In recent years, the increasing consumption of fast food such as hamburgers leads to many other risky diseases such as obesity along with nutritional disorders. Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology Specialist Prof. Dr. Vedat Göral, drew attention to the fact that nutritional disorders and obesity have reached young ages; and noted that the reason for this situation is social media addiction and moving away from vegetable-based stew dishes. Prof. Dr. Göral said; “The most important step in instilling a healthy life in young people is to create awareness about proper nutrition. Obesity and proper nutrition should be explained in schools starting from primary school. School cafeterias should be inspected by nutrition experts and lists suitable for child and adolescent health should be prepared.”
Stating that the biggest mistake of young people is to stay away from vegetable-based pot dishes, Prof. Dr. Vedat Göral said, "Generation X, which is growing up in the digitalized world and is called hamburger youth, wants to reach their needs easily. For this reason, young people are turning to foods that are popular on social media and can be consumed in a short time. Social media, which has entered our lives rapidly, is changing our nutritional traditions while playing with our health and dragging us into a sedentary life in front of the screen."
1 IN 5 CHILDREN IS OBESE
Prof. Dr. Göral, who quoted from his book titled 'Life-Extending Habits' and emphasized that malnutrition triggers many diseases, said, "In America, one in every 3 children and in our country, one in every 5 children struggle with obesity. This data reveals that societies do not eat properly. We have started to see the diseases that we used to observe in the 40-50s at much earlier ages. Obesity, which we often encounter in young people and even in children, can be the cause of many diseases such as fatty liver, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and even cancer in later ages. It can shorten life expectancy and even lead to early deaths."
THE KEY TO HAPPINESS IS A HEALTHY GUT
Prof. Dr. Vedat Göral, who particularly touched on the importance of intestinal health, said, "The importance of the intestines, which we call the second brain, has been much better understood in the last 20 years. Because 95 percent of the hormones that make us happy are formed in the intestines. If your intestinal structure is good and you have a high number of good bacteria, more dopamine goes to the brain. This makes us happy. Based on this, high-fat foods can cause anxiety and depression in individuals by decreasing the good bacteria in the intestines."
THE ONLY SOLUTION IS AWARENESS
Emphasizing that the most important step in instilling a healthy lifestyle in young people is to create awareness about proper nutrition, Prof. Dr. Göral said, "The subject of obesity and proper nutrition should be explained in schools starting from primary school. At the same time, school cafeterias should be inspected by nutrition experts and lists suitable for child and adolescent health should be prepared. Parents should be made aware of this issue in particular. Because some habits that we think are innocent actually push our children into the web of an unhealthy life, for example, when families reward their children with ready-made foods for situations in which they are successful, these children may be exposed to diseases such as cancer in later ages." On the other hand, Prof. Dr. Vedat Güral stated that food cannot be a reward and warned, "If parents want to give their children gifts, they can take them to places like cinemas, theaters, museums and feed their children's souls."
WHAT AFFECTS OUR GUTS?
-The risk of bowel cancer decreases by 8-10 percent in people who walk for 45 minutes every day.
-Eating bulgur 3 days a week reduces the risk of developing colon cancer.
-We need to consume fish 2 days a week, meat 2 days a week and plenty of vegetables.
-Let's be careful about eating pot/vegetable dishes.
-Antibiotics used unconsciously and irregularly may cause intestinal disorders in later ages as they disrupt the intestinal flora.
Source: https://www.sabah.com.tr