The latest diet advice: don't hang around with fat people. - What nonsense!

The latest diet advice: don't hang around with fat people - Independent.

Extract:

"Nicholas Christakis, professor of healthcare policy at Harvard Medical School and co-author of the study, said: "What appears to be happening is that a person becoming obese most likely causes a change of norms about what counts as an appropriate body size.

"People come to think that it is OK to be bigger since those around them are bigger, and this sensibility spreads."

James Fowler, an expert in social networks at the University of California and a co-author, said: "This is about people's ideas about their bodies and their health. Consciously or unconsciously, people look to others when they are deciding how much to eat, how much to exercise and how much weight is too much."

"Social effects are much stronger than people realise. There has been intensive effort to find genes responsible for obesity and physical processes responsible, but what our paper suggests is that you really should spend time looking at the social side as well.""

This 'research' is nonsense!

Obesity is not caused by overeating; it is caused by fluid retention. It is easily and rapidly lessened by reducing sodium intake. Calorie counting and advice about increasing exercise and reducing fat intake to reduce obesity are ineffective, counter-productive and often damaging. - See the article in the British Medical Journal of November 2003 for actual research on what happens when this advice is followed! - Over 800 obese adults were put on energy deficit diets, given diet sheets and plenty of instruction and help from trained staff, and apparently, visited fortnightly for a year, at the end of which they had GAINED weight! This mirrors the real experience of obese people, viz. - dieting makes you fat.

It is commonly accepted now, except by the 'experts', that less than 5% of dieters actually lose weight, and most gain weight as a result of dieting. - Even the ones who manage to lose weight do not usually improve their health. - See report in The Guardian of Monday, June 27th 2005. It is about a huge research study of nearly 3000 people over a period of 18 years. The study found that overweight people who diet to reach a healthier weight are more likely to die young than those who remain fat. It also found that dieting causes physiological damage that in the long term can outweigh the benefits of the weight loss.

Contributing to the increase in obesity we have the widespread prescribing of steroids like prednisolone and prednisone, HRT, tricyclic antidepressants like amitriptyline, and other drugs which cause fluid retention and therefore weight gain, and the failure of doctors to adhere to the protocols connected with the prescribing and monitoring of steroids. But pre-eminent, in my opinion, is the catastrophically damaging calorie-reduction advice that continues to be given despite such a wealth of evidence that it is bad advice.

Lose weight by eating less salt! Go on! - Try it! - You will feel so much better!
How to Lose weight!

Read my Mensa article on Obesity and the Salt Connection

See Sodium in foods and Associated health conditions

I can be contacted via my website if you need my further help. My help is free...