Weight Loss Sabotage
Copyright 2006 Kristy Haugen
The thyroid is a gland located on the anterior (front) portion of the neck attached to the upper part of the trachea (windpipe). The thyroid is a bi-lobed gland. This gland is small in size, about 4 centimeters long and 1-2 centimeters wide. �
The thyroid produces and secretes biologically important hormones. Tissue in the thyroid is made up of two different kinds of cells: follicular and parafollicular cells. The thyroid is composed mostly of follicular cells which secrete T3 and T4 hormones. The T4 hormone (thyroxine) and T3 hormone (triiodothyronine) is derived from the amino acid tyrosine during iodination of the amino acid. Parafollicular cells secrete the hormone calcitonin. Iodine is important in the function of the thyroid gland. Iodine is a chief component of the hormones produced by the thyroid gland. Iodine deficiency can cause thyroid dysfunction, hence the need for iodized salt. The thyroid also produces and secretes the hormone calcitonin. The hormone calcitonin decreases plasma calcium ions concentration by inhibiting the release of calcium ions from the bone. Calcitonin secretion is regulated by plasma calcium ion levels.
The thyroid plays a key role in regulating the body's metabolism. What is metabolism? Metabolism is a chemical reaction that occurs in the body's cells, releasing energy from the nutrients ingested. Metabolism also uses energy to create other biologically important substances such as proteins. Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is a measurement of the body's required energy to keep functioning at rest (measured in calories). Exertion, stress, fear, and illness increase the body's metabolic rate.
The thyroid has many other bodily functions. The thyroid helps regulate calcium levels in the body. The thyroid can increase the body's temperature, thus burning more calories. This in turn increases the body's appetite. The thyroid also promotes glucose catabolism. Catabolism is the break down of complex glucose forms into simpler, more usable forms for energy usage. This gland stimulates protein synthesis, increases lipolysis. Lipolysis is the hydrolysis of lipids (fats), in which the lipids are broken down into simpler or usable forms. The thyroid also promotes normal heart function, normal neural development in fetus and growing infants, and normal neural function in adults. ��
The thyroid is influenced by hormones produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus. The pituitary gland is located at the base of the brain. This gland produces thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). TSH stimulates the thyroid gland to absorb iodine and then synthesize and release thyroid hormones.
The hypothalamus is located above the pituitary gland in the brain. This hormone produces thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH). The hypothalamus and pituitary gland detect low levels of thyroid hormones in the blood. TRH is released by the hypothalamus to stimulate the pituitary gland to release TSH. TSH in turn stimulates the thyroid gland to produce more T3 and T4 hormones. This returns the thyroid hormone levels in the blood back to normal.
Inflammation of the thyroid or a deficiency in iodine causes the condition called hypothyroidism. The thyroid hormones become under secreted or are not secreted at all with hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism symptoms include fatigue, slowed heart and respiratory rate, cold intolerance, and weight gain. Newborn infants with hypothyroidism (cretinism) are characterized by mental retardation and short stature.
The thyroid can also be over stimulated in a condition termed hyperthyroidism. This results in over secretion of the thyroid hormones. Symptoms associated with this disorder include an increased metabolic rate, profuse sweating, heart palpitations, weight loss, protruding eyes, and a feeling of excessive warmth. With both conditions the thyroid often enlarges resulting in goiter. However, goiter does not always indicate disease. Thyroid enlargement can result during pregnancy and puberty.
If you exhibit some of the above symptoms, you should consult your physician for further follow up. Many women due have serious concerns regarding their thyroid gland. If you have tried to lose weight with no success, maybe it is due to the thyroid.
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Kristy is a mother and experienced nurse. She has a Bachelor in Biology and Chemisty and writes to inform individuals interested in health information.
Mesothelioma- The Financial Costs to Society
Much has been written about asbestos related diseases such as Meothelioma over the last couple of years. The focus has been on three main areas:
a) The unfortunate victims of mesothelioma such as former employees of asbestos mining companies who caught these diseases whilst in the course of their employement. We have seen the heart rendering images on TV of these people, all of them in their retirement years gasping for breath and suffering enormously.
b) Whether the asbestos mining companies knew that asbestos mining was a danger to human life.
c) The Multibillion dollar class actions filed by the victims against their former employers seeking compensation.
Two issues that have not been addressed are the financial costs to society of asbestos related diseases such as Mesothelioma Cancer and who pays for these costs. Secondly, should asbestos mining companies be paying compensation not only to the sufferers of mesothelioma and other diseases but also to Society as well?
There are two costs to society that can be identified. The first cost is to the public health system. The second cost is the loss of tax revenue by governments due to Asbestos mining companies claiming a tax deduction for compensation payments that are made to the victims.
In illustration of the costs to the public health system, the Asbestos Diseases Foundation of Australia has stated that by 2020 there will be 13000 cases of mesothelioma and 40000 asbestos related lung cancer diseases, totaling 53000 people and this is only in Australia! This means that 53000 people will need to have constant medical attention for the next 15 years or so. The question therefore, who pays for the cost? The answer of course is the current taxpayer and the next generation of taxpayers.
In relation to tax revenue, governments are essentially missing out on tax revenue as the asbestos companies are claiming the compensation payment as a tax deduction. For illustrative purposes, assume that an asbestos mining company pays out $100m per year over five years to the victims. Also assume that the corporate tax rate is 30 per cent. Therefore over five years, a respectrive government is losing $150m in tax revenue. Essentially it means that the asbestos mining companies are sharing the costs with the taxpayer. They pay 70 per cent of the compensation payment and the taxpayer pays the remaining balance. Most people would view this as totally inequitable.
It can be seen that the Asbestos companies are only paying part of the costs and not the full cost.
To rectify this, there are two possible solutions.
a) Respective Governments should also join class actions with Mesothelioma sufferers against the asbestos mining companies seeking compensation for medical and future medical costs. This would not be unprecedented as various State Governments of the United States sought compensation against the Tobacco Companies to pay for the medical costs of its citizens who needed medical attention because of the ill effects of smoking.
b) Governments deny a tax deduction for Mesothelioma compensation payments made by the asbestos mining companies.
Until either part a or part b happens, it is the taxpayer who will be unfairly burdended with the additional financial costs of Asbestos related diseases such as Mesothelioma.
Why Are We So Fat? The Real Reason For The Obesity Epidemic
Copyright 2006 Tom Venuto
Why Are We So Fat? That's the question asked in the cover story of a recent issue of National Geographic magazine.
"Americans enjoy one of the most luxurious lifestyles on Earth: Our food is plentiful. Our work is automated. Our leisure is effortless. And it's killing us," says Geographic senior writer Cathy Newman.
Some of the latest facts and statistics about obesity revealed in the article are chilling:
* One out of three Americans is obese, twice as many as three decades ago
* The Center for Disease control and Prevention (CDC) has declared obesity an "epidemic"
* 15% of children and teens are overweight, a nearly three fold jump since 1980
* Other countries are catching up to the United States, especially newly industrialized nations. KFC opened a drive through restaurant in Beijing in 2002 with more on the way. UK snack food consumption rose 25% in the last five years. Sales of processed food rose 20% in Latin America between 1980 and 2000.
* Being overweight is now associated with over 400,000 deaths per year
* Obesity is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, stroke, and colon, breast and endometrial cancers
* Next year, Obesity is expected to surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in the United States
* The Puget Sound Ferries increased their seat width from 18 to 20 inches to allow room for bigger bottoms
* An ambulance company in Colorado retrofitted its vehicles with a winch and a plus size compartment to accommodate patients up to a half a ton in weight
* A casket maker in Indiana now offers double-sized models
* One in four Americans gets ZERO exercise, one-third of Americans don't get the minimum amount the government suggests we need just to avoid chronic disease
* The average child will watch 10,000 commercials per year touting food or beverages, nearly all of them for junk and fast food
So what's the answer to the question, "why are we so fat?" What does this article reveal? Are overweight people deficient in fat burning hormones? Was the obesity gene discovered and isolated, confirming that your genetics determine whether fat is fate? Does blood sugar and insulin go haywire in certain people regardless of how they eat or how they exercise? Has it finally been proven that carbohydrates make us fat? Is the appetite mechanism in the brains of obese people out of kilter?
Although there may be a sliver of truth and scientific fact in each of the statements above, none of them are the real reason we are so fat. The conclusions made in the National Geographic article on the other hand, are refreshing, because they are the right ones, and the most obvious ones: The reason we are so fat is because we eat too much and exercise too little. Surprise, surprise!
"For all the Americans who've blamed bulging bellies on a slow metabolism, the jig is up," says Newman. "A report earlier this year by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) finally confirms what many of us didn't want to admit: We're fat because we eat a lot – a whole lot more than we used to, and most of the increase comes from refined carbohydrates (sugar)."
Marion Nestle, professor of nutrition at New York University is quoted in the article as saying, "How about some common sense? It's a simple matter of eating fewer calories. But nobody wants to talk about calories because doing so does not sell books."
Truer words have never been spoken. Unfortunately, few people want to listen to that simple message, "Eat less, exercise more," because most people are too busy looking for the latest breakthrough or the "next big thing in fat loss." Besides, fat loss couldn't be that simple, could it?
Well, maybe fat loss isn't "easy", and certainly "eat less, exercise more" is an OVER-simplification, but the fundamental cause of obesity really IS that simple and the facts confirming it are now in:
According to the CDC report, we ate 1775 pounds of food per year per person in 2000, up from 1497 pounds in 1970.
In the 70's, we ate 136 pounds of flour and cereal products and now it's up to 200 pounds per person – and the increase is almost all from processed, white flour, high sugar foods. Not to mention, everything has been Super-sized. Example: 1955 McDonald's French fries – 2.4 ounces, 210 calories. 2004 Super size Fries – 7 ounces, 610 calories.
When you add this increased food intake (mostly refined food) on top of the lack of exercise encouraged by technology, cars, video games, television, washing machines, riding lawnmowers, elevators and other modern conveniences, you have the recipe for obesity on a global scale.
In all our searching and waiting for the latest scientific discovery, the newest pill, or the next breakthrough supplement that will free us from the shackles of body fat, most people have continued to overlook or ignore that simple and obvious advice: "Eat less, exercise more."
Is it really that simple? Isn't there a lot more to it? Well, yes, of course. There's how much less do you eat, what do you eat, how much you exercise, what kind of exercise and so on. But those are just details. Often what we must do, in order to see the big picture clearly, is to reduce the problem to its most basic level FIRST before worrying about any details.
A principle called Occam's Razor was proposed by English philosopher and theologian William Occam in the 14th century. It said, "Entities should not be multiplied beyond what is necessary." Plainly stated, it says, "The simplest and most obvious solution to a problem is usually the best one and the correct one."
Does accepting this simple answer to the obesity epidemic make the process of losing the weight any easier? Perhaps not, at least not physically. Permanent fat loss will always require sweat, discipline and effort, and as with freedom and liberty, "eternal vigilance" will be the price that must be paid to keep the fat off once it is lost. In addition, it would be naïve not to admit that genetics do play a small role, so weight loss will be a greater challenge for some than for others.
However, if we would stop allowing ourselves to be so caught up and immobilized by the myriad of different weight loss methods and theories today and just acknowledge, accept and practice the simple advice given to us in Newman's article – which we've all heard a thousand times before – "Eat less, exercise more," (especially "exercise more" to burn the fat, rather than starve the fat with strict diets), we would not only be rewarded with results, we would also see the fog of confusion that seems to shroud the whole "weight loss thing" begin to lift. Certainty would take its place, and that would at least give us the confidence to continue to forge ahead towards our goals
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Tom Venuto is a certified personal trainer, natural bodybuilder and author of the #1 best selling diet e-book, "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle. You can get information about Tom's e-book at: http://www.burnthefat.com . To get Tom's free monthly e-zine, visit http://www.tomvenuto.com