Stephan Karian

Everyone knows at least one of the following types of people. There’s the person who is underweight or average weight, but believes they are overweight. Then there’s the person who is actually overweight and doesn’t realize it or is in denial about being overweight. These two types of people can really skew our own perceptions. Other factors that can alter our ability to figure out if we are overweight are the kind people we surround ourselves with like spouses, family, co-workers, and friends. Their compliments and sugarcoated comments (no pun intended) may lead us to believe that we do not have cause for concern when it comes to our weight.

Luckily, there are scientifically developed methods for determining if you are in fact overweight, so you don’t have to rely on your imagination or the perception of others. Being overweight is not a surface condition. It can seriously affect your health, making you susceptible to diseases and conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, and even cancer. It can also put you at a higher risk for heart disease, heart attacks and strokes, which are often debilitating and sometimes fatal. For these reasons, it is important to find out where you truly stand when it comes to being overweight.

First, you will want to determine your body type. There are basically two different body types, apples and pears. If you’re a “pear” (more often seen in women), your extra weight is carried around your hips, buttocks, and thighs. Your waist is smaller than your hips. If you’re an “apple” (more common in men), your excess weight is carried in your upper body, above your hips and around your belly.

Being an “apple” body shape – with a lot of upper body fat – is much more harmful to your health than being a “pear”. For reasons not fully understood, many of the health risks of being overweight are due to fat in your abdomen. They include:

• Increased risk of heart disease

• Increased risk of breast cancer

• Fifteen times greater risk of uterine cancer

• Increased risk of Diabetes (1 out of every 2 obese people become diabetics)

Second, you will want to take measurements of your body for several reasons. The measurement of your waist is important because not only does it take a toll on your self-esteem, but also because research shows that extra abdominal fat is a risk factor for heart disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes and even cancer. The following waist measurements indicate excess abdominal fat, which would put you at greater disease risk: women 35 inches or more and men 40 inches or more.

Another way to determine if you’re overweight is to determine how much fat versus muscle tissue in your body’s current makeup. If you’re a man, a suitable range for body fat percentages is between 13% and 18%. If you’re a woman, you have a bit more leniency – between 17% and 26%. So how can you determine your body fat percentage and see whether you are overweight or not?

The simplest way is to get a body fat analyzer scale. The scale sends an electrical pulse through your body to determine how much of your weight is muscle tissue, bone, and other matter and how much is fat.

Another way to measure body fat is to use a skin-fold caliper. A skin-fold caliper is a physical measuring device used to measure body fat thickness. This is similar to the old-fashioned “pinch an inch” test. Choose a spot somewhere beside your navel and pinch with your thumb and first finger. If you can pinch over an inch, then chances are you fall outside of the average (or rather, ideal body) weight on a typical measurement chart.

There’s also the basic waist to-hip-ratio measurement. If the measurement of your waist is greater than that of your hips, then you are considered to be overweight. Just about every home has a conventional scale in it. Though this method is fast and pretty easy to do, it may not necessarily be the most accurate since muscle can weigh more than fat.

Body Mass Index (BMI) is one of the most commonly used methods by professionals to determine if a person is overweight. This method compares your current weight to your height and provides you with a number. Depending on the range that your number falls within, you may be categorized as healthy, overweight, or obese.

Using these methods can provide you with a little more insight than the opinions of your friends, family, or your loving spouse. Taking the time to determine if you are overweight and if you are, beginning a weight management program, is an investment in your health and your future.

For more information about weight loss, and to receive a free copy of the book, Anti-Aging and You, please visit www.greatamericanproducts.com/book.

Since the 1970s, literally thousands of studies have shown that omega-3 fats may be the heart’s best friend. They reduce the risk of heart attack, sudden cardiac death, hardening of the arteries (Atherosclerosis), and stroke. They improve cholesterol and triglyceride levels, reduce high blood pressure, make arteries more elastic, reduce plaque formation, and make the heart muscle stronger.

Several of these studies yield the similar results to infer that men who consumed an average of 30 gm (about one oz.) of fish daily had a 50 percent lower risk of dying from heart disease. Additionally, men who had at least one fish meal per week had a 52 percent lower risk of sudden death. Even eating one fish meal every two to three weeks was protective. Omega-3 fats protect the heart in several ways. The reason for heart attacks and strokes is the hardening of the arteries or Atherosclerosis, which is caused by plaque forming on the walls of the arteries. With time, more and more plaque material accumulates, which causes the artery to become very narrow and unable to provide enough blood flow to the heart or the brain.

Omega-3 fats also reduce the incidence of another arrhythmia called Atrial Fibrillation, especially in older people or after a bypass surgery. Patients with this condition have very rapid and irregular heart beats, as high as 250 per minute. Omega-3 fats make the heart muscle stronger and more efficient. As a result, the heart does not need to beat as fast, reducing the need for oxygen.

A number of studies show that omega-3 fats reduce blood pressure. This also reduces the work of the heart and reduces the need for oxygen. Omega-3 fats inhibit the production of prostaglandins that constrict blood vessels and make platelets stickier. They also reduce the production of fibrinogen, which is used to make blood clots, and increase a substance called plasminogen activator, which is needed to remove blood clots from arteries. As a result, omega-3 fats reduce blood clotting and make the arteries more open and more relaxed. Omega-3 fats promote the formation of nitric oxide and makes arteries more open by causing relaxation of arterial muscles. They reduce the “bad” LDL cholesterol and triglycerides and increase the level of “good” HDL cholesterol, especially when combined with anti-oxidant vitamin E. This reduces the risk of plaques forming inside the arteries. Omega-3 fatty acids are so good at supporting the heart and cardiovascular health that even people who already have heart disease can benefit. This even includes patients whose hearts were damaged by a heart attack.

In a study, over 11,000 post-heart attack patients were followed for 3.5 years. Those who took as little as one gram of fish oil daily (one capsule) reduced the risk of dying from a heart attack by 30 percent and the risk of sudden death by 45 percent. The benefit of fish oil supplementation was evident after just four months of treatment.

Patients who have had bypass surgery or angioplasty, can also benefit from fish oil supplements. Diabetics, who have a higher risk of heart disease, can reduce their risk by taking two grams of fish oil or more daily. In short, the evidence is overwhelming that omega-3 fatty acids are essential for the health of your heart and cardiovascular system. Unfortunately, American doctors are largely unaware of the fish oil benefits, so it is up to you to make sure that you are getting enough omega-3 fatty acids by either eating fish or taking fish oil supplements.