Better health without dieting

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Behavior change and self acceptance work better to improve the health of obese women than dieting, according to a study.
It's often assumed that obese people must lose weight to improve their health. For many, however, this is difficult to do and they get discouraged when they lose weight and put it back on. Now researchers at the University of California, Davis, reveal you can still get health benefits without dieting.

They introduced a program called Health at Every Size which focuses upon paying attention to hunger cues, rather than calorie counting. In a group of obese women, some were assigned to the program and others went on a diet. All were counseled about healthy eating and exercise. The study lasted two years with blood pressure and cholesterol being monitored throughout. At the end, the non-dieters had maintained the same weight while the dieters lost five per cent of their weight but put it back again. The non-dieters cholesterol levels went down significantly.

Both groups experienced a decrease in blood pressure during the first year but only the non-dieters sustained it through the second year. The non-dieters almost quadrupled their physical activity while the dieters had an initial increase then fell back to their initial levels by the end of the study. Finally, the non-dieters had significant improvement in depression and increased self-esteem. While they were losing weight, the dieters noted similar improvements but when the weight came back, they returned to their original levels of depression and low self-esteem. The findings suggest that concentrating on healthy eating and exercise can benefit health, even if you do not lose weight.

Source
Journal of the American Dietetic Association June 2005

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