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WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
- A healthy weight is good for your overall health. Following a healthy eating plan and exercising regularly can help you reach it.
- Some of the benefits you can get are: preventing and controlling heart diseases, diabetes, some types of cancer, osteoporosis and obesity. It also helps to have more energy, agility and a good mood.
- There are a number of indicators that help identify risk factors associated with overweight and obesity. These are: body mass index, fat percentage, and waist circumference.
- If you want to lose weight:
- Make sure half of your dishes are fruits, and vegetables.
- Limit consumption of soft drinks and sugary drinks.
- Prepare foods in healthy cooking methods: baked, grilled and stewed.
- Increase your water consumption.
- Do at least 30 minutes of physical activity 5 days a week.
- If you want to gain weight:
- Do not skip meals
- Make healthy, high-calorie snacks: whole meal toast with peanut butter or avocado
- Increase your food pattern by 500 kcals a day, make sure they come from healthy sources.
- Increase your calorie intake if you are going to get physical activity.
- Get motivated! Changes are necessary to improve your health and mood.
The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure that relates weight and height to determine health risk.
Can you be considered obese if you have a healthy body weight?1
Yes. This is known as obesity by composition. You may have an adequate total weight (BMI that ranks you in healthy weight), but your body fat percentage is high that can be considered obese. By being in this classification you can have the same health risks as someone who is obese according to his/her BMI.
1Zeratshy K. (2014). Can you be considered obese if you have a normal body weight? Recuperado de https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/obesity/expert-answers/normal-weight-obesity/faq-20058313
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