The Human-Supernova Epidemic

"Thou seest I have more flesh than another man, and therefore more frailty." - William Shakespeare (King Henry IV)

"Obesity is a condition which proves that the Lord does not help those who help themselves and help themselves and help themselves." - Unknown

When a star reaches the red giant phase of its life, and the iron group of elements are made within the central core, it has reached a very critical stage in its existence. Critical because certain factors will now determine whether the star will survive or explode.
A mass limit for the star exists, and it is around 6 times the solar mass. If a star weighs in below this limit, it will have a long, peaceful and safe future. It will gradually eject small parts of its outer layer. With time, if it manages to blow off enough mass, it will survive for a long time as a white dwarf. If the mass of the white dwarf happens to be greater than the Chandrasekhar limit of 1.4 solar masses, it could end up in the more compact form of a neutron star.
However, if a star is unfortunate enough to be over the critical mass period when it is in the red giant stage - i.e. greater than 6 solar masses - a very traumatic and violent future awaits it; it will explode and become a supernova.
And so it is with us humans. As we get to middle age, our doctors advise us to keep our weight down. The size of a person's waist is an indication of his/her risk of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, etc. - not to mention the psychological effects that come with being overweight. Obesity has been associated with tens of thousands of deaths each year. It has been attributed to our sedentary lifestyles. Binge eating and "comfort food" eating is also blamed; in neurological terms, drug addiction and binge eating are not dissimilar. Then there is the genetic component - some people may just be more predisposed to putting on weight. When you think about it, you never see a 10kg canary, so there must be something in the DNA that regulates size and weight. But genetic factors cannot explain the "obesity epidemic" that we are seeing. The rapidity with which waistlines in the western world are expanding is unprecedented. It has become more common to see children suffering from "old people's diseases" such as hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Make no mistake, this is an epidemic and this generation of young people will be the first in Australian history to die younger than their parents' generation. It's easy enough to blame fast-food outlets, and we can bemoan our busy lifestyles that don't allow us the time to exercise and to cook healthy meals. I believe that it is indeed our busy lifestyles that are the root cause of this obesity epidemic. People forsake their health and well being in order to chase the almighty dollar. Mothers are too busy working and no longer have the time to make their children's lunches; they give their kids $10 lunch-money, which will most likely be spent on junk food, and then blame fast-food outlets for selling unhealthy food to their precious children. People are too busy cook for themselves, so they entrust their diets to the restaurant around the corner, or to the Pizza Hut delivery boy. After a hard day's work, people are too tired to exercise, so they flop on the couch and watch the next gripping installment of "Big Brother" or "Dancing with the Stars".
We can learn from our celestial friends. Our Sun, the star that gives us life, will never end its life as a supernova because it is too small and lean. If we don't want to end up as a "human supernova", we must do everything we can to keep our weight down, and the only way to do this is to live a healthy lifestyle. Forget about things like diet pills, stomach stapling, weight-watchers programs, crash-dieting and all the drivel that gets printed in those mindless glossy women's magazines. The solution is simple: eat less, eat healthy, eat often, and make exercise a regular part of your life. No time or energy to cook or exercise? Then simplify your life. Your life, and your children's lives, depend on it.‎