by Diana Coman

Created on: May 21, 2009   Last Updated: March 22, 2012

Under the pressure of public images and opinions, it is easy to focus solely on the weight as an indicator of health. While extra weight can certainly lead to health problems, it is not the only cause of such problems. Having the normal weight does not ensure automatically being healthy.

A healthy life and a healthy body are not characterized only by a normal weight, but also by other factors such as fitness, strong immune system, good mental performance and general well being. Thus, focusing solely on the ideal weight is dangerous as it might lead to worse overall health.

Have you ever felt exhausted after a little physical effort although having the "perfect weight"? Or are you getting sick quite often? These are just a few signs that the things are not going on so well and that you might have attained the ideal weight, but not the real health.

Indicators such as the BMI (body mass index) are ways to estimate the body fat and serve to understand which is the normal weight for each individual. However, the BMI does not claim to estimate the health of an individual. Having a healthy BMI is equivalent to eliminating one potential cause of health problems, but in order to be healthy one has to take into consideration all the aspects of health.

In the same way in which losing weight alone does not mean that the muscles develop, maintaining a healthy BMI is not enough to lead a healthy life. A healthy life is instead the result of a healthy diet and regular exercise together with a normal weight.

A healthy diet ensures the nutrients that the body needs in order to function properly. All the different organs of the body need different nutrients. Thus, improving health does not mean simply reducing the intake of food, but rather improving its quality.

A healthy diet has many benefits such as strengthening the immune system, giving more energy and positively impacting the mental performance.A healthy diet should contain a large variety of ingredients, and as much as possible fresh and raw fruits and vegetables and freshly prepared food. No single food can supply all the variety of nutrients needed. Thus, the variety of the food is essential. Moreover, don't forget to drink also plenty of water as the water has an essential role in the human body and is an important part of a healthy diet.

To further increase the benefits of a healthy diet, don't forget to exercise also regularly. Exercise ensures not only burning of calories, but also an intake of oxygen that has a positive impact on brain activity. Furthermore it also ensures a smooth functioning of various components of the body such as the heart and in general the system of arteries and veins. In turn, a proper functioning system of arteries and veins ensures fast transport of nutrients to the brain and other organs and a quick removal of toxins.

So keep an eye on your weight, but don't forget to have a healthy diet and regular physical exercise for enjoying a healthy life. It might be easy to achieve the ideal weight by pure starvation for instance, but this will lead you nowhere. A healthy body is the result of a healthy way of living and that includes a healthy diet and regular exercise together with the normal weight.

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