One in four NHS nurses are obese, study reveals

Obesity rates among nurses and care workers higher than people in non-health and care related jobs.

One in four NHS nurses is obese and this could be contributing to high staff sickness levels and heaping more pressure on the health service, researchers have warned.

Obesity related illness could take an increasing toll on the NHS, the team from Edinburgh University warn, as almost half of nurses are over the age of 45.

Experts said the figures were “deeply worrying” and long, stressful shifts often made it hard for staff to make healthy choices.

Obesity rates were even higher in social care staff, one in three unregistered care workers – such as care home workers and nursing assistants – was found to have a Body Mass Index (BMI) score which classed them as obese.

Researchers from London South Bank University and Edinburgh Napier University set out to assess obesity prevalence among healthcare professionals working in England.

The study, published in the journal BMJ Open, saw them examine data from more than 20,000 working-age adults who took part in the Health Survey for England between 2008 and 2012.

Participants were split into four groups: nurses, other healthcare professionals – including doctors, dentists and physiotherapists, unregistered care workers and people employed in non health-related jobs.

Of the 422 nurses polled, 25.1% were obese, with a BMI score of more than 30.

Meanwhile, 31.9% of 736 unregistered healthcare workers were obese, as were 14.4% of other healthcare professionals.

Among the 18,500 people from the general population surveyed, the rate of obesity was found to be 23.5%.

The authors cautioned that the high rates of obesity among nurses and unregistered care workers were “concerning” because it increases the risk of musculoskeletal conditions and mental health conditions – some of the main causes of sickness absence in the health service.

Co author Dr Richard Kyle, from Edinburgh Napier University, said: “Obesity is a global pandemic and healthcare professionals are at the heart of efforts to bring down high levels of obesity among the population.

“That one in four nurses in England have been found to be obese is deeply worrying, not least because we know that obesity is linked to diseases such as cancer, cardio-vascular disease, and diabetes.

“It is vital that we redouble our efforts to take care of our healthcare workforce who do so much to care for others.”

Professor Jane Wills, from London South Bank University, and co-author of the paper, said: “The high prevalence of obesity among the healthcare workforce should urge policymakers and employers to provide solutions through workplace initiatives that support staff to maintain a healthy body weight.”

Kim Sunley, senior employment relations officer at the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said: “There is no doubt obesity is a major public health issue, and we know nurses sometimes struggle to make healthy choices due to long hours, shift work and stress.

“In response, the RCN has worked with partner organisations to develop the Nursing You resource. This helps nurses recognise triggers for unhealthy decisions and make better food choices.

“This is the latest addition to the RCN’s Healthy Workplace, Healthy You initiative, which aims to improve nurses’ health by working with employers to improve conditions and promote self-care.”

Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/nhs-nurses-obese-stats-figures-survey-results-a8091781.html

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Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss: Are You Sure You’re Losing Fat?

Weight loss is one of the hottest topics ever. Everyone seems to be trying to lose weight nowadays. But what’s the difference between weight loss & fat loss? People seem to use both terms interchangeably.

After reading this post you’ll understand the difference between weight loss & fat loss, but also which one you should aim for and how.

Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss. What’s the difference? Let’s start by defining weight loss & fat loss so you know what I mean here.

Weight Loss. You want to lower your body-weight, the sum weight of your bones, muscles, organs, body fat, …

Fat Loss. You want to lower your body fat, the amount of fat your body carries. Healthy goals are 10% body fat for men and 15% for women.

Problems with Weight Loss. If you want to lose weight, it’s most likely because you carry too much fat. There are people who must lose weight, like athletes before a competition, but most want fat loss. So stop weighing yourself.

Unreliable. Your body-weight can fluctuate daily since it’s influenced by your stomach/bowel/bladder content, water loss/retention, muscle loss/gain, fat loss/gain, … You’ll have no idea what’s going on.

Irrelevant. 2 people with similar height can weigh the same, but look completely different because one has lower body fat than the the other. Check the picture at the top for an example.

The last point shows why the BMI standard is flawed: it doesn’t take your body fat into account. Both guys in the top picture have the same BMI, but one is clearly healthier: his body fat is lower.

Here’s How The Weight Scale Can Mislead You. Clothes, mirrors & pictures don’t lie. Neither do fat calipers. But the weight scale can become your worst enemy by misleading you and killing your motivation. Examples:

Carbs & Water. Carbs bind to water. So eating less carbs will make you lose weight: water loss. This is why you lose so much weight on a diet like Atkins the first 2 weeks: it’s mostly water. Of course, increasing your carb intake will make you gain weight again: water retention.

Muscle Gains & Fat Loss. You’ll gain muscle while losing fat when you get into strength training. But on the weight scale it will look like you’re not making progress: your body-weight doesn’t change. Track your body fat using a fat caliper and you’ll see your body fat is going down.

How to Make Sure You Lose Fat, Not Muscle? Check the picture above: 5lbs muscle takes less space than 5lbs fat. That means you’ll look slimmer at the same body-weight by building muscle. Keys to losing fat, not muscle:

Get Stronger. Strength training builds muscle & prevents muscle loss. It also helps sticking to your diet. Check the StrongLifts 5×5 routine.

Eat Healthy. Eat whole unprocessed foods 90% of the time and eat less starchy carbs. Check the 8 nutrition rules.

You can do cardio to speed up fat loss. But without strength training, cardio will cause muscle loss and you’ll end up skinny-fat. Avoid.

How to Track Progress Efficiently. You don’t need to track progress weekly, changes wouldn’t be drastic enough. Track progress every 2 weeks.

Stop Weighing Yourself Daily. The daily fluctuations will mess with your motivation. Weigh yourself once every 2 weeks, not more.

Stop Looking in The Mirror. Self-image issues can skew perception. Shoot full body pictures and compare them with old ones.

Track Body Fat. Get a fat caliper and track your body fat every 2 weeks. Use this how-to guide and watch this video.

Take Measurements. Girth measurements of your neck, chest, arms, waist & thighs. Waist should go down, rest should go up.

Shoot Pictures. Full body pictures from ankle to neck, front/back/side, every 2 weeks. Compare with your previous pics.

Strength Stats. Log your workouts. Strength going up means muscle gains and strength training prevents muscle breakdown.

Listen also to what people say. They’ll notice your body change more than you will. Clothes will start to feel differently too.

You Might Not Want to Lose Weight. Big guys who want to lose weight often change their mind once they’ve lowered their body fat. They realize they prefer to stay big as long as their body fat is healthy.

Focus on fat loss first. Once you’ve got your body fat down, check if you like what you see. Then decide if you still need to lose weight.

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Source: https://stronglifts.com/weight-loss-vs-fat-loss-are-you-sure-you%E2%80%99re-losing-fat/

New More Simple Measure Of Body Fat

Could we all be saying good-bye to BMI? Waist to height ratio might be a better measure of body fat than the more widely used body mass index (BMI) for predicting health risks - so says new research.

The team of researchers examined 31 studies that included over 300,000 subjects belonging to a variety of ethnic groups, finding that waist to height ratio was far more accurate than either BMI or waist circumference at predicting specific health risks - things like hypertension, diabetes as well as heart disease.

In another report saw experts take the research to the next step. They reported that a man, aged 30 who did not smoke would have a lower life expectancy (by up to 14%) if the circumference of his waist was over half his height.

Keeping that waist trim is key, and could help many people the world over according to researchers. The great thing about waist to height ratio is that it can be used across all genders and ethnic groups. As this method also accounts for different heights, it can be used in any nation and on any population.

In the U.S., the findings are welcome news, as there are many professionals who are not happy with relying on BMI. Other nations, including the UK. Australia, Japan, India and Brazil are also coming to support this approach.

Experts suggest that all of us take out that tape measure and check your own waist measurement. Pay attention to the ratio between your waist measurement and your height - your true height, not the one listed on your driver's license or that you were in your 20s.

The problem with the more widely used BMI is that it's based on your height and weight, without considering muscle mass. This means that a very muscular person's BMI might classify them as obese, even though clearly that weight is not fat, but muscle. Waist circumference, considered an improvement over BMI, shows just how much weight you're carrying around the middle, the most dangerous place on the body for fat to be, as it increases your risk of heart disease, a stroke, diabetes and even a few cancers.

To get your waist measurement, put a tape measure around your waist at the belly button and rest it against your skin, not pushing in, and being sure you have the tape measure in the same place all the way around. The measurement you want is the one where the end meets the tape beginning. See... easy and affordable, though more research is required to show experts how to use the information.

As a rule of thumb, when assessing your measure of body fat try to keep your waist to less than half of your height; you'll likely live longer. Or at least keep your waistline measurement to under 60% (0.6) of your height. Even a small weight loss can have a big impact. You can do this by eating a healthy, balanced diet that's low on fat and sugars, being active on most days of the week and making sure you get a good night's sleep most of the time.

FREE Bonus Secret Health Reports - For a limited time you can grab 5 FREE essential health reports from the Daily Health Bulletin. Click through now to discover more effective ways to measure of body fat than BMI.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Kirsten_Whittaker/10824

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Sleep Deprivation - A Hidden Cause for Obesity

Obesity has been the recent popular "epidemic" to cause havoc among the people in recent years, with the zero figure becoming the new In-Thing. The duality of this issue is that on the one hand, the world is getting fatter and fatter with the growing popularity of junk food in the market, and on the other hand fitness standards that are acceptable have grown increasingly rigid in order to sustain the increasingly vulnerable human body. With a lot of research and analysis being put in to understand and counter obesity, many contributing factors have been found:

less physical activity

high caloric intake

genetic interaction with environment

cultural influences

sleep deprivation

Recent research conducted by various scientific groups, in order to fight obesity has shown that sleep deprivation, to a certain extent, does affect our weight. To understand this, we must look at our history. With electricity and other technology allowing us to expand our day, we sleep almost 27% less daily as our ancestors. This has also been factored with the rise in obesity over the last century, and the resulting prognosis is as follows: Getting less than 6 hours of sleep in a day can increase the likelihood of obesity.

Studies supporting this statement have demonstrated that 1.1 million people worldwide have recorded an increase in their Body-Mass Index (BMI) when their sleep cycles fell to below 7 hours daily over a period of time. For those who aim to lose weight, this is definitely something to keep in mind.

Studies have shown all kinds of trends, such as when a person's sleep pattern falls below 8 hours, the increase in that person's BMI would be directly proportional to the decrease in the sleep. A test done on 45000 children showed that the lesser the child sleeps, the more he or she is at risk of becoming obese. The explanation has been found in that lack of sleep leads to impaired glucose tolerance, which is a marker of the following: 

Diabetes and insulin resistance.

Reduced Leptin, a hormone that usually suppresses appetite.

Increased Ghrelin, a hormone that increases a person's appetite.

Knowing that a good night's sleep is the easiest way to stop gaining weight is a stride forward at shedding it. It proves that simply making lifestyle changes such as a longer sleeping schedule can lead to a better metabolic health free of the risk of obesity. 

CMS is a community of medical fraternity who reaches out to people fighting obesity. Obesity and diabetes consultation and Bariatric surgery is our prime focus. Get in touch with our experts on our Facebook page - Centre for metabolic surgery, if you have weight problem, and we will get back to you.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Paushali_Sahu/880625

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