The Hand that Feeds You

So I won't dwell on my long absence but just get back into my blogging groove. So the other night I was flipping channels for something to watch and stumbled upon this documentary on for a lack of better words, fat kids. No seriously it was about how obesity is affecting kids and teens and how one hospital had a program to help them with it. They also highlighted two kids one who was overweight because of a previous medical condition and the other who over ate by a lot. It was very interesting to watch. I felt bad for both of them because I don't think any child of any age should have to deal with these types of afflictions. I mean yes I was teased growing up more for being short then chubby. But I always knew I wanted to lose weight but didn't want to take the steps necessary to do so. I also suffered from IBS growing up and needed to eat a higher fiber diet then everyone one else. Trust me when I say I really didn't want to eat the whole wheat sandwich and apple when other kids had lunchables and fruit roll ups.

So these teens were given a different alternative they were offered the chance to have gastric bypass surgery. Now I'm not sure where I land on the idea of surgery to help with weight loss yet as I feel that with the right diet and exercise you can make changes and do it on your own. However I realize in some cases this might just not be so simple. So for the surgery the two teens had to follow a diet before hand in order to qualify for the surgery. The one kid who had the past medical condition did amazingly well where as the over eater struggled. Because of this the teen almost didn't qualify for the surgery. Something they said though made me really think. One thing that surgery can't fix is the persons diet and food choices that's all up to the individual. I mean it's not like someone gives a killer a loaded gun and says go out and murder someone, they still have the choice to pull the trigger. Just as no one puts a bag of chips in your hands and says eat this, you still have to decide whether or not you going to eat them and whether to have a small handful or the whole darn bag!

It's not easy and I'm not perfect, I still struggle with foods and the choices I make. It takes a little more will power and a decision not to have that bad meal, treat or food and in finding a balance in what you are eating. Like I will definitely have a glass of wine on the weekends but maybe only 1 on Saturday. I personally plan to start making meal plans again and making sure I pack my lunches the night before because that is when I have been the most successful staying on track. Its an ever learning journey and I will keep on Living Lighter :)