TheWellnessLiving Health Tips

The goal of a behavioral management of obesity is to train an individual with the skills that will allow him/her to promote a healthy weight level. The concept involves a number of strategies which are conducted in a way to help obese patients in making gradual but steady changes that can be incorporated into their everyday habits in a realistic way.

The effectivity of behavioral programs in curing obesity is promising. Results from several studies demonstrate an 8% to 10% reduction in initial weight during the first 6 months to 1 year of treatment. The long-term effectivity of these treatments are more difficult to assess and still remains unclear. It appears that many individuals tend to regain weight lost over time but the causes are still obscure and it is unknown whether they are related to the method.

In spite of the uncertainty, an effective behavioral approach will constitute a very god option as it lacks many of the drawbacks from other weightloss methods. Efforts such as the Diabetes Prevention Program and the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) trials are starting to provide strong data on the long-term results of intensive behavioral management interventions.