h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've been at a series of health lectures over the last few months at work. Today we had a couple of really top-line speakers - the Chief Medical Officer for Royal Mail and the President of the Faculty of Public Health. Both were fascinating.

I learned that overeating by 60 calories per day (that's about an egg a day) equals a stone a decade weight gain - and it's very difficult to get off.

The Royal Mail chap was an expert on absence management and one of his stories was a real beaut. It was about two women, both aged 45 who had hysterectomies by the same surgeon. One returned to work 14 days later, having worked out a plan of how she could do it and the other returned 9 months later, then retired 6 months after that. What was the difference? Oh yes, the first was in slightly worse health and a bit fatter.

That is a beaut!! So determination overcame other problems, and a little bit of extra weight gave more stamina to recover.

I have always said you need a little extra weight to cope with recovering from ill health or operations, when you might lose weight. After all , if you have no weight to lose you could get sicker.

60 calories a day ?!?!? Goodness, that explains it then!!

Websailor

Good grief! 60 calories a day isn't much

I have a constant niggle with the BI, who is 85 and insists she's 'overweight', when in fact she's slightly on the thin side (and very vain). Agreeing with you Websailor - she needs a little flesh on her bones to combat illness. It's a great reason to stay 'curvy'

Websailor The early returner went back to work against medical advice, but was so determined to return that she'd worked out a plan to return; who could help her do the parts of the job she couldn't immediately do. She had a rural post round and had status in her community - a position to uphold. I hadn't considered that the bit of extra weight might have helped her recover. The doctor thought it was a negative, because of her slightly less fitness level. Determination and commitment conquers all! I love the analysis that flesh on the bones helps combat illness.

The late returner worked in a large relatively impersonal office. It was also about the quality of her relationships and the level of support she had to return.

The doctor said that because of the stark difference between them, they'd done some follow up work and used them as a case study. Marvellous example of the difference that attitude can make.

Fb 'Good grief! 60 calories a day isn't much' I wonder what the BI eats? My mum is definitely on the thin side, but as I've previously said, she's not visited a doctor in all the time she's been on the Isle of Wight (25 years) and she's now 84. She does eat extremely healthily though and used to go rambling frequently - I'm not sure she does it as often these days, since my dad had his heart problems.