Holiday Healthy Eating Advice
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Pot belly is not an insult but a concern, it is a pot filled with health risk factors that is characterized by a large waist circumference due to excessive abdominal fat that has built up to the extent and likely has a negative impact on our health. Triglycerides are the most common type of fat in our body. Fat that is underneath the skin, and in skeletal muscle is easy to lose, not the abdominal fat that is deep seated and called visceral fat.
Food is the main source of triglycerides even though the liver makes some it. When you eat extra calories — especially carbohydrates, excessive sugar in your liver increases the production of triglycerides that is released in the blood stream further add to insult - increases the risk for developing heart disease or of having a heart attack or stroke. This can sometimes lead to pancreatitis.
You should have a basic work up measuring all of these factors:
- Fasting blood sugar level
- Hbaic
- Lipids
- Comprehensive metabolic panel
- Uric acid level
- EKG
- Blood pressure monitoring
- BMI if 25 or greater means you are overweight
Self Help Tips
- 1. Healthy diet
- 1a. Exercise that includes a combination of aerobic activity.
- 1b. Avoid trans and saturated fat like cookies, cakes, candy, white bagels, white pasta, cake, and fried foods.
- 3. Limit your alcohol intake.
- 4. Eat more vegetables and fruits, and nuts.
- 5. Take supplements like fish oil tablets and niacin.
- 6. Consume less simple carbohydrates, such as table sugar and syrup.
- 6a. Avoid the type of fat that comes from animal products, such as red meats. Choose lean meats.
- 6b. Choose complex carbohydrates, such as those found in whole-wheat flour, brown rice, avoid full fat milk or yogurt, have fat free or 1% milk and yogurt.
- 7. Low sweetened drinks.
Medication Only If Needed
1. Xenical 120 mg twice daily with a fat containing diet, it is harmless and works by blocking the fat absorption in the gut.
2. Omega-3-fatty acids, such as those found in fish oil and flax seed oil, may also lower triglyceride levels when taken in prescription strength doses.
3. The statin drugs commonly used is fenofibrate to treat and reduce triglyceride levels.
