Healthy Body Healthy Mind

I was able to watch the DVD entitled Healthy Body, Health Mind, which is a TV series. The particular episode I watched was focused on overcoming obesity. The TV series is produced by the Information Television Network (http://www.itvisus.com/programs/hbhm/ ). The series is centered on doctors making home visits to average Americans and discussing their health issues with them and then advising them how to make healthy changes.

I thought this program was a unique idea of discussing obesity with the public. Instead of being a health DVD that someone might only find at a library, the producers of this series was able to reach television watchers across the country. In this particular episode the doctors made visits to obese adults and one overweight child. One of the main priorities the doctors had was to inform the individuals about the danger of having excess carbohydrates in the diet. Several of the individuals ate low fat foods and enough fruits and vegetables, but they were not losing any weight. The doctors and other health professionals taught them how to count carbohydrates and which foods to avoid. Some of these recommendations were to avoid white flour products, rice cereals, pastas, and certain fruits like raisins, pineapples, and bananas. I thought this was an interesting focus to take on obesity. Usually counting carbohydrates is associated with diabetes, but it also pertains to eating a healthy, balanced diet. To learn how to count carbohydrates, check out this website, http://www.diabetesnet.com/diabetes_food_diet/countcarbs.php.

Often times we hear “eat a healthy diet” as a response to how to overcome obesity; however, from this DVD I learned that focusing on a specific part of a healthy diet can possibly be more effective and manageable. They stressed the idea of food substitution, and that dieting does not have to become a chore, but rather a conscious effort to be healthy. I liked this emphasis because remaining on a diet for a lifetime is usually not possible. Small dietary changes are more effective and sustainable for weight loss.

After watching this DVD, I had a greater interest to learn how to count carbohydrates. I want to learn more about the difficulty level of counting carbohydrates and how sustainable this program is. Last weekend I was able to attend the Diabetes Expo in Sandy and I heard a lot of diabetics talk about the difficulty of counting carbohydrates at each meal and snack. It would be very helpful to find an easier way to do this in order to help diabetics and others eat healthier and lose weight. It would be interesting to follow up on other interventions using carbohydrate counting to lose weight and compare the success with other types of diet interventions.