Search Results for "will losing weight make you fat"
Orlistat Measures Up To Low-Carb Diet For Weight Loss
Calories are the currency of weight management and any weight loss diet has to offer fewer calories than the body needs. However, the means by which this caloric deficit is best achieved remains an area of continuing debate. While the proponents of ketogenic low-carb diets cite the greater ease of lowering weight, proponents of low-fat diets extol the putatively greater benefits on lipid profiles. Nevertheless, previous studies have clearly shown that in the end both strategies lead to the same amount of weight loss, even if the low-carb approach may initially seem more effective. This observation is once again confirmed in a new study by William Yancy Jr and colleagues from the Veterans Affairs Medical Centre, Durham, NC, published in the latest issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine. In this study 146 overweight or obese outpatients (mean age 52 yrs) were randomized to either a ketogenic low-cab diet (initially <20 g of carbohydrate daily) or the lipase inhibitor orlistat (120 mg TID) combined with a low-fat diet (<30% energy from fat, 500-1000 kcal/d deficit) over 48 weeks. Of the initial participants, 79% completed the low-carb arm whereas 88% completed the orlistat plus low-fat diet. Weight loss was similar between the groups, with participants losing around 9% of their initial body weight on either diet. While the low-carb diet appeared to have a more beneficial impact on blood pressure, the orlistat low-fat combination appeared to have a greater beneficial impact on LDL-cholesterol. However, in the end it is probably fair to say that both approaches led to more or less similar improvements in body weight and related risk measures, showing once again that this is probably not so much about which diet is more effective as it is about which diet works best for you. Thus, in clinical practice it is likely that some patients will find it easier and preferable to severely restrict their carb intake, while others may find it easier to reduce their calories from fat by taking orlistat and reducing the fat in their diet. The bottom line in both case is that the benefits will only persist as long as the participants stay on their respective diets or treatments. This makes it even more critical that patients chose the strategy that works best for them and that they are most likely to stay on in the long term. Remember, neither diet is likely to “cure”… Read More »
Make War on Obesity – Not on Obese People!
Yesterday I blogged about how many folks with extra pounds do not see their excess weight as a health risk. Readers of these pages will also recall that I am the first to acknowledge how difficult it is to lose weight and keep it off or that successful weight management starts with stopping the gain and not with losing weight. So yesterday, a regular reader pointed me to an article in the Globe and Mail by Edith Honan on the fat-acceptance movement which lobbies against weight discrimination and promotes the idea of being as healthy as possible at any weight rather than pursuing unrealistic (and according to some fat-acceptance advocates, unnecessary) weight-loss targets. As Kate Harding, one of the most prolific fat-acceptance advocates is quoted, “Being fat doesn’t make me lazy or stupid or morally suspect”. While many of the issues and arguments of the fat-acceptance folks are very real and sensible, I also have no doubt that when excess weight is, or threatens to become, a health problem, there are also very real benefits to effective weight management. In fact I have very rarely met patients, who after successful weight management would voluntarily go back to regaining their lost weight (that many do, is besides the point). So while I am definitely not a militant weight-loss advocate, I am certainly an advocate for sensible obesity-management. I fully support the notion that weight discrimination is very real and unfair (e.g. the airline seat issue) and very much know that for many, successful weight management simply means not getting any heavier. None of this, however, makes me an advocate for weight gain and I certainly would not promote the notion that excessive weight gain is OK as long as it makes you happy. I simply see too many patients in my clinic for whom the mental, mechanical, and metabolic health problems directly related to their excess weight are very real. so, while I am all for fighting weight discrimination, I am also all for increasing access to evidence-based obesity treatments for those in whom excess weight is destroying their health and quality of life. I fully agree with Yale University’s Rebecca Puhl, who in the article is quoted as saying, “We do need to fight obesity, but not obese people”. AMS Edmonton, Alberta p.s. Hat Tip to regular reader Ann Hastings for pointing me to the G&M article
Fat Free Media?
A couple of days ago I was interviewed by Judith Timson, a columnist for the Globe & Mail, who wanted to know if all the talk about obesity in the media was actually helping anyone. You can read her take on this here. So Judith is going to go on an Obesity Media Diet – i.e. she is not going to read any more media reports on obesity. While that may or may not help Judith, she does raise a couple of important points in her column: 1) Bombarding the public daily with supposedly new findings on obesity is probably not helpful – only adds to the noise, confusion and fatigue (a la Yellow/Amber/Red Alert! In the end who cares?) 2) Let’s make sure that we don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater – the problem is not simply excess weight and not everyone with a couple of extra pounds is “obese” or needs “obesity treatment”. (You need more than a scale or tape measure to diagnose obesity). 3) Let’s not underestimate the negative effect that “healthy-weight” messaging may have on eating and exercise behaviour – if you are looking for “cosmetic” weight loss – you need help with your self esteem and body image – not help with losing weight! Great points – very much part of a healthy discussion. I of course will continue reading new stuff on obesity – after all, what could be more interesting? AMS
Year-End Roundup, August 2011
As 2011 approaches its end, I thought I’d take the opportunity to remind readers of some of my favourite posts of the past year: Will Losing Weight Make You Fat? Is It Time To Abandon The Notion of Personal Choice in Dietary Counseling? Health Is Not Measured in Pounds Will Losing Weight Make You Sick? The Edmonton Obesity Staging System is Not a License to do Nothing Happy Holidays! AMS You can now also follow me and post your comments on Facebook
Weekend Roundup, August 12, 2011
As not everyone may have a chance during the week to read every post, here’s a roundup of last week’s posts: Will Losing Weight Make You Fat? Is It Time To Abandon The Notion of Personal Choice In Dietary Counseling? Bariatric Surgery Reduces Response to Food Cues? Gastric Bypass Reduces Appetite for Fat? Stretching Beats Walking to Prevent Complictions of Pregnancy? Have a great Sunday! (or what’s left of it) AMS Edmonton, Alberta You can now also follow me and post your comments on Facebook
