Medical Weight Loss Programs : Are They Right For Me?
by Marcus Langley
Medical weight loss programs may or may not be commercially owned.
Services are provided in a health-care setting,such as a hospital, by
licensed health professionals, such as physicians, nurses, dietitians,
and/or psychologists. In some clinical programs, a health professional
works alone; in others, a group of health professionals works together
to provide services to patients. Clinical programs may offer you services
such as nutrition education, medical care, behavior change therapy, and
physical activity.
Clinical programs may also use other weight-loss methods, such as very
low-calorie diets, prescription weight-loss drugs, and surgery, to treat
severely overweight patients. These treatments are described below:
Very low-calorie diets (VLCDs) are commercially prepared formulas that
provide no more than 800 calories per day and replace all usual food
intake. VLCDs help individuals lose weight more quickly than is usually
possible with low-calorie diets. Because VLCDs can cause side effects,
obesity experts recommend that only people who are severely overweight
use these diets, and only with proper medical care.
Prescribed weight-loss drugs should be used only if you are likely to
have health problems caused by your weight. You should not use drugs
to improve your appearance. Natural weight-loss supplements, when combined
with a healthy diet and regular physical activity, may help some obese
adults lose weight. There is a wide variety of prescription weight-loss
drugs on the market, however, before these medications can be widely
recommended, more research is needed to determine their long-term safety
and effectiveness.
You may consider gastric surgery to promote weight loss if you are more
than 80 pounds overweight. The surgery, sometimes called bariatric surgery,
causes weight loss in one of two ways: 1) by limiting the amount of food
your stomach can hold by closing off or removing parts of the stomach
or 2) by causing food to be poorly digested by bypassing the stomach
or part of the intestines. After surgery, patients usually lose weight
quickly. While some weight is often regained, many patients are successful
in keeping off most of their weight. In some cases, the surgery can lead
to problems that require follow-up operations. Surgery may also reduce
the amount of vitamins and minerals in your body and cause gallstones.
If you are considering a weight-loss program and you have medical problems,
or if you are severely overweight, programs run by trained health professionals
may be best for you. These professionals are more likely to monitor you
for possible side effects of weight loss and to talk to your doctor when
necessary.
Marcus Langley is a contributing writer for eHealthAdvice.net, an editorial
about various health issues. This edition's article is -Weight Loss Dangers
Exposed- by Lars Ericsson.
Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com