CNN Mexico wouldn't let me Comment... I did a Blog Post

On February 11 of this year, CNN Mexico published an article about obesity in Mexico. It is an excellent article because it makes us reflect and take action against fat.

Cardiologist Jaime Burkle talked about obesity and how the consumption of lots of calories and a sedentary life leads to the accumulation of fat and finally to insulin resistance (diabetes type II).

"We now understand that diets high in calories and sedentary lifestyles overstimulate the production of insulin and at some point, the cells, saturated with sugar, begin to resist this hormone", he says.

The doctor makes a good point when talking about the production of insulin and a resistance to it. But more important than the quantity of calories, it has to do with the quantity of foods with a high glycemic index that are consumed. Because these are absorbed rapidly into the bloodstream, the body produces a lot of insulin so it can get into the cells and not remain in the blood.

A lot of insulin means excess of energy. Which is precisely why "ovens" are turned off and the body begins to store what it can as fat (in fatty tissues) and glycogen (primarily in liver and kidneys).

I would like to add the following to his recommendations:

1) Keep two rules in mind when reading food labels: 1.- Read the ingredients. If you cannot pronounce them, you shouldn't eat them (and it doesn't count if you're a biochemist). 2.- The least number of ingredients, the better.
- Example: When I happen to buy chips (very rare) I buy Fritos because the ingredients are salt, corn, oil.

2) Do everything possible so that raw fruits and vegetables are 70% of what you eat. See the new food pyramid that Harvard Medical School suggested. You will need supplements.

3) Aerobic exercise is very good and we should all walk AT LEAST the 3 or 4 days that Dr. Burkle suggests. But fat (our opponent) is consumed by muscles. It is important that you strengthen your muscles somehow. The best way is with weights, but you can start by doing push-ups, sit-ups, and squats as soon as you wake up (before ever leaving the room).

Article: "Fat people are no longer seen as jolly"