New Research Shows a Diet and Exercise Mentality are Making Us Sick
By Christine Anne Sutherland Over the last twenty years weve seen an avalanche of quality research that has demonstrated the link between weight loss dieting and eating disorders. In fact studies show that the number 1 risk factor for developing an eating disorder is going on a diet or having a mother who has dieted. Surprisingly, what both government and private organisations have tried to do to combat our scary obesity rates is to vigorously propagandise the diet and exercise message, but if we ever needed yet more proof that this approach is not only doomed to failure, but is actually making us even sicker, we need look no further than the recent James Cook University study which showed that rates of eating disorders have more than doubled, and that the number of people engaged in unsafe diets (that is, diets that are nutritionally dangerous) has increased by nearly 6 times. Further, this study found that the prevalence rates for eating disorders (including use of weight loss dieting) was associated with peoples increased awareness of the diet and exercise message. We have got to STOP thinking in terms of diet and exercise programs. If we continue to berate people with the diet and exercise message, and scare them with health warnings, we will continue to see rising rates of deaths and illness due to eating disorders. And a lot of those affected are our children. Roughly 50% of children who develop eating disorders dies. Here in Australia that represents some 1500 children who die from eating disorders annually. There is only one healthy, permanent way to lose weight, and that’s not to “go on a program” but to properly examine ones lifestyle and identify small but manageable changes which can be made at any one time. Too much change, or too-rapid change, is a recipe for disaster. What we can and should be focused on in our public health messages is increased happiness and satisfaction that come from a balanced and healthy life. We should be focusing on the sheer joy of being involved in fun physical activity, should be developing community walking groups, should show commitment to making more time available to busy people so that they can take time out for leisure. Food Addictions and Compulsions Can Be Eliminated. A large part of why people often make poor food choices is that they have become psychologically addicted to certain foods. These foods are familiar and comfortable, and the person feels good when they think about them. The pleasure which is experienced when thinking about these foods is not something we were born with, and as babies, most people would have rejected them just as even a hungry baby will reject sour milk. So this pleasure is not innate, but is learned, and takes the form of an association or conditioned response in relation to the food. Luckily for us this type of conditioned response has proven particularly simple and easy to eliminate permanently, using modern change techniques like BMSA (Brief, Multi-Sensory Activation). Taking Action Toward a Healthier Society. If we really do care about rising rates of obesity and eating disorders, there is certainly now something practical and effective that can be done. Instead of diets or exercise regimes, our focus must be on gradual progress toward a healthier, happier and more satisfying life. This is what programs such as WeightChoice (www.weightchoice.com.au) are about. If you have friends who are dieting, or going on an exercise program they don’t really enjoy, make sure they know that nearly 100% of people who do that end up putting even more weight back on. And the risk to children who observe them is even greater. These are the children most at risk of developing eating disorders, and most at risk of becoming ill or even dying. It can’t get much more serious than that. Christine Sutherland is a Perth clinical researcher, and a clinician specialising in weight loss. She is the author of Beat Cravings, Shift Fat and the founder of WeightChoice.Com.Au. You can read more on Christine’s views on how to achieve permanent, easy weight loss on http://www.weightchoice.com.au Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christine_Anne_Sutherland http://EzineArticles.com/?New-Research-Shows-a-Diet-and-Exercise-Mentality-are-Making-Us-Sick&id=546034 buy orlistat buy xenical online generic xenical where to buy xenical
