Americans are obsessed with weight. We weigh too much, we’re told. Obesity will kill many of us. The truth is far more complicated. Part of that truth: a person’s weight is controlled by hundreds of different factors. And those are ones we know about.
Everything is connected. Change one thing and you end up changing all. Give the human body the right information, and it remakes itself right. But some mistakes we like to make again and again. Let’s look at one national obsession: weight.
A recent study argues that Americans are far more obese than present standards imply. The authors argue that our obesity epidemic is far worse than the disaster we already think it is. Are they right? And what does it all mean?
The data from this year’s American Sociological Association Meeting are troubling, though not surprising. A study of over 10,000 men and women revealed weight gain was common among both men and women in the 2 years after marriage.
21.8 minutes of lost life for every hour watched. That’s the precise measurement coming from a widely reported Australian study of watching TV. So, is watching “Glee,” “Law and Order” and “Monday Night Football” slowly killing you? Not quite.
One way to control your weight is to see food as information: a series of messages given to the body. You want to give your body the right kinds of directions for the food you eat, directions that will change how you look and feel—and how much you weigh.
What we do is what we become. The Net is changing our brains and our bodies, and we better understand what shifts will occur. Then we can make the changes we want, and make them work for us.
Many people live their lives in a double mirror. One reflects their live on the Internet; the other reflects their real life. When they compare the two images, they realize they are not the same. Which image they become more attached to may prove key.
Part II: Body clocks affect everything you do. Ask shift workers—a group with higher cardiovascular mortality and higher cancer rates. The Internet is rapidly turning much of the population into biological shiftworkers—and they’re willingly going along.
Part I: As most of our bodies are replaced in a matter of days to weeks, what we do is what we become. How we live changes not just our gene expression but how we, look, think, and move; it also resets how we rebuild and renew ourselves.
Enter the e-mail address you registered with below. Within one minute you will receive an email with instructions on completing the setup for your account.
In order to reset your password, we need to verify your identity. Enter your email address below and we will email you a link to reset your password. If you don't know your email address or you can't receive email at that address, contact support.
The last step required to complete the signup process is to verify your registration by clicking the link found in the email sent to you. Let's Get Started
Important: If you have not previously signed up as user, Click here as the first step to set up your account.
If you have registered but have lost or not received your confirmation email, click here.
* All fields are required
