According to United Arab Emirates University obesity expert Syed Shah, “modernization has not been good for our health. Even in remote Himalayan villages in Pakistan, obesity rates have increased five times over the last two decades. Years ago, people had to walk for hours if they wanted to make a phone call. Now everyone has a cell phone.”
Nearly one-third of people across the globe are fat, with researchers finding that as many as two billion people worldwide are obese or overweight. The US is home to an estimated 13 percent of the world’s fat population, a percentage that’s higher than any other country; but no nation is immune to the skyrocketing obesity problem.
Of course, if you’re a frequent reader of The Alternative Daily, you probably already know that obesity significantly raises the risk of numerous chronic illnesses and diseases, including Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, liver problems, osteoarthritis, joint pain, impaired sexual function and numerous cancers.
Our increasing technological developments may have made things a lot easier, but it certainly hasn’t helped our waistlines any. It wasn’t that long ago that kids spent most of their free time playing outside, riding bikes and enjoying all types of games and activities that encouraged fitness and health.
Today, many are indoors playing video games and watching television, moving only to get up to go to the refrigerator to get junk food. Parents aren’t much better. Even getting off the couch to change the channel is no longer required.
All of those processed and fast foods often mean that not only do we expend little energy to put a meal together, we get little nutrition in the first place. Today, we barely have to move to eat dinner with so many restaurants delivering; we can order online or just use our smartphones and food appears right at our door.
Many of our ancestors spent their days working on their farms, growing their own food, milking the cows and even plucking the chickens. Working out wasn’t something you did at the gym, exercise was part of everyday activities.
While you don’t have to throw out all of your tech gadgets to achieve better health and a slimmer waist, doing things like making meals out of whole, fresh ingredients and even growing some of your own fruits and vegetables, as well as getting outside and exercising outdoors can help. Walk to the grocery store, or to your neighbor’s house – the more we use our bodies rather than just our fingers to push a button, the better!
And, always keep in mind that quick and convenient doesn’t always equal a higher quality of life.
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