Weight Loss Blog
The Weight Loss Blog offers news and information about nutrition and fitness as well as actual weight loss success stories as told by students at Wellspring Academies, formerly Academy of the Sierras, the first boarding school for overweight teens. WSA is part of Wellspring, which also runs Wellspring weight loss camps.
The Blog started with entries by 15-year-old Jahcobie who graduated from WSA after losing 176 pounds in seven months. Then Brooke, a 17-year-old from Prescott, Arizona, took over. Our latest student blogger was Melissa, a 17-year-old from Orange County, California. Melissa recently graduated and we wish her success and she continues down her path as a "long-term weight controller."
Andy D. a 17-year-old student at Wellspring Academy spent a few months sharing his adventures in weight loss, healthy eating, and fitness fun with us before he graduated the program in June.
Now we'll continue to update you with news and information about weight lose, healthy living, and childhood obesity. We'll have a new WSA student share their stories with us beginning in the Fall.
Wellspring programs are the most effective weight loss solutions for teens available today. But don't let us tell you. Let Andy, Melissa, Brooke, and Jahcobie tell you. Read about their journeys toward successful weight management in their own words.
Friday, July 27, 2007
What's Your Style, Dad?
Mothers have long been blamed (wrongly or not) for problems in their offspring, from autism to eating disorders. But new research shows that dads' parenting style influences his children's weight.
According to researchers from the Centre for Community Child Health at the Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, and the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, children whose fathers are permissive or disengaged are more likely to have overweight children. Those fathers who are involved and have a consistent parenting style, with clear boundaries and follow through are less likely to have overweight children.
The message? Clean up your parenting act, dad, and get out there and play with your child!
Labels: influences, involvement, parents
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Fatty Liver in Teens
Do you think of fatty liver disease as a problem caused by drinking alcohol? Well, think again. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an accumulation of fat in the liver that is caused by obesity and a high-fat, high-fructose diet. What is more, it can lead to cirrhosis, an irreversible scarring of the liver, and even liver cancer.
Fatty liver disease affects about one of every eight children in this country, and most often causes no symptoms. The good news? To some extent, it can be reversed by losing weight, exercising, and eating a healthy, low fat diet.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Type 2 Diabetes Complications in Teens
One in every 523 children and teens in the United States has diabetes today, according to the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health. For those with type 2 diabetes, this means a younger age for diabetes complications such as high blood pressure, kidney disease, eye disease and heart problems.
Some experts believe that all overweight adolescents, particularly if sedentary or if there is a family history of diabetes, should be checked for this disease. Others take it one step further in saying that all children diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be checked at that time for diabetes complications.
Labels: diabetes, general_health, overweight
Friday, July 13, 2007
Diabetes Affects Millions All Over the World: Scientists Say "Take Preventive Measures"
Governments, schools and businesses should work together to stop a global epidemic of diabetes, according to a study by researchers at the University of Australia.
There is no doubt that diabetes is a global problem intertwined with the obesity epidemic. The World Health Organization projects that 366 million people will have the disease by 2030, compared to 171 million in 2000. Diabetics often suffer from depression, heart disease, stroke, renal failure, blindness, impotence, and amputations of limbs. The cost to the United States alone was over $132 billion in 2002.
The Australian team looked at a variety of solutions in terms of their cost and feasibility. They considered having more people undergo surgeries such as stomach stapling to lose weight. They looked at prescribing "polypills" to great masses of people. These pills would contain small does of statins, hypertensive drugs, aspirins, and folates to prevent heart attacks and strokes. They studied how much it will cost to set up more monitoring and services for "pre-diabetes," a condition that has no symptoms and often lasts over ten years.
In the end, the researchers concluded that the best approach would be to involve governments, business and schools to educate and help children and adults become more active and eat healthier foods. Even a small weight loss can have a big effect on whether or not a person gets diabetes. The team envisioned an approach similar to the anti-smoking campaigns used in the past.
This study was published in the September 2006 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
Labels: diabetes, healthy_eating, research
Friday, July 06, 2007
If Kids Can't Get Candy and Sodas, Will They Still Buy Lunch at School?
What happens when a school district replaces junk food with healthier choices? Will it lose money in food sales? Starting January 1, 2003, the San Francisco School District stopped selling sodas, chips, sweets and other low-nutrient foods in its cafeterias that serve over 59,000 students. This was a result of a new law called the California Childhood Obesity Prevention Act.
Researchers at the Department of Pediatrics, University of California/San Francisco, studied the effect of the new rules on sales. They found that more students participated in the free lunch programs, partly because more were eligible in 2003. However, sales dropped 9% on lunches at regular price. The schools' ala carte or snack bars in particular lost money: an average of $13,000 per school per year. The snack bars no longer sold foods like mega burgers, burritos and cookies. Instead, they offered sushi, low-fat cookies, smaller sized burgers and other healthy foods.
Altogether there was a small increase in lunch sales after the changes, mostly due to increased participation in the free lunch program. Researchers found that 46% of students believed that the new food choices tasted better.
Many school districts throughout the country are making similar changes to their menus. The authors of the study noted that the United States ranks third in the world for its children's consumption of soda, candy and chocolates. This study appeared in the September 2006 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
Labels: healthy_eating, junk food, schools
