....."Dieting is so prevalent, and puritanical attitudes about eating are so common, that people have gotten some very restrictive ideas about what is normal and natural in eating".¹

Dieting has become a way of life for many individuals:

• 15-40% of all Americans are trying to lose weight at any given time.^2,3
• Of adolescents, 44% of females & 15% of males are actively trying to lose weight.⁴
• In 1996, 46 million people were dieting.⁵
• Most Americans have dieted to lose weight & the most common dieters are:^6,7
• Caucasian
• People with more than 12 years of education
• Women
• Those with higher socioeconomic status
• Young adults
• In response to culturally induced pressure, girls as young as eight have been known to diet.⁸
• Alarmingly, many of the Americans who are currently trying to lose weight are not large or (at risk) by any standard.⁹

What Methods Are Used To Attempt Weight Loss?

• Counting and restricting calories persists as a primary weight loss approach. Common strategies employed to restrict intake include attempts at:^1,2,3
• Low calorie (1,000-1,500 Kcal/day) & very low calorie diets (600-800 Kcal/day)
• Counting fat grams and/or calories ingested
• Buying/eating only low-calorie/low-fat foods
• Eating severely limited types of foods
• Replacing foods with liquids/powders
• Attempts to enhance these strategies include the use of:
• Regimented exercise plans
• Individual counseling and/or informal or commercial support groups
• Addition of macronutrient substances
• Altered proportions of fat, protein, & carbohydrates in the diet
• Intake of bizarre combinations of foods to enhance metabolism
• Attempting to succeed at weight loss may even involve the use of much riskier methods like:
• Using diet pills
• Fasting for more than 24 hours
• Surgical procedures i.e. liposuction or gastroplasty
• Vomiting after eating and/or ingesting laxatives (the only methods not sanctioned in any form by at least some health care providers)
 .....
Lesson B discusses how health care providers perpetuate the use of old paradigm approaches.

Lesson C discusses the traditional implementation of this approach.

Lesson D exposes the dangerous interventions that have been endorsed by the medical profession over the years.

Unit III then explains the problems inherent in the old paradigm and Unit IV provides the rationale/methodology for the New Paradigm, Health At Every Size Approach.

References
 

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© Fall 2001