Is It Wise To Nudge Someone About Their Weight Loss Problems?

weight loss problemsDo you know of a friend or even a family member whose weight is heading in a physically dangerous direction that you felt it is your obligation to help and be brutally honest about it?  Well, it may not be so easy since weight, for the vast majority, is such a sensitive subject. Weight loss problems or issues about weight are often tied to self-esteem and by being too straightforward, it can have a negative impact and may just push the person to fuel feelings of self-hatred, causing for him or her not to break the cycle. So how do you start?

No Matter How Righteous Your Intentions Are, It May Still Be Hurtful

It sucks when friends, family and even strangers feel it is their responsibility to help an obese loved one lose weight, when the idea of it has not even being considered.  No matter how good our intentions are, reality is,  we may not really know what is good for somebody else, much less for ourselves. Putting a little extra care in the words we choose can go a long way. It is best to tell them that we care for them and are just worried about the effect. The caring part should come across much stronger than the potential judgement part. Offer to go with them to a doctor whenever they feel they are ready. Or go with them for a walk daily.

Fat Shaming Won’t Help

There is no point telling the person over and over that he or she is overweight. It is hard enough being fat already. They do not need to be reminded of it daily. Instead recognize their value, their feelings and make them realize the beauty they have inside that is worth respecting until they begin to believe it. What is important is that it does not come through as a rejection of any sort but genuine care.

Stop Nagging About It

Think about how the person would feel.  It can build up resentment even if your advice are undoubtedly for their best interest. Do not harp on it at every opportunity. Let them handle it at their pace in their own way. Nagging creates distance between you and the person you love, which is the last thing you want to do when you’re trying to become an ally and foster change.

Be Encouraging

Never act like you are a diet expert. Never criticize nor judge or tell them about their health issues. Instead be a friend with no annoying questions and just be the person who always believes.

Your family and friends can benefit from all the information and help. The earlier they can make changes to their diet and lifestyle, the better chance of success they will have. This is where MedShape can help you take a smarter, whole approach to living a healthy life. Speak with any of their medical weight loss team today!

Understanding The Negative Stigma of Obesity

Being Overweight Has Consequences

stigma of obesityThe social results of being overweight and obese are serious and widely extensive. Overweight and obese people are frequently targets of prejudice and shame, and they are powerless against negative attitudes in multiple domains of living including places of employment, educational institutions, medical facilities, the mass media, and interpersonal relationships.

The results of being overweight may fall under three categories: physical, mental and social. Research has documented that people who encounter weight stigmatization have higher rates of depression, anxiety, social segregation, and low mental change. Some obese adults may respond to weight shame by disguising and tolerating negative states of mind against them, which may thus expand their weakness to low self-esteem. In an extreme form, disgrace can bring about both inconspicuous and obvious types of discrimination, for example, employment discrimination where a hefty employee is denied a position or advancement because of his or her appearance, notwithstanding being suitably qualified.

Help Is Possible!

Health experts can make a difference by becoming distinctly mindful of their own biases, creating sympathy, and attempting to address the needs and concerns of overweight patients.

  1. Investigate all causes of presenting problems, not simply weight
  2. Recognize that numerous patients have attempted to lose weight more than once
  3. Emphasize behavior changes as opposed to only the number on the scale
  4. Offer solid advice, such as begin an activity program, eat at home, and so on., instead of essentially saying, “You have to lose weight.”
  5. Acknowledge the difficulty of lifestyle changes
  6. Recognize that little weight losses can bring about huge health gains

Losing weight can lower your risk for these diseases:

  • Coronary heart disease
  • High blood pressure
  • Strokes
  • Type 2 diabetes
  • Some cancers
  • Experiencing fertility problems
  • Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
  • In addition to the above, obesity can reduce your life expectancy by up to 9 years and many chronic diseases can be prevented by maintaining a healthy weight.
  • Being overweight can also put extra pressure on joints and limbs, making activity quite difficult and sometimes any movement at all can be painful.
  • Other physical problems caused by obesity are that obese women who become pregnant have a higher risk pregnancy that than of a healthy weight.

At MedShape, we understand your desire on how to lose weight as a priority that is why we can match you with a personalized daily calorie budget and weight loss program.

So it is not all doom and gloom as there is help available if you are overweight or obese. It is a condition that you CAN do something about.


Reaching Pregnancy May Take Longer For Obese Couples Than Non-Obese Partners

Obesity and Pregnancy: Couples in which both are overweight may take about 55% to 59% longer to reach pregnancy, as compared with non-obese partners, as claimed by a review of analysts at the National Institutes of Health.

“A considerable measure of studies on richness and body structure have concentrated on the female partner, yet our discoveries emphasized the significance of including both partners,” said Rajeshwari Sundaram, Ph.D., a senior specialist in the Division of Intramural Population Health Research at NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. “Our outcomes likewise demonstrate that fertility specialists might need to consider couples’ body compositions when guiding patients.”

Researchers also calculated body mass index (BMI) for each participant, categorizing couples with obesity into two subgroups: obese class I (with a BMI from 30 to 34.9) and the most obese group, obese class II (a BMI of 35 or greater).

The researchers compared the average time to achieve a pregnancy among couples in the non- obese group (84 men and 228 women) to that of the couples in the obese class II group (75 men and 69 women).

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