by Timmy Duncan

Created on: November 22, 2010

Given the advancement of technology and our understanding of nutrition and physical fitness, it is astonishing how much of the population is overweight. It is even more astonishing to learn that in addition to being overweight, the majority of the American population is also one of the most malnourished populations in the world. We are simply eating way too much of all the wrong things because, for all of our education and knowledge in other areas, so many of us are not educated about our bodies and what types of things we should be doing in order to keep them in the best possible condition.

So few people understand basic nutrition. Somewhere along the way we stopped viewing food as fuel that is necessary for the body to operate properly and started viewing it as entertainment, comfort, or even something to do when we are bored. Because we don't have an understanding for what our body needs to run properly, we don't often provide it with the right foods. We eat what tastes good rather than what is good for us. And often times the things that taste good contain far more of the wrong kind of calories than we can burn off. And because we are not providing our bodies with the things that they do need, we are also becoming malnourished.

The responsibilities of life can also get in the way of taking the proper care of our bodies. The people who get the recommended amount of exercise are few and far between. Real life can make it tough to fit everything in with your other responsibilties. Because people work long hours and have other family and social obligations to fit in to their schedules, the exercise routine is so often the thing that gets booted when we need to budget our time. But in truth, this is one of the things we can least afford to cut from our busy schedules as getting the proper amount of exercise is crucial to maintaining our overall health as well as keeping our weight down.

The majority of our population is overweight because we do not place our physical fitness as a priority, although it absolutely should be. While it definitely takes a bit more time and energy to eat healthy and make sure we get the proper amount of exercise, it is well worth the effort as it can pay dividends at the end of the day.

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