Xenical, Obesity, And The American Heart Association's Diet Recommendations
by Charles Mathias
Would you be offended if I called you obese? I was shocked when I went to my doctor several years ago and was told that at 5 feet 9 inches tall and 210 pounds I was obese. I thought "a little overweight, maybe--but certainly not obese!" When I hold my stomach in, I can still see my toes. And everywhere I look, I see people bigger than I am--at the fast-food restaurant, at the donut shop, ice cream parlor, etc... You may laugh, but it's not a joke. Maybe you think you're just a little overweight--check it out. If you have a BMI (body mass index) of 30 or greater, you are considered obese. You can determine your BMI by using a BMI calculator on any of numerous health or weight loss sites--just put BMI calculator into your Google search engine. Nope, it's no joke!
America is fat and, surveys indicate, getting fatter at an alarming rate. This is a grave concern, no pun intended, because of the implications for Americans' health. Being overweight or obese, in particular, increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions, including the following:
· Hypertension
· Type 2 diabetes
· Coronary heart disease
· Stroke
· Gallbladder disease
· Osteoarthritis
· Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
· Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
If you have not heard of the prescription drug Xenical, read on. It could save your life! Xenical is for people who are considerably overweight or obese. If you are obese, or if you have a BMI of 27 or higher and also have other risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease or diabetes, you may also be a candidate for Xenical. Be sure to talk to your doctor if you are thinking about integrating Xenical into your weight-loss program.
Unlike other weight-loss drugs that suppress the appetite or speed up the metabolism, Xenical works in your digestive system to keep up to 1/3 of the fat you eat from being digested. It effectively keeps the enzymes called lipases from breaking down the fat we eat so that it remains undigested. This undigested fat is then eliminated in your bowel movements.
The standard dose is one 120-mg capsule of Xenical at every meal that contains fat, up to three times a day. If you skip a meal or have a no-fat meal, you don't need to take a Xenical capsule. It is important when taking Xenical to eat a nutritionally balanced diet. No more than 30% of your caloric intake should come from fat. This is not difficult to implement. Simply go to the American Heart Association's website and get their recommended diet, which adheres to this same criterion.
One of The American Heart Association's diet recommendations is to balance the calories you eat each day with the calories you burn. To calculate, multiply your current weight by 15 if you are moderately active. This is the number of calories you use each day. If you are a couch potato, multiply by 13 instead of 15.
Okay, say I'm 200 pounds and moderately active. That means I use about 3,000 calories a day. Now, if I can take in 3,000 calories a day, over the course of three main meals (we're not counting snacks), that's 1,000 calories per meal. By the 30% rule, that means I can only get 300 of those calories from fat per meal. So I go to the refrigerator and take a look--maybe I'll have a couple of hot dogs for lunch. I read the back of the package and, OOPS, that's 360 calories and a whopping 300 calories from fat already! As you can see, this is going be tricky. So I will say it again: to succeed with Xenical, you will need to start on a nutritionally balanced diet, such as the one prescribed by The American Heart Association, and stick to it!
You should be aware that you will probably see some changes in your bowel movements. These changes generally last only for the first few weeks of treatment, but may last longer for some people. The changes can include gas with oily discharge, more frequent bowel movements, and an urgent need to go to the bathroom. There is also the possibility that you may not be able to control yourself long enough to make it to the bathroom, particularly after meals containing higher than recommended amounts of fat. So stay close to the potty when you start Xenical. By following a healthy eating plan, however, you can decrease some of Xenical's possible gastrointestinal effects--and lose weight!
Scientific research has proven that Xenical works. Just be sure you talk to your doctor so you know exactly what you are getting into before you make it part of your weight loss program.
About the Author
Charles Mathias is a professional writer and researcher of health issues, including the effectiveness of diet pills like Xenical. For free tips, great articles, and informative product reviews on how you can lose weight, quit smoking, and GET HEALTHY, visit www.besthealthproductreviews.com.