I remember the first time I heard the word “diet.” I was about 7 years old. We had just had lunch with my mother and my grandparents at a local sandwich shop. After the meal, my brother and I were treated to “The Big Chipper” -- a humongous chocolate chip cookie. I remember sitting in the back seat of my grandparent’s Chevy Surburban happily enjoying my cookie, as it was pretty rare for us to go out to eat in those days, let alone get dessert. I was chewing away, swinging my feet to the music when all of a sudden I became aware that the adults were talking about me. My mother turned in her seat to look at me and said: “You are going on a diet!” That day was my introduction into the diet and weight loss culture. Over the years, I would engage in what could be defined as: “a temporary and highly restrictive program of eating for the purpose of losing weight” over and over again. Dieting is more prevalent now than ever before. I hear people all of the time saying how they “need to diet,” or “have to lose weight.” Last year some 45 million Americans went on a diet, and spent a whopping $33 billion on weight loss products. At any point in time, more than a third of Americans are on a diet with the specific purpose of losing weight.
Here is the problem. Diets do not work. Research on weight loss programs have found that 95% of people who lose weight by dieting regain that weight, and possibly more, within 1 to 5 years (Grodstein, 1996). In fact, dieting for the purpose of weight loss is often associated with weight gain, primarily due to an increase in binge eating behavior (Field, et al., 2003). Dieting gives rise to the “diet-binge” cycle, or “yo-yo dieting.” Temporarily restricting your calorie intake can be accomplished for short periods of time, until your body starts telling you that it needs more nutrients in order to function effectively. Headaches, a growling stomach, fatigue, and obsessively thinking about food result in a state of deprivation that results in eating larger amounts of food. The diet mentality dictates that foods are categorized into “good” or “healthy” foods and “bad” or “unhealthy” foods. Temporarily eating restricted amounts of “good” foods, inevitably leads to craving and ultimately eating “bad” foods. To make matters worse, our bodies adjust to restrictive dieting. The body fights against starvation by slowing down your metabolism, which makes it harder to lose weight. Perhaps that is why research has found that teen girls who diet are at a staggering 324% greater risk for obesity than those who do not diet. The diet industry capitalizes on this cycle, as short lived feelings of accomplishment due to losing weight give way to failing to uphold restrictive dieting over time. Dieting culture dictates your failure is because of you, not because diets don’t work. You don’t have enough willpower, you didn’t follow the program correctly, or you didn’t exercise as recommended. The path always leads back to buying more dieting products and fueling the $72 billion diet industry. Not only is restrictive dieting not effective, it can be dangerous. Some diets that allow for only certain food groups can result in serious nutritional deficits that can lead to serious health issues. Chronic dieting can also result in a very unhealthy relationship with food that can lead to serious eating disorders. Research has found that 35% of "normal dieters" progress to pathological dieting (i.e., disordered eating patterns), and of those, 20-25% progress to partial or full diagnostic criteria for eating disorders. Having said all of this, obesity is a growing health issue. In 2017, just over 42% of adults in America were considered obese. Obesity is linked with serious health issues such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers. So if dieting isn’t the solution to the problem of obesity, then what is? There are effective steps you can take to be healthier. First, know that your weight is only one indicator of health and wellness. While doctors commonly use height and weight charts to determine a healthy weight range, these charts were actually created by insurance company actuaries, not doctors attempting to define healthy weight ranges. Some doctors have begun using Body Mass Index or BMI to determine healthy weight ranges. However for people with significant muscle mass, such as athletes, the BMI tends to categorize a 6 foot linebacker in the NFL as obese. It is important to think of weight as only one point of data in looking at your overall picture of health. Before making any changes to your lifestyle, start by having a complete physical with blood work to evaluate your overall health and work with your doctor to address any concerns. You also want to start with writing down what you eat and drink, along with the time of day, and any notes about the circumstances surrounding your intake, such as where you are or what is happening around you. After observing and writing down your intake for a week, you will then have data that could be helpful in making any changes. Just the process of writing down your intake for a week is effective in decreasing mindless eating. There’s a big difference in sitting down in front of the t.v. with a bag of chips, and then realizing you have eaten the whole bag vs. getting a portion of chips and putting them in a bowl or plate. Think about where you are eating as well, and try to limit your intake to sitting at a table rather than sitting in front of the t.v. or standing at the refrigerator. Eliminate any unnecessary trips to or through the kitchen, and avoid eating while making or preparing food. Develop a meal plan for yourself and your family. Skipping meals or eating at irregular intervals can lead to being excessively hungry, which makes you more vulnerable to eating high calorie, less nutritious fast food due to the convenience factor. Making sure you plan for three meals and two snacks a day can help fuel your body and keep you energized throughout the day. Use your meal plan to develop a shopping list, and spend one day a week (my day is Sunday) putting together meals for the rest of the week. When you are putting together a meal plan, it's really important not to deprive yourself of things you enjoy. A healthy lifestyle is balanced and doesn’t mean completely cutting out foods like chocolate, bread, or ice cream. The key is portion control. If you are craving chocolate, you can have a serving of it for your snacks. It is vitally important that you eat food that you enjoy. Finally, maybe you’ve noticed that most diet products advise you to use them along with a “sensible diet and exercise.” If you stick to these fundamentals you don’t really need what the diet industry is selling you. Moving your body is essential in achieving physical and mental health and well-being. It is especially important for those of us that sit a lot at work and at home, as a sedentary lifestyle puts you at risk for developing serious health issues. Find something you like to do that is active and slowly build up the amount of time you spend doing it. Invest the time and energy it takes to reap effective, long term health benefits for you and your family.
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AuthorDr. Kim Guarascio, PhD is a New York State Licensed Psychologist who has been providing treatment for teens, young adults and adults for nearly 20 years in Central New York. The focus of her professional career has been centered on the empowerment of women, particularly those who have experienced trauma and abuse. Archives
November 2023
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