Obesity is a growing health challenge that affects both children and adults. Eating high-calorie foods and reduced physical activity have made it easy to gain unhealthy weight. Therefore, it is necessary to adopt simple lifestyle changes to manage obesity.
Obesity increases the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke and certain cancers. These diseases are lifelong and can significantly affect the quality of life. However, it is possible to control obesity through lifestyle changes. These habits provide practical ways to maintain a healthy weight.
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Choose healthy foods
Foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains provide essential nutrients than processed foods and refined sugars.
Reading food labels can also help to identify hidden sugars in packaged foods.
ALSO READ: Understanding Food Labels; What Nigerians Should Look Out For
How to Avoid Hidden Sugars in Everyday Nigerian Foods
Control portion sizes
Eating the right quantity of food is an important part of a healthy diet. To effectively manage obesity, choose smaller bowl sizes for smaller portions.
Plan your meals ahead
Creating a meal plan for a week or month can help you eat right and maintain a healthy weight. A meal plan can also prevent unhealthy food choices whenever you do not know what to eat.
Restock your refrigerator
The kinds of foods you have in your fridge influence your diet. If you are looking to manage your weight, it is important to get rid of all junks, snacks, or soda in your storage. A supply of low-fat milk, fresh fruit, vegetables and water makes it easier to stick to a healthy meal plan.
Get more exercise
It is recommended that a person should engage in moderate-level exercise for about 150 minutes every week. Activities such as hoeing, brisk walking and climbing the stairs are great ways of integrating exercise into your daily life.
Reduce Screen Time
Spending long hours before a screen can reduce physical activity. It also encourages snacking and mindless eating. These poor feeding habits increase the risk of obesity.
Weigh yourself weekly
To control obesity, you can weigh yourself every week. This is useful to monitor weight changes, assess feeding habits and make necessary changes.
Sleep well
Sleep is as important as food and water. Poor sleep causes hormonal changes that increase appetite and the risk of obesity. Therefore, a good sleep is important for weight management.
Little Changes, Big Impact
Effective weight management focuses on diet, physical activity and behaviours. Making little changes in lifestyle can have a big impact on obesity and improve health. By choosing healthy foods, exercising and paying attention to daily choices, you can prevent and manage obesity. Overall, making lifestyle changes will yield better and lasting results for you than rapid weight loss solutions.
