Almost 80% of adults don’t do enough exercise

Nearly eight out of every 10 adults in England may not be getting enough exercise each week and putting their health at risk.

This worrying statistic comes from a study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and conducted by the University of Bristol, where researchers looked at data from over one million adults in England from the Active People Surveys (APS).  It was discovered that 80% were not adhering to governmental targets of engaging in moderate exercise at least 12 times in a four-week time period.
The APS analyses an individual’s socioeconomic position in addition to factors such as the weather and availability of sports facilities to them.

According to the researchers, the study demonstrates a clear association between a person’s education, household income and local area deprivation in accordance with the amount of physical activity they engage in.

It was found that better educated and wealthier individuals were more likely to exercise, whilst the poorer and less educated were more likely to not bother with much exercise. However on the whole, the majority of adults are seemingly way under the recommended levels of activity required to keep healthy.

Those with a degree apparently only had a 12% chance of being inactive but those without any qualifications were in fact three times more likely to not exercise.

Other findings from the study were the fact 8% of people physically capable of walking had not done this for even a mere five minutes continuously in the previous four weeks. Involvement in the most common activities was found to be ‘very low’.

In addition, researchers said nearly half (46%) had walked for less than 30 minutes continuously during leisure time, whilst 88% had not been swimming and a staggering 90% had not even been to a gym in the last four weeks.

Unsurprisingly, the study findings suggested that warm weather provided people with more motivation to exercise and rain decreased the amount of physical activity.

Carol Propper, professor of economics at the university’s Centre for Market and Public Organisation, said: “Physical inactivity is the most important modifiable health behaviour for chronic disease, so knowing who is physically inactive is important for designing cost-effective policy interventions.”

Tam Fry, spokesman for the National Obesity Forum and honorary chairman of the Child Growth Foundation, hit out at the figures and said: “No-one should be at all surprised by these woeful statistics,” and blamed the government for not  doing enough to use the London 2012 Olympics as a springboard for more participation in grassroots sport.

To stay healthy, NHS guidelines state that adults aged 19-64 should try to be active daily and get at least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week. This can include fast walking, hiking, volleyball, rollerblading or basketball. However, on top of this the NHS recommends to engage in muscle-strengthening exercises on 2 or more days each week. This can include heavy gardening (such as digging and shovelling), lifting weights, yoga and exercises that use your body weight for resistance (such as push-ups and sit-ups).

It is apparent that many of the population are simply not doing enough to stay active and this in conjunction with poor diets are causing more and more people to become overweight or obese. The good news for those overweight or obese is that it is never too late to make positive changes and a healthy, balanced diet in conjunction with exercise and a weight loss aid such as Xenical, Alli, or XLS-Medical will provide you with the tools to live a much healthier life.

Overweight woman assumed ‘pregnant’ loses half her body weight

A young woman could prove an inspirational role model to millions of overweight Brits after she has now slimmed down from her 16 stone frame to a svelte size 8 exercise enthusiast – training six times a week!

Jodie Driver, 23, had long been referred to as ‘the bubbly and cuddly one’ during school years, however one particularly cruel male masseur at a holiday resort in Turkey left her feeling like action needed to be taken to reduce the size 22 frame being carried on her 5ft 2in stature.

It was back in June 2009, when Jodie accompanied her mother Jo, 45 and a friend on holiday in Bodrum, Turkey, where they decided to sample the local culture by having a traditional Turkish bath and massage.

For 16 stone Jodie however, this would mean exposing the weight being hidden underneath her clothes and she felt reluctance.  After doing so, nasty jibes from the male masseuse soon made her rush to put the clothes back on.

Reminiscing about the life-changing holiday, Jodie says: “The masseur told me to take my clothes off so I stripped down to my underwear. The first thing he did was point to my stomach and said “baby?” I was gob smacked, and told him “no, definitely not”. He then said again “baby?” while making belly shapes with his hands on his own stomach. I was horrified.”

Jodie added: “During the whole massage he was talking and joking to his mates in Turkish and they were all laughing at me, it was really demoralising.”

After this upsetting episode, Jodie stayed covered up for the remainder of her holiday for fear of further insult. Then after arriving back home and browsing through her holiday pictures, she was shocked by her appearance.

“I looked at myself in the photographs and said: “I have to change”. I saw myself smiling, but I didn’t look happy, there was a sadness around me.”

Not wasting any time to make positive changes to her lifestyle, Jodie signed up to a gym the very next day to begin the process of losing weight. Her goal was to complete the 2010 Race for Life and to do this she began going to the gym three times every week and gave up junk food.

Initially, Jodie found it difficult to run 30 seconds, let alone the 5k distance for the Race for Life. However, by banishing takeaway and ready meals and opting for chicken and vegetables, her energy levels soon began to increase and she suddenly found herself being able to run for an hour at the gym.

Six months later and Jodie had lost an incredible four stone and now adheres to a healthy diet that consists of oats with water and a scoop of whey protein for breakfast, Greek yoghurt, white fish with vegetables and chicken with spinach and sweet potatoes.

She eventually ran the Race for Life in just 35 minutes on her 21^st birthday and then aimed to complete a half marathon the following year in April 2011 - which she managed to do and complete in 1 hour and 53 minutes.

Jodie is now a size 8 dress size and looks healthy, toned and happier than ever! “I now train six days a week, doing around one hour cardiovascular exercise plus weight training which targets specific muscle groups. It takes an awful lot of self-discipline…Looking back, I ironically have a lot to thank that Turkish masseur, as he inspired me to change my life. He did me the biggest favour.”

In what is an incredible turnaround and inspiration for those needing the motivation to lose weight – Jodie now plans to compete in the UK Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation’s bikini category later on this year.

If Jodie’s amazing weight loss story has motivated you to drop the excess pounds and reap the benefits, you can achieve similar success by adopting a healthy lifestyle and diet in conjunction with a scientifically proven weight loss aid such as XLS-Medical, Alli, or the prescription medication Xenical. All are available today from Medical Specialists Pharmacy at incredibly low prices.

Calculator devised that can predict childhood obesity risk at birth

Scientists at Imperial College London claim they have constructed a formula that could predict a new-born baby’s chance of becoming obese as they get older. The calculator is available online for anybody wishing to test it out, with researchers hoping that parents analyse the results seriously and take positive steps now to help avoid weight creeping onto their child in future years.

The need for such a formula could be due to the fact that an alarming 17% of boys and 15% of girls aged between two to 15 in England are currently in the obese category of body mass index (BMI) classification. If your BMI is between 30 and 40, you would be considered obese. Although the online calculator has targeted how babies will develop in the future, a survey published this year unearthed damning statistics showing just over a quarter of all adults (26%) in England are obese.
The Researchers from Imperial College London studied 4,032 Finnish children all born during 1986 and also analysed information extracted from two other studies; one involving 1,503 Italian children and another that included 1,032 U.S. children.

It was initially considered if an obesity risk could be determined by studying genetic profiles. Accurate predictions were not able to be found though using the tests on this theory. In fact it was estimated that only about one in 10 cases of obesity is a direct result of a rare gene mutation that influences a person’s appetite. Instead, it was found that simple non-genetic factors could be used such as if the child’s mother smoked or not and the baby’s birth weight.

Prof Philippe Froguel from Imperial College London, led the study and he and his team managed to refine obesity risk factors to just six pointers which they say together can provide an accurate reading of a child’s chance of becoming obese.

The first question requests both parent’s BMI as many health experts argue that children of overweight adults are more likely to become overweight as well due to picking up bad dietary habits.
Next, the calculator asks for how many people are in the household as it is believed that single-parents have less time to spend properly taking care of their child and thus the child has a higher chance of becoming obese.

Following questions then ask for the mother’s professional category, if the mother smoked during her pregnancy and finally the birth weight (in kg) is required to be entered.
The calculator was used on the children in Finland, Italy and the US, and was found to be a fast and credible method of producing an obesity risk.

Prof Froguel said that prevention methods held the key to tackling the problem as once a child has become obese, they usually find it difficult to drop the extra weight. He said: “The equation is based on data everyone can obtain from a new-born, and we found it can predict around 80% of obese children. Unfortunately, public prevention campaigns have been rather ineffective at preventing obesity in school-age children. Teaching parents about the dangers of overfeeding and bad nutritional habits at a young age would be much more effective. The message is simple. All at-risk children should be identified, monitored and given good advice, but this costs money.”

Publishing their findings in the journal PLoS ONE, the researchers stated they believed parents could be provided with more information about breastfeeding – a factor linked to a reduced risk of a baby becoming obese later in life. They also said the time spent watching television should be greatly reduced and parents should avoid giving their children fizzy drinks. Ironically only two days ago Medical Specialists Pharmacy actually reported on many of the health dangers associated with such drinks.

If you have already become an adult and gained weight though, it is not too late to lose the extra lbs. and feel the benefits. There are so many reasons to lose excess weight if you are overweight or obese. It is absolutely not something you should consider to begin in the future, start today! The health benefits include:

. You will find it easier to breathe.
. The risk of developing type 2 diabetes is greatly reduced.
. Blood pressure decreases.
. Improved mobility, with less aches and pains.
. Lowers cholesterol levels.
. Decreases the risk of sudden death from a stroke or heart disease.
. Weight loss and being in good health promotes better sleep and waking with more energy.
. Weight loss can improve fertility.

As well as countless medical reasons why it is a danger to be overweight or obese, weight loss will improve your confidence levels and boost your wallet as you gain the willpower to give up spending money on expensive fatty meals and treats.
With Christmas rapidly approaching and many of us will probably gain weight over the coming month, now more than ever is the time to act!

Luckily, at Medical Specialists we have proven effective weight loss treatments such as Xenical and the recently introduced XLS-Medical Fat Binder. In conjunction with a healthy diet, they can help you drop the additional pounds and begin to reap the massive rewards from doing so. XLS-Medical can even be obtained today without the need for a prescription or doctor’s consultation. You can find out more information regarding both medications from the obesity section of the Medical Specialists website.

Pepsi launch ‘fat blocking’ cola drink in Japan

A ‘special’ version of Pepsi’s cola drink has gone on sale today in Japan, with bold claims of weight loss and lowering ‘bad’ cholesterol coming from the soft drinks giant.
Funnily enough the drink will be named ‘Pepsi Special’, and will be distributed by Suntory International, who is hoping for a similar hit as the Japanese fat-busting drink Mets Cola, released by the beer company Kirin only a few months previously.

Both drinks contain an indigestible form of the light carbohydrate dextrin; occasionally used as a fibre supplement. Dextrin inhibits the body’s ability to absorb fat while eating and also reduces the level of ‘blood triglycerides’ in your bloodstream and bad LDL cholesterol. If that wasn’t enough though, it also manages to help keep HDL, the good cholesterol.

These claims are based on a 2006 study by Japan’s National Institute of Health and Nutrition, conducted on rats that were fed dextrin. The study’s results went some way to showing that dextrin can help in reducing the absorption of fat in the body and also helping to bring down cholesterol levels.
Unfortunately no information has been released in regards to the drink’s sugar or corn-syrup content in the drink in comparison to the regular Pepsi drink  spokesman said it would have a ‘crisp refreshing and unique’ aftertaste.

Pepsi Special will have a unique look, being sold in a ‘luxury’ gold and black bottle with the Pepsi logo on the side of the bottle. The price will be initially set at 150Yen (£1.20), only slightly more than a typical 500ml bottle of regular Pepsi sold in the UK. However, there has been nothing said by either Pepsi or Suntory International regarding a European or U.S. release date.

One thing that is clear though is just who the drink could appeal to, going off the humorous advert that Pepsi have posted on their website. The ad depicts a young businessman who has to make a choice between a woman dressed in a pizza costume and another wearing a burger outfit. Basically it is claimed that the man will not have to discard either, as long as he drinks Pepsi Special. It would seem the soft drink giant is keen to appeal to young, health-conscious men who enjoy such drinks but are also worried about their weight, as well as possibly previous customers who have stopped buying soft drinks for health purposes.

The drink has been met with scepticism though by some people though. Sue Baic, a spokesperson from the British Dietetic Association, questioned just how effective the drink was in its fat-busting claims. She said: “I think this drink is unlikely to make much difference to how much fat you absorb. I can’t see any studies that show dextrin works in people. Even if it has an effect on rats that doesn’t mean it will translate into humans. I suggest a higher fibre diet with fruit, vegetables and whole grains would be a better way to fill you up and make you feel less hungry. Plus then you would get the benefits of all the vitamins and minerals as well.”

It is debatable just how ‘healthy’ though these types of drinks are due to the high volume of additives that are packed inside, many of which are disastrous for teeth. In addition, high sugar content will do nothing good for weight and in the long run can lead to health complications such as diabetes.
From Medical Specialists’ experience, and from contact with our thousands of patients, success comes firstly from factors such as lifestyle improvements such as a healthier diet and more exercise. Help can also be found from clinically proven treatments for obesity such as Xenical or XLS-Medical Fat Binder.

It may be also questionable whether or not a fizzy drink can have a genuine impact on your good and bad cholesterol levels. Luckily, for suitable patients, we can provide cholesterol-lowering statin medications Crestor (Rosuvastatin) and Lipitor (Atorvastatin). Along with diet, they lower ‘bad’ cholesterol (LDL-C), increase ‘good’ cholesterol (HDL-C), and also slow the progression of atherosclerosis in adults with high cholesterol. We are pleased to inform our patients that we now also offer legal generic Atorvastatin, with prices from as little as just £11.25 per pack.

New food labelling system planned to tackle rising obesity

A brand new universal food labelling system will be implemented in the near future on all food items across supermarkets in the UK. Although the exact date of introduction and final design has yet to be chosen, it is hoped that the new widely accepted system will finally banish any confusion for consumers regarding how healthy a particular product is.

Health minister Anna Soubry confirmed that that the new labels will include information on guideline daily amounts (GDA), in addition to the colour-coded traffic light system which also depicts levels of fat, saturated fat, salt, sugar and calories in terms of ‘high’, ‘medium’ or ‘low’.

Ms Soubry spoke out on the need for a nationwide food labelling system, saying: “The UK already has the largest number of products with front of pack labels in Europe but research has shown that consumers get confused by the wide variety of labels used. By having a consistent system we will all be able to see at a glance what is in our food. This will help us all choose healthier options and control our calorie intake. Obesity and poor diet cost the NHS billions of pounds every year. Making small changes to our diet can have a big impact on our health and could stop us getting serious illnesses, such as heart disease, later in life.”

The traffic light system works by having a postage-stamp sized sticker that states the percentage of a person’s recommended daily allowance contained in each product – red for high, amber for medium and green for low.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) first considered this approach back in 2006 after feedback from consumers suggested that they preferred this method of food labelling. Major supermarkets however such as Tesco, Morrison’s and Kellogg’s fiercely objected to this. They were angered at being told what to put on their food products as well as realising that a damaging red sticker on food products could look bad and effect sales and revenue.

Despite this negativity from those three companies, traffic lights were voluntarily implemented by certain big players in the food industry such as Sainsbury’s, Co-op and Waitrose. Judith Batchelar, director of Sainsbury’s brand, recalls the time when the company embraced the scheme, saying: “It was back in 2004 and I think it is fair to say that Sainsbury’s had lost a little bit of its sparkle. We were really up for driving change within the organisation. What we found with traffic lights was exactly that.”

The new kind of food label is estimated to be in use by summer 2013, with work now being done to create a certain design that will satisfy everybody.

Peter Hollins, chief executive at the British Heart Foundation, spoke of his excitement regarding the latest announcement, raving it was a ‘quantum leap’ forward for public health. He said: “It’s now down to each and every retailer and manufacturer to step up and introduce these consistent front of pack food labels, including traffic light colours, so shoppers can make healthy food choices at a glance.”

The announcement for clearer food labels is fantastic news and they cannot come quick enough after Medical Specialists reported one week ago about rising obesity across Europe. In the meantime, we have weight loss treatments such as Xenical and the recently introduced XLS-Medical Fat Binder, which can help you drop the additional pounds that poor food labelling may have contributed to! XLS-Medical can even be purchased today without the need for a prescription. You can read more about both treatments from the obesity section of the Medical Specialists website.

Obesity on the rise in France as Brits continue to get fatter

A high-fat junk food diet and increasingly sedentary lifestyle is being blamed for a rising obesity problem in France. Statistics show that since 1997 the average French person has piled on an extra 3.6kg in weight, with a typical person now weighing 11 stone 6lbs. In addition, the French have also grown 0.7cm in height as well as adding an extra 1.3cm to their waists.

It has also been revealed that a massive 7 million adults in France are now classified as ‘obese’ – nearly double that of the number from fifteen years ago. This equates to 15% of the population of France and works out at roughly one in seven men and nearly one in six women.

In the report, a government sponsored survey by pharmacists Obepi-Roche, it was revealed that the age group that had seen the largest weight increase was the 18 to 24 year olds. The blame is being connected to an increasing addiction to fast food. In particularly, those who are less wealthy and living in industrial regions of northern and eastern France are apparently more likely to be carrying extra baggage than wealthier counterparts living in Paris, Brittany and the French Rivieria.

Guillaume Garot, a member of the National Assembly of France and France’s food minister, was alarmed by the report and has called for traffic light colour coding on all food labels. This style of food labelling was finally brought into play in August this year by Tesco in the UK, after giving in to demands by shoppers. The system works by using the colours of traffic lights; red, amber or green, depending on how nutritious it is. Red is the unhealthiest so therefore, if a food product has red lights for sugar, salt and fat content, then it is probably a food product best avoided. Since 2005 Tesco had instead adopted a ‘guideline daily amounts’ (GDA) system. This showed the percentage of sugar, salt and fat in a product but did not incorporate any colours.

Guillaume Garot was also incensed at food manufacturers for masquerading high-calorie food products as supposed healthy food options for consumers. He blasted, “These days you virtually need a degree in chemistry to understand the nutritional information on food labels. We need a simpler system that simply says in three colours if a food will make you fat, if it’s neutral or if it’s healthy. This is a health problem that affects the whole of our society and the government will tackle it as a matter of priority.”

However, France is still classified as being Europe’s second thinnest nation and the obesity crisis stretches far and wide to many other European countries. Greece holds the unwanted title of being the fattest nation in Europe, where an astonishing 70% of people are ‘overweight’. According to NHS definitions, you are overweight if you have a body mass index (BMI) that is between 25 and 29. A BMI of between 30 and 40, results in an ‘obese’ classification.

The statistics are certainly eyebrow-raising a little closer to home though. Britain’s women are the second biggest in Europe, with 62% overweight and 22% being obese. British men fair slightly better than the females, and come in at number five across Europe, behind Germany, Greece, Finland and Ireland.

The dangers of obesity may be underestimated by many, but are certainly life-threatening in the long-term. Diabetes, cancer, chronic heart disease and high blood pressure are just a few of the conditions that obesity can cause, as well as erectile dysfunction for men in many cases. By adopting a healthy lifestyle and diet in conjunction with a scientifically proven weight loss aid such as XLS-Medical or the prescription medication Xenical, you can begin to lose weight and dramatically cut your chances of developing a fatal health problem in the future. Both XLS-Medical and Xenical are available today from Medical Specialists at incredibly low prices.

Obesity levels could skyrocket in the U.S. and UK by 2030

The United States of America is a nation that has long been associated as suffering with weight issues. ‘Obesity’ is a term used to describe somebody who has a body mass index (BMI) of over 30, and it seems many Americans are going above and beyond this number. Environmental, social and cultural factors have been cited by many as being the causes for the obesity epidemic. Typically American’s favourite foods tend to be high in fat and/or sugar and include unhealthy options such as hamburgers, hotdogs, doughnuts and French fries. Some argue that traditional family meal times have been lost in recent years as households become preoccupied with other activities and opt instead to snack on unhealthy treats throughout the day.

Of course these are just a few of the reasons for the obesity crisis in the U.S. that in 2008 resulted in some estimates pitting 32.2% of men and 35.5% for women as being obese. Even five years prior to this back in 2003, there were researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who claimed that the medical cost attributed to obesity-related conditions stood at a staggering $75 billion.
This was all way before the current day though. Fast forward to today and new predictions have been released that show the U.S. is fatter than ever, and will be getting much, much fatter. So much so that by 2030 half of adults could be classified as obese. This is according to a report released on Tuesday by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, who warn that if Americans continue with their poor eating and exercise habits then their weight will continue to soar.

More recent data shows that 35.7% of adults and 16.9% of children aged 2 to 19 are obese in the U.S., as confirmed by the CDC earlier in the year. However the forecasts by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, paint a much bleaker outlook than the government’s first prediction of a 42% obesity level by 2030. The former decided to thoroughly analyse government figures for 39 of the 50 states and found that in every state, the obesity rate will hit 44% by 2030. In 13 states however, it would be at least 60%.

Even the ‘thinnest’ current U.S. state, Colorado, is not going to fare very well in the future. Currently about a fifth of the people in Colorado are obese, but this could surge to 45% if current trends continue. Two major states in New York and California currently have an obesity rate of just 25% and 24% respectively. In 18 years’ time though, these numbers could be bumped up to 51% and 47%.

All of these statistics may not mean much to people reading them, but if you do happen to have a BMI over 30 (from anywhere around the World, not just America), perhaps it is worth considering the detrimental impact that the extra weight is having to your health and will do so even worse in the future. In fact these latest predictions say that in the next two decades, there may be 7.9 million new cases of diabetes a year in comparison to the current 1.9 million and 6.8 million new cases of chronic heart disease compared to 1.3 million presently.

However it is not just the U.S. that needs to think about ways to stop this from happening in the future. Indeed the problem is one that is also escalating closer to home. Over the last thirty years, the UK rate of obesity has spiralled fourfold. In 1980 it was estimated that 6% of males were obese and 8% of females were. In 2009 this had jumped up to 22% for males and 24% for females.

One study conducted by the National Audit Service found that obesity is draining the NHS of roughly £500 million each year and the economy of £2 billion every year in lost productivity, and the problem looks to be getting worse. Experts say that in 10 to 15 years’ time, three-quarters of the UK population will feel the repercussions of ill-health from extra weight. Obesity is clearly a global problem that should be taken into account by everybody and acted upon today to prevent the dark predictions for the future. The following table shows the scale of the problem that has been growing in recent years:

Country	Adult obesity prevalence rate (%)	Year estimated
Tonga	56	2000
Kiribati	51	2006
Saudi Arabia	36	2000
United States	34	2006
United Arab Emirates	34	2000
Egypt	30	2006
Kuwait	29	2000
New Zealand	27	2007
Seychelles	25	2004
Fiji	24	2004
Mexico	24	2000
Canada	23	2004
Israel	23	2001
United Kingdom	23	2002
Greece	23	2003

Medical Specialists Pharmacy believe the UK coalition government need to take both the U.S. AND UK warnings on obesity very seriously and implement effective preventative measures and policies to promote numerous things such as healthier eating, increased exercise, and the major health benefits that can be had from the maintaining of a healthy weight. Encouraging all of these from an early age would be most ideal, with the responsibility of parents now to drum a healthy mentality into the minds of their children so this hopefully continues well into their adult years.

If you are overweight or obese though now, but wish to lose weight safely and reap the benefits of doing so, let Medical Specialists help. We can provide suitable patients ‘Xenical’, the only clinically proven and prescription-only slimming medication available today. It works in the digestive system, blocking roughly one-third of the fat in the food you eat from being digested and absorbed by your body.
We are pleased to inform patients that we are now able to drastically reduce the cost of the medication from £89.50 for one month’s supply, down to just £59.95 with free delivery for UK orders.