The Weight Issue

Review: "a great book if you are sceptical about weight loss diets, confused by the competing claims of different approaches, and not sure of the way forward. It's a positive and supportive read that puts weight loss in perspective..."C Michael, ex editor of Slimming World Magazine

Product Description: If you want to know the medical evidence for the cause of weight problems, and which will be the most successful diet or exercise regime for you personally, then this book holds the answers.

If you are overweight, it is not your fault but is due to your inherited genes combined with other factors. The tendency to eat automatically, "comfort" eating and the changes in modern food availability, can all contribute to a weight problem. Most people are unaware that weight is inherited to the same extent that height is inherited. People who lose weight, and successfully keep the weight off for a period of years, do so by following an individual plan.

If having extra weight is not your fault, then why worry about it? Unless you are particularly vain, you will want to know whether there is likely to be an effect on your health. Being overweight or mildly obese is not likely to increase the chance of early death, and the association of weight with illness is put into perspective in Chapter 2. It has been found that larger people are often treated disrespectfully by the medical profession (they are the most common targets for derogatory humour from doctors) and you will also find strategies for dealing with this sort of discrimination in this book.

You will want to know whether diets "work" and the medical evidence for their effectiveness. Chapter 3 looks at various diets, including the popular "intermittent fasting" diet, diets which vary proportions of fat, protein and carbohydrates, glycemic index diet, very low calorie diets (such as followed by Oprah years ago), commercial diets, meal replacements (such as Slim Fast), pre-packaged meals (such as Jenny Craig) and diet websites. Most diets cause weight loss in the first six months and this is often followed by partial or total regain. Long term success hinges on finding something that works for the individual, and this book aims to help the reader to find a regime that will work for them personally.

It is a myth that exercise always helps with weight loss. In fact, some of us will lose weight with exercise, but others compensate by eating more. Chapter 4 will help you to decide which category you fall into. Men tend to lose weight with exercise and women get less relative benefit.

Preventing weight regain is more difficult than losing it in the first place. Chapter 5 discusses the evidence that some strategies to avoid weight regain are much more successful than others. The sort of eating regime you have, the frequency of weight monitoring, and even the way in which you think about food, can all influence the likelihood of regaining weight.

If you have a significant weight problem (and particularly if you are female) it is likely that you have come across prejudice associated with your size. There is discrimination in many areas - including employment, the media and transport. Studies show that those most likely to be prejudiced are conservative, racist men who are in favour of capital punishment and afraid of gaining weight themselves. Chapter 6 gives practical advice about how to cope with the stigma that can go with being overweight, and presents the evidence that the prejudice is unfounded.

The final chapter will help you to work out the best way to manage your own weight problem. If you do have a weight problem, then the information in this book can help you to make an individual plan. This includes all aspect of weight issues, including whether you have an uncontrolled, emotional or restrained attitude to eating. Managing a weight problem on an individual basis is the way forward.