Traditional weight loss methods include low calorie diets between 800 to 1,500 calories a day and regular exercise.
An alternative method sometimes considered for bringing about significant short term weight loss in moderately to severely obese people is the very low calorie diets (VLCD).
What is Very Low-Calorie Diets?
Adverse Effects Associated With Very Low Calorie Diets.
Many patients on Very Low Calorie Diets for 4 to 16 weeks report minor side effects such as fatigue, constipation, nausea, and diarrhea, but these conditions usually improve within a few weeks and rarely prevent patients from completing the program.
The most common serious side effect seen with VLCDs is gallstone formation.
Gallstones, which often develop in obese people, anyway, especially women, are even more common during rapid weight loss.
Some research indicates that rapid weight loss appears to decrease the gallbladder's ability to contract bile.
But, it is unclear whether VLCDs directly cause gallstones or whether the amount of weight loss is responsible for the formation of gallstones.
For most obese individuals, obesity is a long term condition that requires a lifetime of attention even after a formal weight loss treatment ends.
Although Very Low Calorie Diets are efficient for short term weight loss, they are no more effective than other dietary treatments in the long term maintenance of reduced weight.
Therefore, obese patients should be encouraged to commit to a long term treatment program that includes permanent lifestyle changes of healthier eating, regular physical activity, and an improved outlook about food because without a long-term commitment, their body weights will drift back up the scale.
Very Low Calorie Diets are commercially prepared formulas of 800 calories or less that replace all usual food intake.
Very Low Calorie Diets are not the same as over the counter meal replacements, which are meant to be substituted for one or two meals a day.
Very Low Calorie Diets when used under proper medical supervision, effectively produce significant short term weight loss in moderately to severely obese patients.
Who Should Use Very Low Calorie Diets?
Very Low Calorie Diets are generally safe when used under proper medical supervision in patients with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30.
BMI is a mathematical formula that takes into account both a person's height and weight.
To calculate BMI, a person's weight in kilograms is divided by height in meters squared.
Use of Very Low Calorie Diets in patients with a BMI of 27 to 30 should be reserved for those who have medical complications resulting from their obesity.
Very Low Calorie Diets are not recommended for pregnant women or breastfeeding women.
Very Low Calorie Diets are not appropriate for children or adolescents, except in specialized treatment programs.
Very little information exists regarding the usage of Very Low Calorie Diets in older individuals.
Because individuals over 50 already experience normal depletion of lean body mass, use of Very Low Calorie Diets may not be warranted.
Additionally, persons over 50 may not tolerate the side effects associated with Very Low Calorie Diets because of preexisting medical conditions or need for other medications.
Therefore, a physician, on a case by case basis, must evaluate increased risks and potential benefits of drastic weight loss in older individuals.
Additionally, people with significant medical problems or who are on medications may be able to use Very Low Calorie Diets, but this too must be determined on an individual basis by a physician.
Health Benefits Associated With a VLCD.
Very Low Calorie Diets may allow a severely to moderately obese patient to lose about 3 to 5 pounds per week, for an average total weight loss of 44 pounds over 12 weeks.
Such a weight loss can improve obesity related medical conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
Combining Very Low Calorie Diets with behavioral therapy and exercise may also increase weight loss and may slow weight regain. However, Very Low Calorie Diets are no more effective than more modest dietary restrictions in the long-term maintenance of reduced weight.
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