The Times: How Sharon lost 62kg

Contestants lost a whopping 536kg in total

Losing 61.8kg doesn’t just mean Sharon Haarhoff is a thinner person — it also means she has a new life.

“Men didn’t give me a second glance. I couldn’t even visit the Cango Caves because I was too large,” Haarhoff said yesterday, hours after winning R250000 on e.tv’s weight loss reality show, The Biggest Loser.

Haarhoff not only shed kilos, but also her “fat person” attitude.

More.

NVDL: That is exactly what we all need to shed - our 'fat person' (wasteful) attitudes. We start to do this by bothering to accept reality at face value, but not ignoring the steady flow of signals, and by responding in a constructive way - and one that is congruent with reality. It may sound simple, but to execute requires DISCIPLINE, EFFORT AND CONSISTENCY. Our 'fat world' doesn't possess these traits in abundance I'm afraid.

Another thing to point out that is once you get through the initial strain of starting to exercise (like a rocket taking off, the first few seconds require the most 'will', and burn the most 'fuel/resources') - so one quickly gets addicted to the benefits and appearance enhancing side-effect of exercise, and in particular - intense exercise. The feel good factor and the sense of well-being doesn't need hype or motivational speaking to convince you it's good and it works. Living it is evidence enough.

Obesity a problem in HIV population

NVDL: I was of the opinion that if you had AIDS you would be losing weight. A friend who is a dietician once responded to my weight loss questions saying: "Almost all of my patients are trying to gain weight, and it's incredibly difficult when they have AIDS." Although it seems like obesity is also the lot of the HIV-positive, the truth is that untreated, AIDS causes the body to waste away.

Obesity and HIV
By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer

LOS ANGELES - Early in the AIDS epidemic, people infected with the virus often lost a dangerous amount of weight, at times looking gaunt and ghostly. Today, they are facing the opposite problem. Many who have HIV, but not full-blown AIDS, are struggling with obesity, which has overtaken "wasting syndrome" as the top concern.

AIDS researchers and advocacy groups say the waistlines of HIV patients are growing right along with the girths of uninfected Americans as the disease shifts from a death sentence to a chronic condition.

Exact numbers are hard to pin down. But new research suggests that nearly two-thirds of the HIV population may be overweight or obese, mirroring the U.S. population.

Doctors say there's a growing need to screen people with the AIDS virus for obesity, which raises the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol problems.

"We used to worry that they would lose weight and become wasted," said Dr. Nancy Crum-Cianflone of TriService AIDS Clinical Consortium in San Diego. "Maybe we should redirect our concerns to making sure they are maintaining a healthy, normal weight."

About a million people in the United States are living with HIV or AIDS, federal statistics show. At the height of the epidemic, many had wasting syndrome, the uncontrollable loss of 10 percent of body weight along with other symptoms like fever or diarrhea.

A turning point in the AIDS crisis came with advances in modern medicine. Powerful drugs that keep the virus at bay also boost the body's immune system. The result is that more HIV patients are living longer than their counterparts two decades ago, and may be prone to poor eating habits and lack of exercise.

Some experts offer psychological explanations. Since the hallmark of HIV has been weight loss, some patients may be piling on the pounds to avoid looking abnormally thin.

"It's very clear now that HIV is no longer a wasting disease in America," said Dr. John T. Brooks, an epidemiologist in AIDs prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Brooks did not participate in the study.

From Yahoo.com. For more click here.