FAT LOSS: BEHAVIOURAL INFLUENCES
Summary of main points.
• The psychological understanding of obesity has moved through several phases in recent times.
• Behaviour modification techniques were initially used widely to change habits.
• Cognitive approaches have been used to change thought patterns.
• Other approaches have examined the symbolic nature of fat.
• The task of a fat loss counsellor is complex and involves an understanding of a range of different causalities and interventions.
• Fat loss leaders should develop a close referral link with a qualified psychologist.
The simplistic view of obesity was that if a person ate too much, he or she got fat. The solution was: eat less and you’ll lose fat. This is the ‘diet as medicine’ approach. In reality, the issue is much more complex. Some people couldn’t eat less simply as a result of being told; some people could obey the injunction, but could not keep up the practice and some people experienced almost a panic reaction in the face of trying to control their eating. Studying the problem some researchers reported: ‘. . . it was our feeling that our patients perceived weight reduction, not as a happy end to a disabling disorder, but rather as a threat to the integrity of functioning’. Other research reported not only an increase in depression in overweight people undergoing diets, but also that the same symptoms—increased emotionality, irritability and anxiety—were seen in normal weight people subject to severe food restriction.
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