Having attended the National Obesity Forum’s annual conference in London last October, statistics were divulged that were very worrying indeed, we know that obesity is on the increase, but childhood obesity is rising faster than ever before.
The statistics in the USA are frightening, figures, which have just been published in the New York Times this January, tell of 1 in 8 New Yorkers who now have diabetes. Our own National Health Service is bracing itself against a predicted onslaught of diabetes type two and all the medical problems with which it brings, such as blindness, kidney failure and amputation of limbs, If we don’t take heed now and change our eating and food buying behaviour at source, another generation will be lost to this odious disease and for the first time, it is predicted that we may lose our children to these illnesses before we die.
Not only that, PCT’s are starting to admit that they will not treat people with hip and knee replacements if it is caused by obesity through over indulgence. They simply do not have the funds for problems they see as self inflicted, at the same time many GP’s do not have the time or resources to treat obesity in their clinics, and often can only refer to outside agencies or provide diet sheets.
This all sounds very scary, but it is fact. The good news is that we can do something about it, if we take our care into our own hands and do not place responsibility in the cure, which the doctor (if we’re lucky) can provide.
To the nutritionist’s and dietician’s among us who’s esoteric knowledge about food groups, low GI index, and how vitamins and minerals affect our well being, eating a balanced diet is second nature, like taking a bath or enjoying a long walk.
The average person though does not have the benefit of this valuable knowledge, as our lives are driven by the demands of work and home. Meal times and planning around a balanced healthy diet can, more often than not, fall foul of the processed TV dinner or fast food joints. To appease tired mums and hungry children’s stomachs, we get seduced with the promise of two for the price of one in the supermarket, huge portions of food, and takeaways sold for one that would feed three! Not to mention restaurants competing for trade on providing quantity instead of quality, with the plate made up mostly of caterer’s chips!
Cooking at home can be a pleasure, you can control the ingredients in a dish, you can choose healthy options and you can give your family the gift of good health by doing this. Planning the week’s mealtimes in advance and making a list for the supermarket are ‘diet clever’ things to do, as in ‘diet as in the food we choose to eat!’ Controlling your portion sizes can give you the benefit of a healthy nutritionally balanced plate, which will allow you to ’diet clever’ as in ‘diet to lose weight.’
The Diet Plate® does both, you can choose to lose weight, or maintain your weight while following a balanced diet, you can cook the food you love and maintain balance simply by controlling your portions of carbohydrate and protein. Proven to work, and control diabetes type 2, if you follow the visual boundaries on the plate you can expect to lose 1-3lbs a week and the really great thing about this is that you do it all just using your eyes! No guesswork, no degree in nutrition, no counting of anything, just a simple re-balancing act, which enables you to eat right every day, using the right version of a dinner plate designed for your gender and weight.
To order, or for more information contact www.thedietplate.com or +44 01457 862446 / 860779 Made in England by Royal Stafford Tableware Ltd, from fine earthenware, dishwasher and microwave proof. The Diet Plate comes in male, female and children’s versions and costs £19.99 p&p £3.99 please allow 7 days delivery.
© 2008 TDP
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