children with asthma have higher obesity rates because breathing problems lead to less physical activity, for example.
  • Does your child watch a lot of TV or play video games? Limit screen time to one to two hours daily to encourage physical activity and reduce junk-food advertising.
  • Does your child drink soda or fruit juice? Limit these empty calories to 4 to 6 ounces per day. Offer milk or water instead.
  • Do you walk the walk? If you eat healthy and exercise in a way you enjoy, kids are more likely to follow your example. Just don’t lecture, which can be counterproductive.

If you have questions about pursuing a healthy lifestyle and meeting your own weight-loss goals, visit our website, or join us for a free information session on the fourth Thursday of the month. Reserve your spot by calling (561) 548-BARI (2274).

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Could Alcohol Hurt Your Weight Loss?

Calendar April 22, 2013 | Posted by laicos

We’ve all heard about the health benefits a glass of red wine offers, but having more than one to two drinks a few times per week can make you gain, not lose, weight.

Because April is Alcohol Awareness Month, this is a great time to assess how your alcohol intake can affect your weight-loss goals. Alcohol contains empty calories (from 100 in a 12-ounce light beer to 270 in four ounces of a margarita), but that’s not the only reason it hurts your ability to lose weight.

Because of how it moves through the body, alcohol affects your ability to burn fat. As it’s digested, alcohol becomes acetate, which our bodies use for energy first before turning to any other source, such as stored fat or calories. One study found that people who ingested less than an ounce of alcohol over a 30-minute time period lowered their fat-burning abilities by 73%.

Here are other drawbacks:

  • Alcohol stimulates your appetite, making it easy to overeat. Ever wonder why pretzels, chips, nuts, and appetizers taste so good with drinks? Experts especially warn diabetics against ingesting high amounts of alcohol because high amounts can make blood sugar drop.
  • Alcohol can cause your body to store more fat. Red wine, for instance, contains the phytochemical resveratrol, which is thought to fight heart disease, inhibit cancer, and slow aging, hence the benefits of that occasional glass. But resveratrol also releases estrogen into the bloodstream, triggering fat storage.
  • Alcohol prevents you from following healthy habits. Its inhibition-lowering properties make it tougher to tell when we’re full, so we’re more likely to overindulge. What’s more, the liver processes alcohol by using certain B vitamins and vitamin C, sapping your motivation and energy over time. There goes the oomph to exercise!

For more help in meeting your weight-loss goals, visit our website for more information about available options, or join us for a free information session on the fourth Thursday of the month. Reserve your spot by calling (561) 548-BARI (2274).

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Does Eating at Night Make You Gain Weight?

Calendar April 17, 2013 | Posted by laicos

Eating after dark can wreak havoc on your waistline.

For years, dieters have heard that eating after 8pm causes weight gain, for a variety of reasons. Last year, researchers suggested a scientific cause behind why this occurs: Eating at night throws off the metabolic cycle of certain organs, catching them when they’re not at their peak.

In other words, just as our bodies have circadian rhythms, perhaps our organs do too. Eating when they want to sleep means they don’t process food quite as well as when they’re awake.

Yet even before this study, nutritionists warned people away from eating at night. Here’s why:

  • Late-night eating leads to ingesting more calories when you're mindlessly snacking in front of the TV, or unwinding with chips and alcohol, for instance.
  • People who tend to eat late at night usually eat for emotional reasons such as boredom or stress and grab convenience foods instead of making healthy food choices.
  • If you eat less — or eat lighter meals — during the day, you’re more likely to feel starved at night, or binge.
  • Some late eaters also sleep less at night, a habit generally linked to gaining weight. One study found that people who slept fewer hours tended to eat more calories at dinner and ate fewer fruits and vegetables.

If you have questions about living a healthy lifestyle, the Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can help. Learn more about our multidisciplinary approach to weight loss and join us for a free information session on the fourth Thursday of the month. Reserve your spot by calling (561) 548-BARI (2274).

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What to Do When Weight Loss Plateaus

Calendar April 3, 2013 | Posted by laicos

If you’ve been losing weight but lately the pounds won’t budge, you’ve hit a plateau — a predictable but frustrating part of the journey.

Weight loss plateaus when your daily calorie intake is close to the calories you’re burning daily. Each of us has a basal metabolic rate (BMR), the basic amount of energy our bodies need to function. We gain weight when we take in more calories than we expend through exercise and other activities.

Weight loss begins when we reduce our calorie intake, increase our physical activity, or both. When the loss stops, it’s time to tweak what’s worked so far.

Doing More — and Less
Surprisingly, this doesn’t have to mean consuming drastically fewer calories:

  • Add snacks to fuel metabolism: If you’re on a diet of 1,200 calories a day, your body might think it’s in starvation mode. Add about 200 to 500 calories daily through snacks like fruit or yogurt, and the pounds might drop again.
  • Eat more protein: Taking in more daily calories from protein (at most 20%) and fewer from fat and carbohydrates might spur weight loss at this stage, studies show.
  • Monitor what you’re eating: If you haven’t been keeping a detailed food diary, jot down everything, even little amounts: tastes while cooking, finishing what’s left on the kids’ plates, late-night snacks. Nibbling adds up.
  • Burn more calories by exercising an extra day each week, or adding 10 to 15 minutes to your routine. Increasing the frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise has been known to be effective for weight loss.
  • Alternate your cardiovascular exercise with strength training, which boosts your metabolism as you build muscle.
  • Add variety. Trying a new type of exercise, or alternate calorie-cutting days with ones where you allow yourself a treat, can jolt you past a plateau and keep you inspired.

If you have questions about weight-loss surgery, visit our website for more information about available options, or join us for a free information session on the fourth Thursday of the month. Reserve your spot by calling (561) 548-2274.

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Finding the Right Shoes for Exercise

Calendar March 27, 2013 | Posted by laicos

The right workout shoes make exercising safer by reducing sprains and pulled muscles, which makes getting in shape much easier.

When choosing athletic shoes, don’t be influenced solely by the style or the price. Think function, then fit.

For instance, if you walk or run for exercise, or take indoor exercise classes, you’ll want shoes designed for running, which have shock-absorbing padding, an elevated heel, and more room for the toes. If you do many different activities, cross-trainers are best.

Your Foot Type
The way your foot moves as you walk or jog has a huge influence on the features you’ll need. Although most specialty stores can help evaluate this, you can get a decent idea of your foot type by wetting your foot and then stepping on a paper bag to see the shape.

  • If you have a high arch, you land on the outside of your feet (underpronate) and should choose a neutral or cushioned shoe.
  • If you have a normal arch, choose a neutral shoe.
  • If you have a flat arch, you roll your feet inward (overpronate), try a stability shoe or one with arch support.

Shoe-Trying Tips
To test out the features best, try on your athletic shoes as if you were exercising:

  • Go shopping at the same time of day that you work out, if possible. Feet swell in the evening, so if you exercise in the morning, shop early in the day to get a fit comparable to when you’ll wear the shoes.
  • Bring socks you usually wear while exercising to ensure a compatible fit.
  • Make sure you can wiggle your toes slightly in the shoes. Leave about a half-inch of space between your toes and the end of the shoe.
  • Make sure the back of the shoe cups your foot and ankle but does not rub the skin when you move.

The Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center wants to help you on your weight-loss and exercise journey. We hold free information sessions on the fourth Thursday of each month. Please call (561) 548-BARI (2274) for details and to register.

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Warning Signs of Diabetes

Calendar March 20, 2013 | Posted by laicos

If you’re rushing to the bathroom more often or feeling more tired than usual, you might be developing diabetes.

An estimated 7 million people each year don’t recognize they have diabetes because the warning signs can be mistaken as benign, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) says. The ADA designates the fourth Tuesday in March as Diabetes Alert Day, a “wake-up call” urging the public to assess its risk of this serious disease.

When we have too much glucose or sugar in the blood — which we need for fuel — but not enough in our cells, diabetes develops. It has two forms: Type 1 diabetes, where our insulin-producing cells have been destroyed, and Type 2 diabetes, where our bodies have become resistant to insulin. Both forms produce the same warning signs.

Contact your doctor if you notice:                  

  • Frequent urination: Excess blood glucose causes the kidneys to draw extra water from the blood to dilute it, keeping your bladder full.
  • Excessive thirst: A side effect of the above symptom; if your body draws extra water from your blood, you’ll feel dehydrated.
  • Weight loss: More noticeable with Type 1 diabetes, this occurs once the body starts to break down muscle tissue and fat for energy.
  • Fatigue and lack of concentration: If the body’s cells aren’t able to absorb glucose from the bloodstream, we have low energy.
  • Tingling or numbness in the hands or feet: Called neuropathy, this symptom occurs as high blood glucose damages the nervous system.

Other warning signs of diabetes include vomiting and stomach pain, blurred vision, dry or itchy skin, frequent infections, and slow-healing cuts or bruises.

Maintaining a healthy weight and staying active are two ways to reduce your risk of developing diabetes — and the Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can help. Visit one of our free information sessions on the fourth Thursday of each month. Please call (561) 548-2274 to register or for more details.

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5 Tips for Starting a Walking Program

Calendar March 13, 2013 | Posted by laicos

Even though walking is an exercise you can do anywhere, you should ease into a walking program, especially if you’ve never exercised regularly.

The benefits of walking are indisputable: It reduces your risk for heart disease, decreases the pain of arthritis, and helps you lose weight and keep it off. Plus, it’s easy and costs no money! But it’s also easy to overdo it if you’re unaccustomed to regular activity.

Keep these five tips in mind before you start:

  • Inform your doctor or physical therapist about your walking plans. He or she might want to assess your levels of strength, flexibility and pain to help tailor a walking program to your particular needs.
  • Put on a good pair of walking shoes and comfortable clothing. Drink plenty of water before and during your walk.
  • Begin at a slow pace to warm up, do a few stretches, and then walk at a pace where you can talk comfortably. End the walk with a slow pace and stretches.
  • Use good posture. Your ears, shoulders, hips and knees should be in alignment. Don’t slouch, and keep your shoulders relaxed. Hold your head up and use your eyes (not your neck or head) to look downward when necessary. Tighten your abdominal muscles.
  • Progress gradually. If this is your first attempt at regular exercise, do just 10 minutes every day for one week. Add five minutes to your daily walk the following week. Repeat until you are walking as long as desired.

Reaching Your Goals
Experts say walking about 20 to 30 minutes at a brisk pace for three to four days a week will improve cardiovascular health. For weight loss, walking 45 to 60 minutes for at least five days a week is recommended.

If you have other questions or concerns about weight loss, the Bariatric Wellness and Surgical Institute at JFK Medical Center can help. Join us for one of our free information sessions on the fourth Thursday of every month. Please call (561) 548-2274 for more details and to register.

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