First published June 24
If you are overweight, or obese, you probably blame yourself, right?
Well, maybe you shouldn’t entirely.
Ultimately the principles of maintaining a healthy weight are not altered by facts in this article, but there is some hidden information that might be causing you to be fatter than you’d like to be.
The basic principles of maintaining a healthy weight are:
• Controlling portion size and total calorie intake
• Avoiding processed white carbohydrates and eating the right amount of fat, protein, fresh fruit and vegetable
• Employing an eating pattern known as ‘intermittent fasting’
• Avoiding comfort eating
• Having healthy low calorie snacks at hand for moments of weakness
• Avoiding junk food
• Getting enough aerobic and strength building exercise (although exercise only contributes 10% to weight maintenance, 90% of it is still what you put in your mouth)
• Eating home cooked food, avoid food produced outside the home (it’s hard to know exactly how much carb, oil, and food additives are in bought food)
• Incorporating incidental exercise into your daily routine
• Avoiding fad diets, adopting healthy permanent lifestyle changes that incorporate healthy eating practices.
So now for the additional factors that contribute to unwanted body weight …
Prescription Medications and Over-the-Counter Medications
Did you know some commonly used medications can cause you to have an increased appetite, or can alter your metabolism resulting in extra weight gain?
As a general rule, medications that cause you to slow down, generally slow down your gut and metabolism as well.
Even over the counter medications are offenders. It’s worth asking your doctor whether any medications you are on, or any new medications you are prescribed cause weight gain. If there is a safe alternative it would be worth sticking with that instead.
While some medications only cause mild weight gain it’s still worth noting. I’m not suggesting that you stop taking your prescription medication. DO NOT STOP YOUR PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION, without consulting your doctor – that will just cause you other health problems. You do need to be aware that weight gain can be an unwanted side effects of medications and understand it might be hard for you to control your appetite at times.
Following is a list of medications that contribute to weight gain:
• Benzodiazepines and sleeping pills
• Some antidepressants, antipsychotic and antiepileptic medications
• Chronic pain medications like amitriptyline, gabapentin, pregabalin and opioids
• Reflux medications such as proton pump inhibitors, ranitidine and related antihistamine medications
• Dibenhydramine (Benadryl) and other first generation antihistamines which are used for colds, allergies and insomnia
• Medications used for contraceptives including the oral contraceptive pill, Implanon, Depo provera and other medications containing oestrogens and progesterones
• Medications such as cyproterone acetate used for treating polycystic ovarian syndrome and syndromes of excess androgens
• High blood pressure medications such as beta blockers, ace inhibitors and spirinolactone
• Steroids such as prednisolone used to treat autoimmune disorders and systemic inflammation
• Diabetes medications such as insulin and sulfonylureas
• Highcholesterol medications called statins
• Certain antibiotics have been linked to weight gain
As you can see this is a list of commonly prescribed and consumed medications. If you are taking more than one of these obviously the possibility of weight gain increases.
The Human Microbiome
In the last decade a lot of research has been produced focusing on the incredible diversity of bacteria and microorganisms that inhabit our guts. In fact, if you’ve read a book called 10% Human by Alanna Colleen, then you know that 90% of our body is made up of microorganisms that are non-human!
It’s hard to believe!
This complex microbiome plays a huge role in the development of pathologies such as inflammatory bowl disease, other autoimmune diseases, maintaining a healthy immune system, mental health (90% of serotonin is produced in the gut not in the brain) and our metabolisms.
There is so much material in the medical literature revealing a link between our microbiome and obesity that it is hard to ignore the fact you might be inhabited by bad microorganisms contributing to your weight gain! What to do about this? Well, faecal transplants are still in their infancy in Australia and might not be appealing, or feasible, so ultimately, it still boils down to willpower, self control and portion size, amongst other things. It’s possible to eat foods that alter your gut microbiome which is greatly influenced by diet. For example, there is emerging material in medical research exploring how foods like kefir alter the microbiome.
It’s worth doing some online searching to find out more!
Chronic Stress
If your life is miserable because you aren’t coping due to chronic stress this could be a major contributor to being overweight.
Our body’s stress response consists of many chemicals that are interpreted biologically as ‘stress’. A chronically overactive sympathetic nervous system that has its fight or flight response turned on all the time, has become attuned to producing too much cortisol and other chemicals that contribute to altered metabolism centralised obesity, peripheral muscle wasting, fluid retention and bowel dysfunction.
Your body will hang onto fat, because this is part of the evolutionary stress response.
It is easy to see why chronic stress is so bad for health. If you can re-engineer your life to manage chronic stress better, or eliminate stressors, (which is not always practical) this could also contribute to maintaining a healthier weight, if you are someone who is dealing with chronic stress.
Shift Work
Shift work disturbs our circadian rhythms and our body’s metabolic processes. People who are shift workers are at an increased risk of gaining weight because of altered biological processes. If there is nothing you can do about being a shift worker you need to get smart about introducing some of the basic principles of maintaining a healthy weight into your daily (and nightly) routine.
Illicit Drugs
Drugs such as marijuana can cause significant weight gain.
Abuse of prescription medications such as those already listed can cause weight gain.
Medical Conditions
Hypothyroidism
Metabolic syndrome
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
People with an underlying undiagnosed medical condition need to be especially careful with maintaining a healthy weight. It is essential to recognise and treat the underlying disorder as well as practice all the basic principles of maintaining a healthy weight. If you feel unwell, or not yourself, or recognise any of the symptoms of the above disorders you should see a good doctor.
Our Entire Food Culture
Most of our social activities centre around food in some way, or another. We are surrounded by food everywhere, but most of it is high in calories, white carbohydrates, fats and chemicals that will all contribute to weight gain. From supermarkets, to cafes, fast food outlets to classy restaurants, bars, takeaway shops, corner stores, even health food shops … every time you put your hand out when you’re hungry and want to eat something – it’s very hard to eat the right thing, or eat in a way that can maintain a healthy weight.
Even our drinking culture is responsible for loading people with too many extra unnecessary calories. Until we change our food culture and the kind of food that’s available, or unless we are dedicated enough to develop incredible will power, the battle to maintain a healthy weight will be that much harder!
Failure of Some Medically-Managed Weight loss Interventions
Some forms of medically-managed weight loss are not as successful as you might think. Pharmaceutical intervention with medications belonging to the substituted amphetamine class, do not always produce successful weight loss in the long term.
Dangerous side effects make this medication not suitable for many patients.
Bariatric surgery has its place in the management of obesity, but is not without significant risks.
Finally, the following diagram is taken from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners online publication at http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/2013/august/obesity/ in an article written by Mariee Grima and John B Dixon. It compares varies weight loss strategies. The results are self-explanatory. I thoroughly recommend reading this article, if you want more detailed information on weight loss.
Useful Reading
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27255389
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3957428/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3539293/
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-789X.2012.01021.x/abstract;jsessionid=7396D07C42DB2B84642D35158B132AF9.d04t04
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-789X.2008.00518.x/full
http://www.cochrane.org/CD003641/ENDOC_surgery-for-obesity
https://theconversation.com/the-gp-diet-the-missing-ingredient-in-better-health-foreveryone-36252
http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/2013/august/obesity/
References available upon request
*Dr Anonymous is known to the Editor
• Mike Bolan in Comments: … Good to read such an informative and relevant article …
Barney Rubble
June 23, 2017 at 11:42
When will people stop blaming others and look in the mirror. Prescription meds are the least of fat peoples worries. They should be more concerned with the sugar they are taking in and lack of exercise.
Mike Bolan
June 23, 2017 at 17:26
Good to read such an informative and relevant article …
One dominant aspect of our ‘culture’ is to encourage people to rely on others (because they want our money). One of these reliances is health, and many leave their health up to doctors and others. This is a bad idea because no-one knows more about what’s happening in your world than you. So starting the process of freeing oneself up from reliances on other people and groups is an excellent start to becoming more free.
Geoffrey Swan
June 23, 2017 at 18:42
#1 Mr Rubble we meet again… I just referred to you in my latest comment on the ‘Two Year Reprieve for Threatened Forests’ article, though I forgot to mention that when the going gets tough commentators like Barney Rubble fade away to another day… and never answer the questions posed back to them.
I wrote about intelligence and ill-informed comments, and a waste of space… and then up pops Barney with an incredible sense of importance about a subject in which he assumes great knowledge. Spending too much time walking in the shadow of Fred I guess.
Did you actually read and comprehend the article. Did you not bother to click on any of the useful links before you opened your gob to preach to people how to lose weight. Did you not understand anything about the gut bacteria Microbiome.
Or did you just look at the picture and the heading and had a thought bubble moment. Do yourself a favour Barney.. have a good and thorough read of this well informed article.. and then come back and thank the good Doctor for his well written piece.
Doc Holliday
June 23, 2017 at 21:34
It’s a fascinating subject and not as simple as some think. That’s why four children in the same family, served the same food, can have very different shapes.
You can be set up for fat very early thanks to exposure to BPA in plastics etc. Even the mother’s exposure to BPA is implicated. Breast-fed kids tend to be thinner than bottle fed.
We can only guess at what effects less researched chemicals have on our metabolism.
As for prescription medicines, one must take great care.
A popular cholesterol-lowering statin gave me painful muscle damage, and heart problems. It took a long time to recover. I told the doctor more than once my body was falling apart and she didn’t have a clue, despite a blood test that should have sounded alarm bells. She was more interested in achieving a low cholesterol level.
I agree with Mike Bolan. Take a doctor’s advice with a grain of salt, and use Dr Google! Everything you need to know is out there, and medical research is progressing faster than a lot of GPs …
Alison Bleaney
June 23, 2017 at 21:48
And add endocrine disrupters, such as BPA, phalates, flame retardants and many pesticides to the list of chemicals that can alter your metabolism.. metabolic benders…. and cause obesity and chronic disease.
Robin Charles Halton
June 24, 2017 at 00:42
#3 Swan, what got into you, trying to be an over controlling freak eh!
On the whole I agree with #1 Barney Rubble, as much of the basis for the obesity epidemic as we know it, is sugar laced and lack of bodily exercise, a reasonable comment from a regular!
You are a bit unreasonable have a rest from it all instead!
Alison Bleaney
June 24, 2017 at 12:09
To follow on from #5 Endocrine Disruptors: Should we be Afraid?
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/881377?nlid=115816_1982&src=WNL_mdplsnew#vp_1
MarkH
June 24, 2017 at 14:15
#5 ‘EFSA’s comprehensive re-evaluation of bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and toxicity concludes that BPA poses no health risk to consumers of any age group (including unborn children, infants and adolescents) at current exposure levels. Exposure from the diet or from a combination of sources (diet, dust, cosmetics and thermal paper) is considerably under the safe level (the “tolerable daily intake†or TDI).’
Geoffrey Swan
June 24, 2017 at 14:19
#6 OK Robin.. I will pull my head in.
I of course do not disagree with sugar and exercise, it is well published. But I do find it most frustrating when a learned person publishes information about the other side of obesity that has not been so well published, and then a renowned TT commentator attempts to diminish the well written and researched article with his/her own personal prejudice on this subject.
If it is as simple as sugar, exercise and a large mirror, then why the millions of dollars on research into this human world problem?
philll Parsons
June 24, 2017 at 23:30
It all seems so simple to some.
However it is not as simple as the beanpole lecturing the butterball about how to be a beanpole.
I thought I was ‘fat’ when growing up and now I find myself looking like my father [perhaps with my mothers feet] whose nick names were ‘match’ for his legs and ‘pearshape’ for the body. He won those 2 when he was young.
He walked a lot, tended the vegetables on Saturday and sailed skiffs on Sunday.
Genetics is a determinant in body shape. Obsessing about being a Greek God will not change the DNA you inherit.
Another reason for weight gain is you happiness. Eating to make you happy or ‘comfortable’. You may need to seek help to change this if you want but as the saying goes fat and happy.
Then we enter a strange new ground where the relationship between the individual and society interfaces.
Is your excess weight costing the community and do you care about that cost because it impacts on others through health costs, aged care costs, fuel costs if you travel. The realm of personal philosophy.
Doc Holliday
June 25, 2017 at 00:13
Re #8 … many studies show a link between obesity and BPA.
BPA was developed as an artificial estrogen before being used as an industrial chemical. It likely interacts with the other endocrine disruptors.
With endocrine disruptors all around us and in our food is it any wonder men’s sperm counts are declining … http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/scientists-warn-of-sperm-count-crisis-8382449.html
“Don’t eat sugar” is helpful advice, but very simplistic.
spikey
June 25, 2017 at 01:33
#6-#9
Pot Kettle Black
In case you are new to the acquaintance of the good mr Halton, I’d suggest you ignore allegations and inferences in his contributions. He’s been part of a gang of …, with a well structured, predictable modus operandi, including over controlling freakiness and blaming others for their own atrocious behaviour. They are all blatant apologists for tasincs crap, harassing any that dare to question it. Throwing the odd red herring of information out, as the boss sees fit.
Thankfully most have pulled their heads in, a bit. As they is rumbled.
likely good mates with mr rubble, eh halton?
They use a variety of tactics to try and shame people into not speaking the truth as they see it, in my opinion. Try to ‘get under ya skin’ as trev the troll so knowledgeably put it.
At least he didn’t threaten your safe return from the southern forests.
(edited)
max
June 25, 2017 at 02:56
At the moment there is a big push against coconut oil by doctors why? In 1975 i worked with people from the Ellice islands, the smartest and most perfect built specimens of humanity that I have ever met. Why am i mention this, their staple diet was coconut and fish.
The coconut and all its products have been used and revered for the last 4000 years as food and medicine in Sanskit documents dating from as early as 1500 BC.
But the American Heart Association (AHA) keeps trotting out the same message from the 1970’s: Saturated fat, found in coconut oil, is the villain when it comes to cardiovascular disease. This latest statement was released as an AHA Presidential Advisory.
Can we blame fake news on Corporate America. It is the corporations who control the lobbyist groups like the American Heart Association. The AHA is a lobbyist group. They collect nearly 1 billion dollars every year to push the agenda of Big Pharma and Big Agriculture.
Eggs were bad for you, all fat should be removed from meat and now there has been an about turn, they are good for you. They both have saturated fats but coconut oil that has saturated fat is bad. I hate to be a skeptic, but who can you trust?
Robin Charles Halton
June 25, 2017 at 13:14
#13 Hey spike, pull your head in too!
…
(edited for threats …)
Geoffrey Swan
June 25, 2017 at 16:07
#15 Oh dear… and I simply started out by saying to Barney Rubble to read and digest what the good Doctor has written before he shoots his mouth off yet again (in my experience so far).. and don’t forget to read the suggested links in this excellent article.
Thanks #13 Spikey for the heads up.
Barney Rubble
June 26, 2017 at 00:20
#16 … Sad….
Back to topic, I was getting a coffee this afternoon in Kingston when a young person I guess to be around 15 walked into the shop and must have spent $20 on sweet and sugary food. I admit I was shocked as this individual which I would describe as grossly obese spent so much on junk food. I wonder when responsible serving of alcohol extends to everyday food & drink. When does this country wake up and realise we are poisoning our children, creating a generation of fat people who think that it’s okay to be grossly overweight. I can only imagine what products are on sale in school canteens. It’s time the govt got tough on this and started educating children to go home and educate the parents. It starts with more money given to schools and school starting 45mins earlier, kids arrive at school, have a healthy govt supplied breakfast (many I am told skip breakfast now days after spending all night on their devices) then commence class. Mid morning a 20min light aerobic exercise and a second one later in the day. School canteens have the sugar removed and replaced with healthy alternatives. The cost now will be far less (money and health wise) in a decade. Children need to be educated to identify the poison their busy parents feed them and encourage healthy dinners at home.
Something needs to change now before it’s too late, what govt has the courage to start something off?
(anonymous aggressive observation deleted: http://oldtt.pixelkey.biz/index.php/pages/legalbits)
Robin Charles Halton
June 26, 2017 at 00:47
#16 Oh dear…Ed has completely cotton wooled Spike!
I am an honest bloke I really did not want Spike to miss a visit to the Great Southern Forests! Bad luck Spike, you will have to make do with the fantastic Internet forest panoramas instead!
I am now moving on to the non Spike content of the article!
I was staying in Melbourne recently and was rather impressed by the number of Asian eateries to choose from, very reasonably priced freshly cooked food which tasted good, no indigestion after eating and supposedly should be a healthy choice however there remains the use of the cooking oils being commonly used by these establishments for which I believe is cotton seed oil or rice oil.
At home I use nothing other than Australian Cobram EV Olive oil for almost everything that I cook, even occasionally for potato chips cooked twice with carefully controlled temperatures as EVOO has a lower burning point than the more common cooking oils.
My wife who regularly cooks superb Indian dishs at the family’s request uses coconut oil, coconut milk using fresh spices, the best dishs are derived from lamb so I spend a lot of my time boning $10/kg legs of lamb to be used in curries.
I notice that Africans use palm oil regularly for cooking, maybe that is a tradition but I suspect it is not good for ones health.
#14 As Max points out with what he believes are the health value of coconut oil, I too hate to be skeptic but who can you trust as the medical profession and the corporations tell us differing stories when it suits their needs!
Unfortunately for many of the Pacific Islanders their fish is canned and exported and probably unaffordable, who instead consume great quantities of cheaper imported canned corned beef from I believe from Argentina , one can imagine the health problems they are now facing.
Robin Charles Halton
June 26, 2017 at 12:48
Even in Melbourne CBD, smaller Mc Donalds and Subway( which has its own unique stench as one passes by at street level) are everywhere!
Why, when the city has so much to offer in the way of Asian and hipster eateries.
Food wise at the offerings of fresh fish, meat and vegetables (apart from expensive apples) Melbourne has far more to offer at its Victoria Market at better prices and variety than Tasmania can ever offer!
FREE trams crossing the CBD regularly adds to the success of the city being a user friendly place despite the masses arriving in transit at Flinders St Station daily.
Hobart is a dead, confusing slow public transport and expensive hole of a place to eat out when compared to the way Melbourne as a well planned city attracts people generally in a nice sort of a way for all sorts, as there is plenty to see and to do all the time.
We visited the Van Gogh Exibition which happened to be 2-3 minutes by chance from our reasonably priced accommodation at Southbank.
Visitors should pre book their tickets as the waiting period for entry can be tedious otherwise the exibition itself is excellent.
I notice TASMAG was closed yesterday Monday, typical!
The one drawback I observed with the Melbourne CBD is the encroachment of more skyscrapers does limit sun, what sun there is at this time of the year from entering the streets below.
Never the less strong bright sun was evident mid to late pm penetrating street levels especially along alignments of Bourke and Elizabeth St.
I may be wandering from the crux of the article but without Mona, Hobart despite its scenic location beside mountain and sea still has a lot to be desired, could be lacking vision as Mona’s “make believe offering” cannot provide for the beauty of visiting the country side forests and coastlines many are inaccessible to visitors.
Within Tasmania the food experience is somewhat of an irony, unpredictable, stop at any location it is more likely you will be overcharged for average or a below average eating experience. Its a game of chance!
Enjoy your home cooking its predictable, healty and enjoyable!
spikey
June 26, 2017 at 14:16
#15 burn baby burn
Satisfaction
aha ha ha
came in the chain reaction
I hope your edited threats, were a reiteration of your original, but actually naming the alleged bereaved southern forester and gang threatening my welfare.
Otherwise
I’m sure you realise
I take threats very very seriously
from credible sources
As I do genuine apologies
from any old tasinc
‘honest’
rotten tomato
‘dead orse’
I await yours, mate
not long enough to look like a dickhead though
with relish
Eat wisely kiddies, grow and harvest and share your own organic food, and go explore this beautiful island…best medicine in the world.
Geoffrey Swan
June 26, 2017 at 14:50
#18 Mr Rubble… I do not disagree with you. We do indeed have a sugar epidemic and various scientific articles put it up there with tobacco and alcohol.
It is addictive. Sugar has dominated our food from the days when Ronald Reagan supported the sugar industry back in 1983 and when he declared Ketchup as being a vegetable. Sugar is in almost all processed and take away foods. Food you would not imagine would have or need sugar. Go into Woolies and read the labels of just about any food product apart from fresh produce. Even versions of bottled water have been tainted with sugar.
But again.. it is NOT just about sugar as this article is attempting to educate us. And it is not as simplistic as you have proposed. And we must not discount the fact we have health clubs, the weight loss industry, big Pharma and our governments who are all reliant on jobs and huge profits because we now have an obese nation.
“I can only imagine what products are on sale in school canteens.â€
Please however do desist from making comments as above. Ill-informed comments do not assist in this or any debate. You do indeed need to visit some school canteens. You will not find sweet sugary drinks or sweets. These days you will find slices of fresh fruit and healthy food options.
It is a far greater problem than a couple of 20 min aerobics sessions will fix. And I do challenge you to find a suitable breakfast food that our kids will eat that is devoid of any sugar.
Barney Rubble
June 27, 2017 at 02:29
#23, sorry but do some research. My son still attends high school and the canteen you describe is fictional.
Unfornutely the editor elected to edit my last post where I didn’t dance around in my assessment of your character. Perhaps I should take a leaf from your book Geoffrey and do it in a convoluted fashion.
Geoffrey Swan
June 27, 2017 at 13:51
#24 I bow to your hands on knowledge Barney. My information came from my wife who does charity work and her experience is based on primary schools in Kingston, Cygnet and Geeveston – not the High Schools in Kingston or Huonville.
Perhaps time for you to put pen to paper Mr Rubble and call for change. I was of the view the government had already entered this debate and great change has happened. Maybe that was only on the mainland.
I don’t understand your cryptic last paragraph?
max
June 27, 2017 at 18:59
PROMINENT Launceston surgeon Gary Fettke has been banned from giving nutritional advice to his patients or the public for the rest of his medical career.
He was recently notified by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency that he was not to speak about nutrition while he remained a medical practitioner.
Dr Fettke is a strong advocate for a low carb, high fat diet as a means to combat diabetes and ill-health.
AHPRA told Dr Fettke “there is nothing associated with your medical training or education that makes you an expert or authority in the field of nutrition, diabetes or cancerâ€.
It told him the ban was regardless of whether his views on the benefits of the low carbohydrate, high-fat lifestyle become accepted best medical practice in the future.
“This does not change the fundamental fact that you are not suitably trained or educated as a medical practitioner to be providing advice or recommendations on this topic as a medical practitioner,†the authority said.
Former Tasmanian cricketer and politician Tony Benneworth has credited Dr Fettke with saving his life with the recommended low-carb diet.
If a prominent surgeon who deals every day with the results of poor diet cannot advise his patients, then who can? My doctor a general practitioner gives me advice on diet, advice that over the years has been totally reversed, not by him but by so-called new findings. Just who can you trust with your health?
Geoffrey Swan
June 28, 2017 at 20:37
#28 Don’t disagree Russell.
But I still challenge anyone to offer a breakfast option (not just for kids) that does not involve sugars in some form…porridge maybe with no helping of brown sugar on top, eggs on toast maybe but surely not every day, fresh fruit budget and time of year permitting… maybe we should take a leaf out of an Asian style fried rice breakfast?
spikey
June 29, 2017 at 14:12
#29 raw oats, or porridge is the best fuel i’ve found. I usually eat both the traditional scottish way, with milk and a sprinkle of salt.
From trial and error on a crayboat I can tell you it beats weetbix or toast or fry up for sustained energy release hands down.
‘bircher’ style mueslis come a close second
Geoffrey Swan
June 29, 2017 at 20:00
#31 Fortunately Russell.. we know longer have the problem of feeding kids before school. Our daughters are now 28+ and it is now their issue…
I do feel for this generation of mothers and fathers with all the various issues of mobile phones, internet, BFF, trolls, sending nude pics on the phone and of course SUGAR…and more. Makes parenting in the 80’s seem like a bit of a breeze.
We make our own bread every second day. Porridge straight up with milk works for us. And yes Spikey, hard to beat a good homemade Bircher muesli.
We kept pigs for a number of years. Used to buy 500KG bags of barley and soak a couple of buckets overnight. Sometimes cooked up in a copper and fed it warm. Pigs loved it and we were told by friends our pork was some of the best they had tasted… (plus they had bins of apples and cherries!!)