Unit -6 Health and Exercise Emma Young
Now read the following article about staying slim.
Who needs diets and exercise? There are plenty of other ways to stay slim.
The holidays are a time of excess. Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we diet - or
perhaps not! Unfortunately, we do not all have the self-discipline and determination
it takes to cut back on cake and hit the gym. But fear not - there could be other ways
to shift the fat and stay trim.
Just to get this straight, if you over-eat and underexercise
you will gain weight. However, growing
evidence suggests that other factors also contribute
to excess adiposity. Last year, David Allison at
the University of Alabama in Birmingham, Ala.,
highlighted this when he discovered that humans
are not alone in piling on the pounds. He looked
at wild animals, lab animals, even animals kept on
the same highly controlled diets for decades, and
found that all were becoming heavier (Proceedings
of the Royal Society B, vol. 279, p. 1626). Allison
concludes that whatever factors are fattening up the
animals that live around us might also help explain the human obesity epidemic.
That being the case, identifying these alternative factors should give us new ways to fight the
bulge. The good news is that researchers worldwide are beginning to do just that. It is
not yet known how much each factor contributes to obesity, but we can nevertheless
suggest ways of avoiding them – and some are far less painful than dieting or pounding
the tarmac.
54 English: Grade 11
Get vaccinated
If you catch a cold this holiday season, you may have to stock up on new clothes as well
as tissues. That’s because at least one common cold virus has been linked to obesity.
Nikhil Dhurandhar of the Pennington Biomedical Research Centre in Louisiana
discovered that adenovirus-36 (AD-36) boosts both the number of fat cells in the body
and the amount of fat inside these cells. He also found that obese people are nearly
three times as likely as those of healthy weight to test positive for AD-36 antibodies,
indicating current or past infection (Obesity, vol. 14, p. 1905). Another study reported
that children with AD-36 antibodies weighed an average of 23 kilograms more than
children without them (Paediatrics, vol. 126, p. 721).
The “fat effect "of AD-36 might persist for several years in humans, although
nobody knows for sure. Meanwhile, another 10 microbes have been reported to make
animals fatter. While it sounds alarming, this could actually be good news in the fight
against flab. “If indeed some infections contribute to obesity in people, we could
have a potentially very simple and effective prevention strategy – vaccination, “says
Dhurandhar.
Chill!
While extreme stress tends to make people lose weight, the everyday kind can have the
opposite effect. So, for the sake of your waistline, take a deep breath, and don’t let the
festive family bickering get to you.
Failing that, try giving the new-year diet a miss. One recent study found that moderate calorie
restriction made mice much more sensitive to stress, and this effect persisted once
the diet was over. The mice went on to choose more high-fat food than those that had
never had their food restricted (Journal of Neuroscience, vol. 30, p. 16399).
Brain imaging studies by Rajita Sinha, director of the Yale Stress Centre at Yale
University showed that stress increases activity in the ventral striatum, a region
associated with reward and habits (Neuropsychopharmacology, vol. 36, p. 627). “So
it increases craving for high calorie foods in those who have a habit of consuming
them,” she says. Instead of counting calories, she recommends mindfulness, stress
reduction and meditation techniques to cultivate an awareness of how your thoughts
and behaviour can undermine your health. “They can help with taking control over the
urges and stress-related eating of high-calorie food”.
Everybody say “om”.
English: Grade 11 55
Over the past three decades, homes in the US and UK have become warmer. Fiona
Johnson at University College London and colleagues think this may be making us
fatter (Obesity Review, vol. 12, p.543). Simona Bo of the University of Turin, Italy,
agrees. In a study of more than 1500 middle-aged adults, her team found that those
whose home temperatures ranked in the top third were about twice as likely to become
obese over the six-year period of the research (International Journal of Obesity, vol.
35, p.1442).
Shivering obviously burns energy, but you don’t need to be freezing for your body to
chew through extra calories. Most fat on our bodies is a type called white fat. But when
temperatures get down to about 18°C, brown fat – which is abundant in babies and
which adults mostly carry around their necks – starts burning energy to warm you up.
Unfortunately, if you were not regularly exposed to cold, your brown fat deposits shrink
and so too does your capacity to burn off that extra holiday treat. Any change will help,
though, says Johnson. You burn steadily less energy as environmental temperatures
rise from 15°C to 28°C. “So turning down the thermostat by any amount is likely to
have some small effect,” she says. Do try this at home.
Watch the packaging
As well as looking at the nutritional labeling, you might also want to watch the actual
material your food comes wrapped in. Some plastic packaging and cans contain
endocrine disrupter chemicals that can leach into food and drinks, and evidence is
starting to link some of these to expanding waistlines.
Endocrine disrupters change the
normal functioning of hormones.
Many interfere with the functioning of
the thyroid, which produces hormones
that regulate metabolic rate. One
group, known as phthalates, also
seems to activate a receptor in the
cell nucleus called PPAR (peroxisome proliferatoractivated
receptor)-gamma, involved in storing fat
and metabolizing glucose. In 2010, a team led by
Elizabeth Hatch at Boston University reported that
men with a bigger body mass index (BMI) and
waist circumference had higher blood concentrations of metabolites of phthalate
(International Journal of Andrology, vol. 33, p.324). Other research has linked obesity
to exposure to bisphenol A, which is another endocrine disrupter.
Debate continues over whether these chemicals are harmful or not, and avoiding them
is tricky. But look out for PVC packaging – labeled “Type 3” for recycling purpose
– which can contain phthalates or bisphenol A. And be especially wary when buying
fatty foods in which endocrine disrupters tend to accumulate, posing a potential double
threat.
Turn down the lights
If your idea of a holiday workout is lifting glasses of beer late into the night, then it’s
not just the extra calories you need to worry about. Randy Nelson and his team at Ohio
State University in Columbus found that mice exposed to light at night weighed 10 per
cent more at the end of the eight-week study than mice that had experienced a standard
light/dark cycle, even though they ate the same total number of calories and did the
same amount of exercise (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 107,
p.18664). Several other studies have found that shift work makes people fatter.
Light at night might alter circadian clock genes, changing an individual’s metabolism,
Nelson suggests, “It’s difficult to specify an appropriate light cycle for everyone,”
he adds. But he recommends keeping a consistent pattern throughout the week and,
if possible, avoiding blue wavelengths of light at night (New Scientist, 7 May, p.44).
Produced by many LED bulbs, these are known to be especially disruptive to the
circadian system.
Move to the country
A brisk walk or jog outdoors can only help in the battle against the bulge, unless you are
doing it in a busy city. Breathing polluted air can cause extra fat to accumulate around
your stomach and also make your cells less sensitive to insulin, increasing your risk of
developing type 2 diabetes. “We believe that air pollution plays a very important role
in the current obesity epidemic,” says Xiaohua Xu of Ohio State University.
Xu exposed young mice to air heavily polluted with fine particles for 6 hours a day,
five days a week, and found that after 10 weeks they had about 50 per cent more
abdominal fat than mice that were fed the same diet but inhaled filtered air. The fatter
mice also had elevated blood levels of a protein involved in inflammation called
tumour necrosis factor-alpha. Xu believes this may help explain the changes to their
fat cells, as well as their deceased sensitivity to insulin.
English: Grade 11 57
Another study found a strong link between levels of fine particulate air pollution and
the prevalence of type 2 diabetes in North Americans (Diabetes Care, vol. 33, p.2196).
“We were shocked that the association held up as well as it did,” says John Pearson at
Harvard University, who led the research. Fine particles can blow around the globe so
you can never entirely escape them, even if you can afford to move out of the city. But
if you have a choice, it still might be worth picking a rural ramble over an urban jog.
Have a lie-in
If you need an excuse for spending more time in bed during the holidays, this could
be it: too little sleep can make you fat. Simona Bo of the University of Turin, Italy,
found that the adults who became obese during her six-year study slept an average of
about 6.3 hours a night, compared with about 7.2 hours for those who maintained a
healthier body weight. The link between sleep and weight held even when her team
took into account other important causes of obesity, such as low level of physical
activity. Rachael Taylor at the University of Otago, New Zealand, has found that
children aged between 3 and 5 who sleep less than the average of 11 hours a night are
also more likely to be overweight or obese by the time they are 7 years old. (BMJ, vol.
342, p. 2712)
Sleep deprivation reduces the secretion of leptin, a hormone that suppresses appetite,
and increases levels of ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates appetite. “Or it could be as
simple as less sleep means more time to eat”, says Taylor. Either way, an extra hour in
bed sure beats going to the gym.
Emma Young
Ways with words
A. Ten words in the bold face in the text correspond to the definitions
below. Match the definitions with the corresponding words.
a. in spite of what has just been said or referred to......... nevertheless
b. a strong desire or impulse............urge
c. the ability to continue trying to do something, although it is very difficult............determination
d. to attract attention to or emphasize something important............ highlight
e. arguing about things that are not important..........bickering
f. not having things or conditions that are usually considered necessary.............deprivation
g. continue to exist.......persist
58 English: Grade 11
h. soft loose flesh on a person's body.....flab
i. to improve or increase something........boost
j. a limiting condition on something........ restriction
Now, make sentences of your own using the same words in bold type.
B. The words ‘restriction’ and ‘awareness’ are nouns with the suffixes
‘-ion’ and ‘-ness’. Make a list of as many words as you can which end
in ‘-ion’ and ‘-ness’.
Comprehension
A. Write whether the following statements are True, False or Not Given.
a. During the holidays people eat and drink more than usual. T
b. Getting too little exercise and eating too much is the reason why people
put on weight. T
c. David Allison’s research involved studying rats under laboratory
conditions. F
d. You may need to go shopping for clothes if you come down with a cold. T
e. Adenovirus-36 (AD-36) decreases the percentage of fat in the fat cells. F
f. Vaccination against infections could be used in the future to prevent
obesity. T
g. People under severe stress can experience breathing difficulties.
h. A study indicates that mice that have never been on a diet choose fatty food,
when given a choice between high-calorie or low-calorie food products. F
i. Rajita Sinha has been studying the connection between brain activity and
behaviour. F
j. Specific hormones regulate our appetite. T
B. Answer the following questions.
a. In what sense are the holidays a time of excess? When can a person gain
weight?
The holidays are a time of excess as people eat and drink more than usual.
A person can gain weight when he/she overeats and underexercises.
b. According to David Allison, which factor contributes to excess obesity?.
c. What, according to Dhurandhar, can be the way of preventing fatness?.
According to Dhurandhar, vaccination against infections can be the way of preventing fatness.
d. What is the relationship between chill and obesity? How can saying ‘om’
help reduce fatness?
Chill (cold) helps burn calories,then decrease obesity.
Saying ‘Om’ helps reduce fatness by taking control over the urges and stress-related eating of high-calorie food.
e. Why is it necessary to be careful while buying plastic packaged fatty
foods?
It is necessary to be careful while buying plastic packaged fatty foods because they contain endocrine disrupter chemicals that can leach into food and drinks, and cause the expansion of waistlines.
f. Why does Nelson suggest avoiding blue wavelengths of light at night?
Nelson suggests avoiding blue wavelengths of light at night because these are known to be especially disruptive to the circadian system.
g. How does breathing polluted air affect one’s fatness?
Breathing polluted air affects one’s fatness as polluted air activates (chronic) inflammation and disrupts the body’s ability to burn energy.
h. What is the link between sleep and weight?
Sleep deprivation boosts body weight.
B. Complete the sentences by choosing the correct verbs from the brackets.
Everyone has problems in their life. Countries also have problems, and so does the world. One of the greatest problems is the growing population. The population in some countries is huge.
Both of my friends live in Kathmandu.
You and your friends are welcome to join us
The man with all his children lives in the city.
Critical thinking
a. What do you do you to keep yourself fit? What food do you avoid and why?
Everyone desires to live a healthy life. But they hardly put in any efforts to make it happen due to their busy time table. In my part, I believe in saying ‘There is a will there is a way’. I strictly follow healthy habits to be physically and mentally fit. Brisk walking in the countryside every morning and playing games are my favorite things. My daily meals include all the nutrients my body requires. Additionally,‘early to bed and early to rise’ has played a vital role for my sound health.
Despite my busy schedule, I fully avoid junk foods. I know they are easily available and with high satisfying value. There are various issues with junk foods. They replace other nutritious foods. Fats from junk food trigger the brain to want more food and worsen our appetite and digestion. An increase in consumption of junk food is directly associated with the increase in obesity, heart diseases and blood pressure.
b. Healthy citizens are the greatest asset of a country. What can a state do to keep her citizen healthy?
The best profitable investment a nation can make is to invest in the health of its citizens. Our ability to grow as a country is strongly linked to our health. Having an educated and skilled workforce is not adequate. Physical and mental well-being are essential for the productivity. When people are sick, the consequences extend beyond the well-being of the nation affecting families and communities.
The greatest natural wealth a nation has is its people, and its success relies on how they are cared for. Our healthcare system effects our ability to take part in the global economy. It also makes a significant contribution to economic progress, as healthy population lives longer and are more productive.
The countries which do not give emphasis on the health of their citizens are proven to have poor growth rates. For a nation, to climb the success ladder rapidly, its people need to be perfectly fit and healthy. Quality healthcare system has to be accessible and affordable for everyone, not an unreachable dream.
Both the state and the individuals have an equal role in ensuring the health of a nation. However, to improve public health, a government should be more responsible and can make important efforts. It should provide quality and nutritious food for its citizens. An adequate local public health infrastructures should be assured. Healthy communities and healthy behaviors should be promoted. Prevention of the spread of communicable disease should be necessary. People should be protected against environmental health hazards. There should be the provision of easy health services. Health centers and hospitals should be established in the remote parts of the country
.............................
B. Complete the sentences by choosing the correct verbs from the brackets.
Everyone has problems in their life. Countries also have problems, and so does the world. One of the greatest problems is the growing population. The population in some countries is huge.
A number of my friends love riding bicycles, but neither my brother nor my sister owns a cycle. At 4 o’clock, either my mother or father is coming to pick me up in a car.
The pair of shoes on the floor is mine. The shoes were made in China. The three thousand rupees I spent on them was worth it.
C. Are the following sentences correct? If not, correct them.
Answer:
Everyone of the workers receives the same benefits.
Answer:
There are two gerbils in my bathroom.
Answer:
Both of my friends live in Kathmandu.
Answer:
Scissors are used to have our hair cut.
Answer:
You and your friends are welcome to join us.
Answer:
Is the news on at five or six?
Answer:
The man with all his children lives in the city
Answer:
Mathematics is Prem's favourite subject, while Economics is Alina's favourite subject.
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