A profound study
was just published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Profound
in that it exposes some myths that are entrenched in our food-thinking.
“In my view,” said Dr. Jeffrey M. Friedman, a Rockefeller
University obesity researcher, “there is more misinformation pretending to be
fact in this field than in any other I can think of. (NY TIMES, Many
Weight-Loss Ideas Are Myth, Not Science, Study Finds. 01/31/2013). ”
We operate using a “reasonableness bias” – If something
sounds reasonable we buy into it. It
does seem reasonable that if you weigh yourself every day it might help control
your weight. Right? Wrong!
Personally the scale confounds me.
I don't touch it. If my non-stretch
jeans feel a little tight, I watch myself.
It might also seem reasonable that if people urge you on it can help you
lose weight. Not so. The worst that you can do for someone
battling weight is to nag. I have a friend
who watches me weight like she'd panning for gold. When six months of prednisone (notorious for putting
on weight) bloated me up some fifteen pounds, up to a size 10, (I'm 5' 7"),
I stopped seeing her. Frustration with
weight is another issue that is cloudy.
It might seem that if you get frustrated you will drop off
the weight loss wagon. Again, that is
not necessarily true. Some people thrive,
are motivated when they are frustrated.
It heightens the importance of the goal.
It might seem reasonable that setting small goals might help
more than setting large goals. Not necessarily
true. Some individuals like the challenge
of life-changing weight loss. That's one
of the appeals of WLS.
The article
points out that Weight Loss Surgery may be the best option for some of us.
In my opinion the greatest problem we face is
self-loathing. It gets in the way of
rationality, deflates self-worth and sets us up for failure because we think we
doomed. Enjoy the article link below!
Dr. Dawn Hopper.
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