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Section Links
Optimal Weight
- diets
- exercise plans
- anti-obesity medications
Dropping 50 calories per day will lose you 5 pounds/year.
A look at social networks of over 12, 000 people has shown obesity is heavily influenced by the weight of one's friends, a 2007 study in the New England Journal of Medicine has shown.
Practical Guide for Indentification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obese Adults
Ideally all people who are overweight or obese should see a dietitian.
Check out:
- eating habits
- social eating
- comfort eating
- food content
- fibre
- pop
Don't drink your calories, our nutrition doc told us.
Diets
The Lyon Diet Heart study showed low cholesterol and saturated fats, along with fruits, vegetable, and fibre, resulted in increased survival without cardiac events.
Menu Planner - NIH
Activity level
Anti-Obesity Medications
Anti-obesity drugs are designed to:
- inhibit absorption
- reduce appetite
- increase satiety
- increase metabolic rate
include:
- sibutramine (Meridia) increases satiety and metabolic rate
- blocks serotonin and NA reuptake
- oristat (xenical) a pancreatic lipase inhibitor, blocks maybe 30% in the SI
- approved for long term use
- can cause diarrhea
- can decrease absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (do't mix drugs and supplements!)
- rimonabant - cannabionoid receptor blocker
bariatric surgery is also an option, and perhaps one worth pursuing in people with BMI over 40, or with comorbidiites such as diabetes.
it can
- cure or dramatically improve type II diabetes in the vast majority of people (MacDonald KG, et al. J Gastrointest Surg. 1997;1:213-220)
- decrease 5 year risk of death by 89% (Christou NV, et al. Ann Surg. 2004;240:416-424)
- reduce health care costs