Are you tired of trying diets or weight loss plans that never seem to work out? You’re definitely not alone. Weight loss is an issue millions of Americans have struggled with for years, attempting well-known processes only to fall victim to frustration, low self-esteem and unreliable results. It doesn’t help that the mainstream market is over saturated with flighty promises and shady business practices, making it difficult to tell what works and what doesn’t work. Thankfully, medical weight loss programs are quickly rising to the forefront as trustworthy options that will help you achieve the weight you’ve always wanted — staffed with medical professionals with years of experience, they circumvent short-term weight loss in favor of long-lasting results that will improve your quality of life.
Did You Know?
The art of weight loss has evolved over the decades in response to a rapidly changing American landscape. Since the 1970’s the number of fast food restaurants has actually doubled, widely considered a major contribution to the development of obesity. Other factors include, but are not limited to, stress, lifestyle choices, age and certain illnesses. Over 60% of dieters prefer to use grocery store food, while 5% prefer meal replacements such as shakes and smoothies. Yet another 6% actively seek out diet company food or frozen food products.
Obesity
To be overweight is to have excess pounds beyond what is normal for your body type. Obesity, on the other hand, is when being overweight reaches critical levels — doctors generally see a person weighing 20% or more of what is considered a normal weight to qualify for obesity. Studies have shown more than one in six children and adolescents between the ages of six and 19 to be obese, compared to one in three adults. Another one in 20 adults are believed to have extreme obesity.
Diets
There are a million different diets out there, but which one actually works? The average American dieter will make as many as four weight loss attempts every year, a testament to the frustrating nature of weight loss development. Less than 5% of adults will participate in at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day, with only one in three adults receiving the recommended amount of physical activity on a weekly basis. While some food products are crafted with diets in mind, it’s important not to deprive your body of the nutrients it needs to thrive. Diets should be a change, first and foremost, with the goal of gradually shaving off excess weight and cultivating both physical and emotional health.
Health
There are multiple health benefits to maintaining a more healthy weight and, likewise, multiple health risks if this is not mediated. For example, it’s been found that losing weight at a rate of one pound per week reduces the chance of gallstones. Likewise, losing anywhere from 5% to 10% of your weight can reduce your risk of developing heart disease or heart failure down the road. A Harvard study found that obesity increases the risk of diabetes by a whopping 20 times alongside increased blood pressure, heart disease and stroke — the direct relationship between BMI and certain diseases only continues to be noted in academic circles, with the higher the BMI the more likely a debilitating condition will follow.
Choosing A Medical Weight Loss Program
If you’re having a hard time sticking with a diet plan or simply aren’t seeing any meaningful results, you may want to seek out the help of a medical weight loss program. They eschew the less reliable results of diet shakes and quick promises in favor of a lifestyle change you can count on. Researchers have found you need to burn around 3,500 calories to lose a single pound of fat, while losing one pound per week is considered a safe rate of weight loss under the combination of a diet change and routine exercise. In more extreme cases surgery can be sought out to eliminate excess fat and bring about solid change. Consider contacting your local medical weight loss program today and see if they can’t help make your goals a reality.