One of the main reasons Americans have such a large problem with obesity is because they move through life so quickly, said Leslie Lytle, a professor with the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. This causes stress and a lot of times people eat when they’re stressed.

In what was a chance for people to ask Lytle health-related questions or to catch up on the AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project, about 25 people gathered at the Marion Ross Performing Arts Center Thursday for an informal question-and-answer session.

Lytle cleared misunderstandings about food, consumption and servings, to name a few of the topics.

Here are some of the highlights from the evening:

Question: Does increased variety increase consumption?

Answer: True. Lytle said this is true for any kind of food, whether it’s fruit, vegetables, cookies or chips.

That’s why if you want to increase your consumption of fruits or vegetables, you should have a variety of fruits and vegetables on hand.

That way when you get hungry, you’ll have fruits and vegetables ready to eat, Lytle said.

Question: Meals should be eaten in complete silence to avoid overeating.

Answer: True. Lytle said if there are things distracting a person when he or she eats, it will be much easier to overeat. People eat more unconsciously when they’re talking to a friend.

The same is true for if there’s a television in the room. The distraction prevents you from knowing when you’re full.

Question: Is a calorie from a beverage the same as a calorie from a food?

Answer: Maybe. Lytle said the brain signal that tells people they are full, actually doesn’t work as well with beverages. Because of this, if someone had a liquid-only diet, they’d end up having more calories than they would if they had a solid food diet.

The average adult female needs 1,800 calories to maintain her weight, while an adult male needs between 2,400 and 2,600 calories.

Question: Are all foods and beverages containing sugar are unhealthy foods.

Answer: False. Naturally occurring sugars can be found in items such as fruits, which are not unhealthy, she pointed out.

The main thing regarding sugars that people need to be aware of is high fructose corn syrup, Lytle said. This comes in a lot of processed foods, and it just adds more calories.

She pointed out the difference between 100 percent fruit juice and fruit drinks. She recommended that if people want to give their children a fruit juice they should go with something like Juicy Juice, which is 100 percent fruit juice and has no added sugar

Question: Fidgeting will help increase weight loss.

Answer: True. Lytle said any kind of movement people do burns more calories. Even standing versus sitting burns more calories, she said.

While this question was asked not to encourage people to fidget, it was asked to encourage people to engage in small bits of extra activity.

“Those small bits make a big difference,” she said.

That could include getting rid of electric appliances in the kitchen and doing it manually, going for a walk and getting rid of the remote, to name a few.

People need to slow down and be aware of their stresses, or a lot of times they will eat more.

Question: Avoiding the See Food diet may help one lose weight.

Answer: Lytle said very often people eat by what they see. If people see a bowl of fruit out on the counter, there’s a higher likelihood they will eat fruit. Same is true for cookies, chips and cereals.

She encouraged people to put things such as their chips, cereals and cookies in a cupboard.

“If we just walk in our kitchens and see food, we will eat it,” she said.

Question: When should a person eat their calories for the day?

Answer: “The one thing we know for sure is people who eat something for breakfast have healthier weights,” Lytle said. And eating a lot before you go to bed is not a good idea, she said.

But people need to consider their own bodies.

If people want to have three meals and three small snacks, that’s fine. Likewise, if people just want to have three square meals and no snacks, that’s fine, too, she said.

Question: What is a serving?

Answer: A serving is much less than people probably think, Lytle said.

A serving equals one cup of lettuce, 1/2 cup of cooked vegetables or canned fruit, and one slice of regular Wonderbread bread. For meat, a serving is just 3 oz., which is the size of a deck of cards.

People who live longer lives, have smaller portions of meat, she noted.

At the end of the night, Lytle emphasized that health is more than just physical health. It also involves mental health, emotional health and spiritual health, too.