OKC mayor talks up weight loss

This week a repeat of the “Ellen” show aired that featured Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett. As you’ll recall, after OKC was named one of America’s fattest cities, the mayor called for the city’s citizens to lose one million pounds this year.

He said the ranking “really upset us. We decided we had to do something about it…We decided we’re gonna have to get serious, let people know we’re serious, and we said this city’s going on a diet and we’re going to lose a million pounds.”

Cornett himself has lost 38 pounds (not all this year) and says he was gaining about five pounds a year as mayor because “everybody always wants to feed the mayor.”

He says the city is also “trying to change the culture in Oklahoma City and really in all Western cities” that are built for cars instead of walking by building 300 new miles of sidewalks. At the time of the original airing of the show about 8,000 pounds had been lost, but now, according to the city’s , just over 43,000 pounds have been shed, or a little more than two and a half pounds per participant.

The March 3 issue of Woman’s World looks at Oprah’s weight and how she gained 20 pounds thanks to an underactive thyroid.

The symptoms of a bum thyroid include weight gain, fatigue, increased hunger, depression, anxiety, trouble sleeping, high blood pressure, feeling cold, having dry skin, losing hair, more PMS and heavier periods. But the problem is often missed as many doctors just think those issues are related to aging.

Advanced cases of hypothyroidism need hormone therapy, but others may be able to lose weight by following a thyroid-friendly diet, the magazine reports. Getting lots of vitamins C, E, and D, beta carotene, selenium and zinc are vital.

Eating protein at each meal can help boost a slow metabolism, and getting more omega-3s and less sugar can also be helpful. The magazine also calls for regular exercise and relaxation, since stress can trigger thyroid problems, as seemed to be the case with Oprah.

Boosting weight loss with saturated fat

First magazine (which also has an article on low thyroid) offers a diet said to help people lose a pound or more a day by packing on saturated fats.

Actress Suzanne Somers says she discovered the link between fat and weight loss on a trip to France, where she say slim, healthy women who also ate a lot of saturated fat. She said the trick is eating fatty foods like meat and cheese without carbs, and that such a diet helped her lose as much as seven pounds a week.

Experts say that saturated fats raise “bad” cholesterol, but they also raise “good” cholesterol levels and therefore aren’t a risk factor for heart disease. In fact, one study showed that eating fat instead of carbs actually cut triglycerides, reducing the risk of heart attack.

The magazine offers a sample diet but says calorie counting is not necessary; just eat until you’re full. The plan calls for eating fruit on an empty stomach, eating protein with veggies instead of carbs, spacing out protein and carb meals by three hours, and eating three meals and two snacks a day.

The diet is heavy on eggs, full-fat dairy and meat, as well as whole-wheat pasta and unlimited amounts of “good” vegetables like peppers, broccoli and tomatoes.

(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

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This entry was posted on Thursday, March 6th, 2008 and is filed under Celebrities and politicians, Diet and food media, Diet programs. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Permalink.