It's going to be hot! - © Image
Do you have fire insurance? I hope so because this post will be featuring a burning indictment that I will need to discuss. I will make sure to have the proper attitude and present with a clear head as well.
Still, I think this subject needs to be addressed because no one else has been willing to. Now this post will mainly deal with most, not all, Christian men. . .still, something needs to be said in the spirit of humility.
The Epidemic of MPS
If you have ever been to a Bible-believing church, you may see that some of the men there are stricken with a condition. This condition may have started when they were little. They may have stumbled on the condition in their adulthood. Sometimes the condition happens in marriage as well.
The condition is what I call MPS. MPS? Yes. Male Pregnancy Syndrome. These are some men who have a rotund belly that will either sag over their belt or the belly looks like a ripe pumpkin. Now you may be asking, “Why are you picking on the men? Maybe they can’t help it? Maybe this is due to the meds they take or it could be a thyroid problem?”
So, Bob, when are ya due? - © Image
First let me be clear. . . My feet are made of clay and I am not better than anyone else. In fact, my body type is what the experts would call “skinny fat.” So we all have room for improvement.
The purpose of my post is to dive into what are the causes of MPS and what men can do overcome it. I am focusing on Christian men for reasons that will be address at the finale of this post.
Fat Is Not Fashionable
I will go out on a limb here and address the particular denomination that is known to be associated with food and the denomination is Baptist. Sadly, instead of being known for missionary work, presenting the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or fiery preaching; Baptists are mostly known for their eating and sleeping.
Herein lies the problem and may I say even an epidemic: a widespread of the men (let’s include the boys as well) have an obese problem. To murk up the waters of acceptance further, most of the men will not bother to discuss the issue until God gets their attention about their lifestyle choices.
The generation of today does not know about what is real food that is cooked in the home. Parents will rely on processed and packaged meals to save time. Most of the men of the church will not bother to explore fat burning techniques to trim down. Maybe they have tried before and the weight, although loss for a time, was found again hanging out at the latest fellowship meal with the church.
The result is having great men of God with major health issues like diabetes and heart “disease” that would can be easily avoided through education and a want to be physically fit. The trouble comes from tolerance.
Tolerance and acceptance of their condition will be the type of grave that they will literally dig with their teeth if they do not change their direction and the direction of their families.
Let’s move to finding out what is belly fat and what are the causes?
“We Have Seen The Enemy And The Enemy Is Us.” – Pogo
Everyone has fat. There is no use denying or pretending. The question we need to ask is where is the fat storing? For women, fat will store on their thighs, buttocks, and hips. For men, the fat storage is centered in the belly area (hence where we get the term ‘beer belly’).
The belly fat is much more dangerous than to simply shrug off as a fact of life or part of the aging process.
From Wikipedia:
An excess of visceral fat is known as central obesity, or “belly fat”, in which the abdomen protrudes excessively. There is a strong correlation between central obesity and cardiovascular disease.[8] Excess visceral fat is also linked to type 2 diabetes,[9] insulin resistance[10] inflammatory diseases,[11] and other obesity-related diseases.[12] (source)
Even more shocking is the fact that ‘according to studies performed by Carlos Iribarren and Eric Jacobs, waist circumference may be the single most accurate anthropometrical predictor of heart disease and all-cause mortality, even more than BMI or more traditional measurements. These studies have found that a large waist circumference is almost always an accurate predictor of disease, even when your weight is considered to be “healthy” by most standards.’ (source)
The causes for men’s obesity can be from a range of factors as noted by Dr. Joseph Mercola (source):
- Increased consumption of highly processed food, especially fructose
- Increased portion sizes of restaurant food and grocery products
- Increased driving and computer use (sedentary activities)
- Increased modernization
- Certain medications
- Endocrine disorders and genetics
- Changing social perceptions of what is “normal” weight
There are two components that I, through my research, think may be the launching points to men’s belly fat problems. What are those components?
We will look at this in part 2 of this post this week. Hope you come back.
