Questions & Answers
1. What are the factors contributing to the increase in obesity in children and young adults?
The two greatest influences are likely: 1) a striking reduction in regular physical activity among children and adolescents and 2) a tremendous increase in the amount of high fat, high sugar, and low dietary fiber foods eaten by families today. Children and young adults have been done a tremendous disservice by a reduction in the amount of recess and physical education activities at school. When combined with increasing time spent playing video games and fewer available community playgrounds, children today, particularly in urban environments, are facing an obesity crisis secondary to their lack of exercise. Combine lack of exercise with increasing portion sizes for each meal and meals that contain high portions of fat (e.g. non-lean meats or fried foods) and low portions of dietary fiber (e.g. fresh fruits and vegetables) and you get the results we’re beginning to see. Obesity rates are skyrocketing among our youth.
2. What are the pros and cons of following one of the popular diets, such as the South Beach diet?
The pros are that most of these diets have been shown in recent clinical trials to be very effective in leading to more rapid weight loss. The cons, however, are that they tend to be extremely difficult to follow long-term, there is little or no published data that establishes their long-term safety, and many people end up gaining weight back because they can’t practically sustain the diets long-term. Studies have repeatedly shown that people who lose weight and maintain it over the long haul do so by regularly exercising.
3. Are there medications that can effectively assist in weight loss?
There are several doctor-prescribed medications that have been shown to effectively help high-risk obese patients lose weight. These medications work by either suppressing patients’ appetites or by blocking absorption of fats when patients digest food. The problem is that these are not magic pills, weight loss is not sustained over the long haul, and the medications have a lot of cardiovascular side effects as well as bloating and diarrhea. Most weight loss medications sold over the counter and advertised on television are not FDA approved, have never been shown to be effective, and many are under federal investigation for making false claims in commercials about their effectiveness.
4. When people are trying to lose weight, does that mean that they can no longer eat desserts or other sweets?
No, people can absolutely still treat themselves to desserts; however, strict portion control is absolutely necessary. For example, eat only half of that Snickers bar when you get the craving once a week and don’t skip your workout
5. If a person has a family history of obesity, is he destined to become obese regardless of lifestyle?
No. A few studies have shown that children born to obese parents are more likely to be obese, but this is not strictly genetic. Medical studies consistently show that all patients, regardless of family history, benefit from regular exercise, modifying their diet and, most importantly, consistently monitoring their weight. There is no reason to believe that you are destined to be obese if the rest of your family is obese. You just have to work harder. |
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Leroi S. Hicks, M.D., M.P.H.
Associate Physician
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
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