Thursday, November 20, 2014

Living a healthy lifestyle

Maintaining a healthy weight can be very easy and it is just every day life for some people. Choosing healthy foods and knowing which foods to eat in moderation helps maintain health and wellness.
By being in tune to your body you are already ahead of the pursuit of living a healthy lifestyle. This is not to say that you are immune to illness, your not. There are constant biochemical changes going on inside our bodies. The delicate synergistic internal environment can be thrown off anytime from environmental pollution to something you ingested to picking up a contaminant in public.

Obesity is an epidemic. Childhood obesity is on the rise. America’s health issues remain problematic with 32 percent of people facing obesity-related problems and USA ranking near the top with the highest rate of child obesity cases. In an attempt to combat the obesity epidemic, America has resorted to increasingly aggressive campaigns - such as this one pictured that ran in Atlanta.  

n obese girl pictured in the health campaign advertisement on January 10, 2012 in Atlanta, Georgia. An aggressive health campaign is sparking controversy because it features pictures of real obese children and direct messages about weight loss. The ads are part of a strategy by health professionals at Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta and urge the public in Georgia, USA, to take a tougher stance on weight issues in youngsters. In one Storng4life campaign poster a girl appears with crossed arms above a message stating: WARNING. Its hard to be a little girl if youre not. Another, below a picture of a boy, reads: 'Fat prevention begins at home. And the buffet line.' The ultra-direct scheme has been defended by Linda Matzigkeit, a senior vice president at the paediatric service, which has faced criticism with some describing the public notices as using guerilla tactics. Teen Maya Walters suffers from high blood pressure and is said to have cut back on salt and feels less breathless when climbing stairs, since appearing in the campaign. Georgia state has the second-highest childhood obesity rate in America. Choa/Barcroft USA /Barcoft Media via Getty

                                            © Choa/Barcroft USA/Barcoft Media via Getty

Not funny. Not cute. No excuses for allowing our children become oversized. To learn about the obesity epidemic refer to www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/index.html

Adults who lived their childhood obese and are currently living with obesity or struggling to keep the excess fat off, you are an ideal candidate for weight loss counseling. You must make a valiant effort to learn how to eat so you can teach your children proper nutrition. By that I mean how much to eat in one sitting, when to eat vs. when not to eat, which foods to eat in combination and reasons why your eating. For example. stress eating or boredom eating is a poor reason to eat. Eating for those reasons you tend to consume large quantities of high fat, high sodium, high carbohydrate food. To some people these foods are called "comfort foods". Once you learn proper nutrition, you will be able to achieve fullness without overindulging.

Break the fat family cycle. Contact a nutritionist or a registered dietitian to help you learn proper nutrition and caloric consumption. You will learn which foods are fat attracting and which are fat burning. Choosing a healthy lifestyle is a commitment to your health. It is work and takes time. After working through the daily struggles and meeting weight loss goals, do everything you can to keep excess fat off. Teach your kids the same.

Cosmetic surgery is a quick fix to lose the stretched out skin bag and tighten up body parts. Your surgeon has done his part by enhancing your new body so continue to do your part by following a healthy diet and incorporating exercise in to your daily routine. Telling yourself "I've always been fat" is preventing you from putting a weight loss plan in place and sticking to it.

Feel good helping your body help you. 

Good health,

Trisha M. Pacenti RN,BSN
www.nurseinsagent.com

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Pet rescue vs. over priced designer dogs

A designer dog is a dog intentionally bred for desirable traits. These dogs are a hybrid of 2 purebreds. They are given fancy breed names that end in oodle or poo. The designer dogs are not a pedigree and are not recognized breeds by the AKC. People are under the assumption the designer dog doesn't have the health problems or shedding issues the pedigrees and mixed-breed have. Well, no matter how good your top rated breeder may be, you cannot breed away health problems. 

If 1 designer dog doesn't have a common health problem the breeds it came from has, does not mean he/she won't develop any health problems. Hybrid dogs can still have genetic anomalies. 

People pay a lot of money sometimes as high as $1200.00 and even higher for a so-called designer dog. People make themselves believe their getting a hypo-allergenic, non-problematic, 100% healthy dog for the next 20 years. Bottom line, those buying a designer dog are paying top dollar for a mixed breed. 

Just a thought, wouldn't it make  financial and ethical sense by adopting a mixed-breed that is easily found at a shelter? The money you spend on 1 designer dog could help spay/neuter, provide food, vaccines and save the life of several sheltered animals.

By adopting a dog from a rescue facility you are saving the animal's life. You are removing the animal from a cold, smelly shelter and bringing him to a warm, loving home. Through the adoption process you are providing more space for another homeless, unwanted dog. In essence, you are helping save 2 lives.

Unfortunately we live in a society who disposes dogs like old toasters when they don't behave they way we them to or financial issues arise or a new baby joins the family.
Suddenly people need to make changes that are more suitable for them so the first to go is the family dog. If you are family planning and there is talk, complaints, arguments over who is going to take care of the dog, my advice is to go no further, DO NOT OWN A DOG.

We don't discard our children when crisis' arise but we find it acceptable to discard the dog. Dogs are not to be disposed of. They are living creatures.

All those potential dog owners, please make sure you can provide a stable home for your new pet and put your money where the most good it will do, your local animal shelter.

Smart choices,

Trisha M. Pacenti RN,BSN
www.nurseinsgent.com

resource:  www.dogbreedinfo.com

 

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Advanced Directives

Advance directives are legal documents that allow people to communicate their decisions to health care providers so they know what kind of medical care he or she wants at the end of life. Advance directives communicates medical care to family and health care professionals in the event that they are unable to make those decisions themselves.  The two main types of advance directives are living wills and a medical power of attorney.

Advance directives should be filled out while people are healthy and of sound mind. It allows them to think about what exactly they want and discuss with family members their wishes. You have the right to make decisions about your own treatment.

When diagnosed with a terminal illness or involved in a near fatal accident, people get scared and want to try every drug or treatment possible, even when the risks far outweigh the benefits. Making life decisions in a frantic state of mind is detrimental and elevates an already emotionally stressful situation. Choices about end-of-life care are difficult to make even when people are healthy. This is exactly the reason why such important decisions must be made while in a healthy state of mind. 

The documents are easy to fill out and you may do so on your own. The following are just a few websites you may use as resources to aid you in completing the state appropriate forms.

www.caringinfo.org; www.americanbar.org; www.myhealthcarewishes.com

Death is a topic no one likes to discuss, but death is inevitable. Take time, pre-plan and give yourself peace of mind.

Smart choices,

Trisha M. Pacenti RN,BSN
www.nurseinsagent.com
drugstore.com, inc.