Longevity For You

The Dangers of Extreme Weight Loss

Given that an ideal body weight not only gives you a better body image but also makes you healthier, many people become obsessed with weight loss that they would do anything just to lose pounds or to lose belly fat. But fast weight loss may have many health hazards, including sudden death syndrome.

You can lose weight through weight loss exercises, but compulsive exercise may overstress your heart as well as result in stress injuries.

You can lose weight through smoking or not giving up smoking. Nicotine can eliminate calories, but at the expense of damaging your heart and lungs. Give up the nicotine addiction.

Dieting is the most common method of weight loss. There are too many "fad diets" in the consumer market, and many simply "starve" you. Calorie deprivation is the cause of yo-yo dieting and the failure of many weight loss attempts.

Induced vomiting to lose extra pounds is common among adolescents and young adults. Use of laxatives and water pills may lead to eating disorders. In addition, the loss of potassium and dehydration contribute to gallstones, cardiac disorders, and hair loss.

Obesity surgery does not solve weight loss problems. In addition to many complication, obesity surgery can bring weight control only for the first few years.

Weight loss is a complex and complicated health problem. Get a FREE copy of my e-book All-Round Weight Loss to find out more.

Stephen Lau

All About Stephen Lau

An Ideal Body Weight for Longevity

Any individual who has an ideal body weight lives longer.

What is an ideal body weight? An ideal body weight is based on a person's height, weight, and bone structure calculation. Any increase in body weight away from the ideal body weight increases your chance of ending up dead before your time is due. However, underweight (that is, a decrease in body weight away from the ideal body weight) is even more dangerous than overweight, because too little body fat does more harm to the body than too much body fat.

The moral here is: maintain an ideal body weight with little deviation. To put you in perspective, your life expectancy will decrease by two to three years for every 10 percent you exceed your "ideal weight." This is worse off for you if you are short in stature, because it is more difficult for you to distribute your fat, as compared to a taller individual.

In addition, the ratio of your waist line to your hip measurement is critical. Therefore, it is in your best interest to lose weight until you attain your ideal body weight. 

Use the calculator here to find out if you are overweight.

If you are, then you should strip that fat until you reach your ideal body weight.

For more information on weight loss, go to Weight Loss for Longevity

Stephen Lau

All About Stephen Lau.

Maintaining Mindfulness While Being Busy

Humans learn how to deal with the pain of loss. As a matter of fact, we learn at an early age that being busy is a way to deal with the loss of a loved one. In other words, many people deal with grief by staying busy.

Last week, my father-in-law passed away, and a memorial service was held last weekend. My wife had been busy preparing for the memorial service, such that she seemed oblivious to her loss.

I must say getting busy has immediate payoff. In life, many of us use the same strategy to deal with difficulties in our lives: we keep ourselves busy to avoid unpleasant or difficult experiences. We keep ourselves busy to earn more money, to gain more respect, or both. We get busier and busier - it has become addictive. Unfortunately, at the end, everything falls apart, and we become distressed and disillusioned.

Be mindful of your busyness. Mindfulness requires you to take time to explore your inner self - that is,  what is most important to you. You can be busy, while maintaining your mindfulness.

A Buddhist teacher once said: "When you are washing dishes, wash dishes. When you are talking on the phone, talk on the phone." But many people are talking on the phone, while driving!

Mindfulness is "concentrated" relaxation because your mind focus on the present moment, not the past, and not the future. Remember, only the present is real to you.

For more information on mental wellness, go to: Mental and Spiritual Wellness.

Stephen Lau

Younger and Healthier for Longer