In 2007, about 25 to 30 percent of the more than 200,000 bariatric surgeries (weight-loss surgeries) done in the U.S. used gastric banding.

Doctors say gastric banding is the least invasive form of bariatric surgery. With the obesity epidemic showing no signs of slowing down, many of those battling weight issues may be considering using a gastric band.

Obesity puts you at an increased risk of arthritis, depression, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, several forms of cancer, and many other diseases. It is a major public health crisis, but one that can be addressed without resorting to gastric band surgery, Dr. Joseph Mercola points out.

There’s always a risk when you go under the knife, but gastric banding and all types of bariatric surgery are fraught with a higher ratio of potential complications and risks.

One American clinical study that included a 3-year follow-up revealed that 88 percent of patients that tried a gastric band experienced one or more complications. 25 percent ended up having the gastric band removed permanently.

About nine percent of patients who had gastric band surgery had to undergo a second surgery to correct a problem with the band and/or a complication from the original operation.

Common gastric band complications are:

• Band eroding into the stomach (1.3 percent, requires band removal)
• Band slippage and/or pouch dilation (24 percent, requires another surgery)
• Difficulty swallowing (9 percent)
• Esophageal dilation and reduced esophageal function (11 percent)
• Gastroesophageal reflux (34 percent)
• Leaking or twisted access port into the stomach (9 percent)
• Stomach obstruction (14 percent)

Other possible complications include bowel and gallbladder issues, fainting, infection, kidney stones, malnutrition, and an increased risk of death, Dr. Mercola warns.

Bariatric surgery is just a quick fix and is NOT an effective weight loss tool because of the many negative long-term health consequences associated with this type of procedure.

Losing weight is very simple, if you know what you need to do, says Dr. Mercola. The number one dietary enemy in America is fructose, which is believed to be the main culprit in the obesity epidemic. Avoiding or completely eliminating fructose from your diet will greatly help your weight loss efforts.

You don’t need to restrict your food intake or go hungry in order to lose weight. Discover your unique Nutritional Type to conquer your food cravings and the need for snacks. Eating according to your Nutritional Type will not only help you manage your weight better, it will also help boost your energy, mind, mood, and emotions.

However, food is not only wasted in the summer. According to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Foundation and the International Water Management Institute, almost HALF of the food produced worldwide is wasted.

Americans waste an estimated 1,400 calories of food per person DAILY. These wasted calories represent about 39 percent of the available U.S. food supply and account for approximately 300 million barrels of oil annually. Not to mention all of the environmental implications that go along with fossil fuel consumption, says Dr. Joseph Mercola.

Making small changes in the way you plan your meals and store your groceries will go a long way. Here are some useful tips from Dr. Mercola that will help extend the shelf life of food and avoid spoilage:

1. Check the Source
   Don’t buy a fancy new fridge. It’s more important to choose where you buy your food. Try shopping for groceries at small, local, organic farms so you can personally check their condition. Food that is grown on a smaller scale usually contains lower levels of bacteria and will give you a few more days of leeway before it spoils.
2. Store Food Correctly
   Store your food in glass containers. Dr. Mercola suggests using the “rule of four.” This means keeping food no more than four days at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or 4 degrees Celsius. Raw chicken, ground beef, and cuts of beef and lamb are usually safe for three days at this temperature, and four days for leftovers. Read this article to get more detailed instructions on how to store specific fruits and vegetables.
3. Keep Oxygen Out
   Oxygen accelerates food decay. You can “vacuum pack” most of your produce to protect them from the damaging effects of oxygen in the air. Use the bag at the grocery produce section to store your vegetables. Put the bag against your chest and squeeze the produce against your chest using your arm to force all the air out of the bag. Once the air has been removed, seal the bag with a twist tie.
4. Be Mindful When Throwing Food Away
   Don’t throw away bread, cheese, fruits, and vegetables just because of a spot of mold, bruises, or an imperfection. If the food starts smelling a little different, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it has gone bad. Cut or remove the particular spot because you can still eat the rest of it.
5. Plan Your Meals
   Planning your meals will help reduce the amount of food that goes to waste and will help you optimize the nutritional content of your meals, Dr. Mercola advises. Plan your meals according to your Nutritional Type, so you know what to consume, and therefore, what to buy and prepare.

It has reached the point where babies are being born with toxins in their systems due to the toxic load passed on by their mothers. A 2004 study by the Environmental Working Group revealed that blood samples from newborns contained an average of 287 toxins including mercury, fire retardants, pesticides, and chemicals found in non-stick cookware, Dr. Joseph Mercola points out.

The threat of toxic metals is real. McDonald’s recalled some 12 million Shrek Forever After drinking glasses after dangerous levels of cadmium were found in the decorative paint.

Warning Signs of Metal Toxicity

Aside from cadmium, other metals like aluminum, arsenic, lead, and mercury can also accumulate in soft tissues of your body. Symptoms of acute metal toxicity include difficulty in breathing, convulsions and cramping, headaches, impaired cognitive, language and motor skills, nausea, sweating, and vomiting.

On the other hand, the indicators of toxic build-up due to chronic toxic metal exposure are much more subtle, largely because the symptoms are so “common,” such as:

• Aching joints
• Depression
• Digestive problems
• Fatigue
• Impaired ability to properly assimilate and use fats
• Impaired blood sugar regulation
• Problems with the female reproductive system such as infertility, menstrual difficulties, miscarriage, pre-eclampsia, pregnancy-induced hypertension and premature birth

Toxic metal exposure can also cause more serious conditions including abnormal heart rhythm, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, damage to blood vessels, and neurological diseases.

How You Can Reduce Your Toxic Metal Exposure

Dr. Mercola believes that you can greatly limit your exposure to toxic metals dramatically. Eliminate accumulated toxins and restore health by following these guidelines:

1. Use safe cookware made from ceramic, glass, cast iron, or enamel-coated cast iron. Don’t use aluminum and non-stick cookware, as both are known for their toxic dangers. Likewise, stainless steel can expose you to carcinogenic nickel.
2. Eat according to your Nutritional Type. Your body will use toxic metals as “stand-ins” if you are deficient in essential minerals. For example, calcium is replaced by lead; zinc is replaced by cadmium; magnesium is replaced by aluminum; and manganese is replaced by nickel.
3. Avoid eating out at restaurants as they are required to use stainless steel pots and vats.
4. Avoid stainless steel thermoses – glass-lined types are best.
5. Stop using cosmetics with aluminum bases, mineral powders that contain bismuth, and aluminum-laden antiperspirants. Aluminum has been shown to increase your risk of Alzheimer’s disease by as much as 300 percent, Dr. Mercola warns.
6. Avoid vaccinations that inject mercury or aluminum directly into your bloodstream.
7. Avoid dental amalgam fillings. If you have dental amalgam fillings, have them removed.
8. Avoid stainless steel orthodontics such as braces and palate wideners.
9. Avoid costume jewelry if you are sensitive to metals.
10. Quit smoking. Second hand smoke also causes cadmium poisoning.
11. When buying natural herbal remedies, make sure you get them from a reputable source with strict quality testing. Some colloidal silvers can lead to silver poisoning. Folk remedies can be high in arsenic, lead, and mercury–either due to alleged medicinal properties or through accidental contamination.
12. Avoid conventional household cleaning products.
13. Avoid conventional insecticides and herbicides.

Two out of three Americans are either obese or overweight. More than 100,000 people die each year due to obesity related diseases like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Obesity induced conditions cost the U.S. some $150 billion in health care expenses annually and these costs are bound to increase. An obese adult represents $1,400 more in annual additional health care expenses compared with healthier peers.

It’s not just adults who are suffering. Alarmingly, one-third of all American children between the ages of two and 19 are now either obese or overweight. This puts them at a higher risk of serious diseases that can impair their way of life or worse, cut their lives short.

Dr. Joseph Mercola believes that the very future of the developing world is at stake as a result of the exploding problem of obesity. He’s so concerned about this development that he co-wrote a book with Dr. Ben Lerner called Generation XL: Raising Healthy, Intelligent Kids in a High-Tech, Junk-Food World.

If the obesity epidemic is not reversed, we may see children living shorter lives than their parents, Dr. Mercola warns. He is determined to help turn this deadly trend around and shares seven steps you can take to help your child beat obesity:

1. Drink pure water instead of sugary juices and soft drinks.
   Kids can easily reduce the amount of sugar they consume if you don’t give them soda and juice due to the high amount of high fructose corn syrup in these drinks.. This step alone can have a dramatic effect on your child’s health and weight, since each can or bottle of soda or sugar-sweetened beverage consumed increases  obesity risk by 60 percent.
2. Learn your child’s Nutritional Type to plan meals accordingly.
   Encourage children to eat healthy, nutritious foods. Focus on fresh whole foods, preferably organic whenever possible, and avoid processed foods.
   Any meal or snack high in carbohydrates or sugars results in a rapid spike in your child’s blood glucose level. To compensate for this spike, the pancreas secretes insulin into their bloodstream, which lowers your child’s sugar level.
   Insulin is responsible for an overweight child’s bulging tummy and fat rolls. High insulin levels also suppress glucagons and growth hormones, which burn fat and sugar and promote muscle development.
3. Limit or eliminate TV time.
   A surprising 90 percent of American children under age 2 and almost 40 percent of babies under 3 months old watch TV regularly. This is because more than half of children have a television in their bedroom. Each week, a typical child watches about 38 hours of commercial media.
   Too much TV not only encourages inactivity, it also exposes children to commercials promoting junk food and fast food. A study published in the The Journal of Law and Economics suggests that banning fast food advertisements in the U.S. could reduce the number of overweight children. Eliminating the tax deductibility of TV advertising would also reduce the incidence of childhood obesity.
4. Lead by example.
   Seek to maintain a healthy body weight for yourself and your spouse. Avoid eating fast food. Cook healthy meals and set regular family mealtimes. Your efforts to keep your child away from fast food and junk food advertisements will amount to nothing if you don’t prepare healthy meals for the family.
   Studies show that families who eat together have better overall nutrition. Ask your children to help in meal preparation. Doing so will increase the likelihood for them   to eat the healthy foods you’re serving.
5. Increase exercise time.
   Exercise is extremely important for all children, Dr. Mercola stresses. An obese or overweight child needs at least 30 minutes of exercise a day. Major studies suggest that it is best for kids to get an hour of exercise daily.
   Start exercising as a family. Take daily walks, gradually increasing the intensity to include jogging. You can also implement a rule that allows your child one minute of video (TV or game) time for every minute of exercise.
6. Address emotional eating.
   Emotions play a huge part in childhood obesity. Emotional eating often thwarts weight loss efforts. If your child has a hard time giving up junk food, this is where Meridian Tapping Technique/Emotional Freedom Technique (MTT/EFT) can help. MTT/EFT can be very useful in addressing not only food cravings, but also the underlying emotional challenges – such as low self-esteem – that can lead your child to eat unhealthy foods or overeat.
7. Make sure your child is getting enough sleep.
   A recent study revealed that the risk of obesity increases when one sleeps less than six-and-a-half hours a night. So be sure your child is going to bed in plenty of time to get enough rest.

Your body has the amazing ability to heal itself, so even if you haven’t been eating right, still on the stick and the bottle, or have less than healthy habits, you can still wipe your slate clean, make the decision to start living healthy and never look back.

This year could be your healthiest ever if you want it to be. Here are Dr. Joseph Mercola’s recommended lifestyle changes that will help you take control of your health this 2010:

1. Learn How to Deal with Stress
   Dr. Mercola notes that the vast majority of patients he has treated who were suffering from serious chronic illnesses have previous emotional stress that contributed to their problems. But it doesn’t take serious trauma to cause these changes, because the sum of the normal, emotional situations that you experience on a daily basis can negatively affect your future health. Mercola recommends meditation, prayer, physical activity and tools like the Meridian Tapping Technique (MTT) to help you maintain emotional and mental balance.
2. Get More Sun
   Studies show that vitamin D, which you can get for free by simply getting enough sun exposure, can help decrease your risk of cancer and many other diseases .Vitamin D receptors can be found in almost all of your cells, from your brain to your bones, so its ability to influence your health is simply amazing, Mercola points out.
3. Eat According to Your Nutritional Type
   Dr. Mercola’s nutrition plan is based on natural whole foods and is designed to help increase your longevity. This involves eliminating, or at the very least, drastically cutting your consumption of grains and sugars and at the same time, eating foods that are right for your unique biochemistry.
4. Exercise
   Don’t kid yourself – you can’t be at your peak condition if you don’t work it and sweat it out. That’s because exercise helps boost your immune system, aids in weight loss and weight management, and helps you sleep better, among other benefits.
5. Keep Your Toxin Load Low
   The world is more toxic nowadays and the number of dangerous chemicals lurking around you continues to increase. That is why you need to become an informed and vigilant consumer, Dr. Mercola advises. This means using non-toxic household cleaners, soaps, personal hygiene products, air fresheners, bug sprays, lawn pesticides, insecticides and other products.
6. Drink More Pure Water
   You can survive without food for weeks but you’d die without water within a few days. Your body needs to be constantly rehydrated as it loses water when you sweat and urinate. Checking the color of your urine will tell you what your water requirement should be. If you notice that your urine has turned deep, dark yellow, it’s likely that you’re not drinking enough water. Installing a quality water filter in your home will provide you pure drinking water and help you remove impurities and toxic disinfection byproducts from your tap water.
7. Get Quality Sleep
   Studies show that disrupted sleep cycles can lead to serious health problems like cancer, coronary heart disease and depression. If you feel rundown or tired all the time, lack of sleep is a big factor because circadian rhythms regulate the energy levels in your cells. Also, the proteins involved with your body clock and metabolism are intrinsically linked and are dependent upon each other.