Skinny Fat - Myth Busting

I'm not overweight, so why should I watch what I eat?

Do you often choose the deep fried, high energy or high sugar foods because your weight has never been an issue? If so, it might be surprising to learn that body weight is not always a distinguishing factor between being healthy or unhealthy. What you see on the outside is not always a reflection of what is going on inside your body. Can someone appear to be overweight, but still be healthy?

Your body composition - what your body is made up of – is one of the best measures of health. BMI and scale weight can have their limitations. A skinny individual can have a higher fat percentage than someone who looks overweight. The biggest problem with this is the lack of lean muscle mass. Muscle is metabolically active, it burns lots of kilojoules. Fat mass unfortunately does not. Muscle tissue also improves insulin resistance – decreasing your chance of getting diabetes! This condition is no longer limited to the overweight and obese. Children are now getting diabetes because of their lifestyles, as are skinny adults.

So what does this mean?

We know through years of research that where an individual carries their fat can influence their health and predispose them to various lifestyle diseases, like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. We also know that skinny people aren’t always healthy. The attitude of those that don’t put on weight eating unhealthy foods needs to change. An unhealthy diet full of sugar, saturated fats and processed food leads to a very unhealthy body – and plenty of negative health effects too! Parents with the attitude that their kids can eat whatever they want because they are skinny or will burn it off also need to change their ways. The eating habits your children have will last a lifetime. Focus on healthy, nutritious foods, and as soon as children can chew/swallow solids, everyone should be eating the same meals!

Take care of your body, feed yourself nutritious foods, and best of all, reduce your risk of chronic diseases – no matter what you weigh. Being healthy on the inside is more important than what is on the outside.