Treatment:

CHANGING YOUR LIFESTYLE

An active lifestyle and regular exercise, along with healthy eating, is the best way to lose weight. Even modest weight loss can improve your health. You will need a lot of support from family and friends.

When dieting, your main goal should be to learn new, healthy ways of eating and make them a part of your daily routine.

Many people find it hard to change their eating habits and behaviors. You may have practiced some habits for so long that you may not even know they are unhealthy, or you do them without thinking. You need to be motivated to make lifestyle changes. Make the behavior change part of your life over the long term. Know that it takes time to make and keep a change in your lifestyle.

Work with your health care provider and dietitian to set realistic, safe daily calorie counts that help you lose weight while staying healthy. Remember that if you drop pounds slowly and steadily, you are more likely to keep them off. Your dietitian can teach you about:

• Healthy food choices
• Healthy snacks
• Sweetened drinks
• Portion sizes
• How to read the nutrition labels
• New ways to prepare food

Extreme diets (fewer than 1,100 calories per day) are not thought to be safe or to work very well. These types of diets often do not contain enough vitamins and minerals. Most people who lose weight this way return to overeating and become obese again.

Learn new ways to manage stress, rather than snacking. Examples may be meditation, yoga, or exercise. If you are depressed or stressed a lot, talk to your health care provider.

MEDICATIONS AND HERBAL REMEDIES

You may see ads for supplements and herbal remedies that claim they will help you lose weight. Many of these claims are not true, and some of these supplements can have serious side effects. Talk to your health care provider before using them.

Several prescription weight loss drugs are available. Most people lose between 5 and 10 pounds by taking these drugs. Most people also regain the weight when they stop taking the medicine, unless they have made lasting lifestyle changes, such as exercising and cutting unhealthy foods from their diet.

SURGERY

Bariatric surgery can reduce the risk of disease in people with severe obesity. These risks include:

• Arthritis
• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Sleep apnea
• Some cancers
• Stroke

Surgery may help people who have been very obese for 5 years or more and have not lost weight from other treatments, such as diet, exercise, or medicine.

Surgery alone is not the answer for weight loss. It can train you to eat less, but you still have to do much of the work. You must be committed to diet and exercise after the surgery. Talk to your doctor to learn if this is a good option for you.

The two most common weight-loss surgeries are:

• Laparoscopic gastric banding
• Gastric bypass surgery

You may have complications from these surgeries. One problem some people have is throwing up if they eat more than their new small stomach can hold.

Support Groups:

Many people find it easier to follow a diet and exercise program if they join a group of people with similar problems.

See: Eating disorders - support group

Complications:

Obesity is a major health threat. The extra weight puts added stress on every part of your body.

People with obesity are at risk for these health problems:

• Bone and joint problems -- extra weight puts strain on the bones and joints. This can lead toosteoarthritis, a disease that causes joint pain and stiffness.
• Gallstones and liver problems
• Heart attack from coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, and stroke
• High blood cholesterol and triglycerides (dislipidemia or high blood fats)
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• High blood sugar (glucose) or diabetes
• Stopping breathing during sleep (sleep apnea). This can cause daytime fatigue or sleepiness, poor attention, and problems at work.