More and more Floridians are struggling with their weight, a concern that often (but not always) has a negative impact on mood, self-esteem, joint health, sleep, arterial health, and inflammation – and can even affect social aspects like job promotions, friendships, and more intimate relationships.
If left to their own devices, most Americans will experience slow, steady weight gain throughout their lives, and, sadly, an increasing number of children also suffer from excess weight. An entire branch of medicine has emerged to deal with this issue: Obesity Medicine, a specialty focusing on what big data tells us is proven to yield positive results.
I became interested in this field after reading articles that indicated weight is not a simple matter of ‘calories in equals calories out,’ but instead is a result of multiple hormones, genetic factors, nutritional family history (i.e., what your grandparents’ diet was like), neonatal life, other medication usage, and numerous other factors. In other words: It’s not strictly the overweight person’s fault.
I embraced the Four Pillars of Obesity Treatment method of breaking down treatment for people with obesity.
Nutrition: There is no one-size-fits-all diet. The goal is for people to feel better, live longer, and reduce health problems. Evidence suggests eating mostly vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and some nuts, seeds, and lean proteins. Various approaches have been studied and shown to be healthy, including intermittent fasting, Mediterranean diet, Keto diet, vegetarian diet, Paleo, DASH diet, South Beach, Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, and low-calorie diets. There’s a lot of variety because people are all pretty different. In general, we ask that people only make changes they’d be comfortable sticking with ‘forever.’ One great resource is MyFitnessPal, a free app that can easily help you get a grip on what you’re eating. Just keeping a regular food log improves chances of permanent weight loss by twofold!
Exercise: For general health, it’s recommended that most Americans work their way up to 150 minutes per week of moderate intensity exercise. For permanent weight loss and maintenance, we see that closer to 200-260 minutes per week leads to success. It’s important to remember that you cannot out-exercise a bad diet. Activities that are great for most people include walking, tennis, pickleball, jogging, running, swimming, yoga, Pilates, bicycling, tai chi, weightlifting, resistance training, all sports, golf, and gardening/yard work/cleaning. These can be done in intervals as brief as 10 minutes throughout the day and still yield benefits.
Behavioral Changes: Sleep is the most important item in this category. We’re shooting for 7+ hours of sleep per night for permanent weight loss and maintenance. If you snore, have a discussion with your doctor about getting screened for sleep apnea, which could lead to using a CPAP machine at night. According to a European Respiratory Journal article in 2019, people who were treated for sleep apnea by using their device for 7 or more hours had a 33% greater weight loss. It’s important to address other behaviors like binge eating, food rewards, overuse of alcohol, food addictions, etc. Being mindful of your intake when eating and setting up healthy home-cooked family meals has also shown again and again to promote healthy weight. It’s also important to have social engagement with people who can help promote healthy choices.
Medication: We’ve all heard about how a group of medications – Ozempic, Mounjaro, and so many others – are producing amazing weight loss. It’s a field of pharmacy that’s rapidly growing. While these options can be relatively expensive, they can be very helpful for certain patients. It’s important to individualize medical care, so having a good relationship with your primary care doctor is extremely important. They know you best. Surgical care is also extremely effective, permanent, and, in the long run more cost-effective than medication alone. Just as with medications, surgery comes with many pros and many cons, so weighing these decisions with your primary care doctor is also recommended. There’s no time like the present to start heading toward or maintaining a healthy weight. It’s at the root of your body’s health. And remember the Four Pillars when you’re making your New Year’s resolutions this year: Nutrition, Exercise, Behavior, and Medication.
Sourced By: Healthwise
Reviewed By: Capital Health Plan Physicians Group
Posted: January 4, 2024