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Key points
- Obesity can lead to the development of heart disease, stroke, certain types of cancer, diabetes, depression and sleep problems.
- Emphasis needs to be put on controlling the diet because it’s so easy to overeat.
- Since stress leads to overeating, hypnotic stress-reduction techniques can be helpful.
- It can be useful for patients to imagine a future in which they are healthier and feel good about themselves.
More than 70 percent of adults in the United States are overweight (with a Body Mass Index of greater than 25), and more than half of these are considered obese (with a BMI of greater than 30). Among children, the prevalence of obesity is about half of that of adults, which is viewed by many health experts as a serious problem. Obese children tend to become obese adults.
Obesity has been increasing dramatically over the past few decades, as calorie-rich food has become more accessible and people have become less physically active. Since electronics became prevalent in the 2000s, many children play video games rather than participating in sports or playing outdoors.
Obesity may lead to the development of heart disease, stroke, certain types of cancer, diabetes, depression, sleep problems, and/or a shorter life. This is likely part of the reason why most people who live a long time are not overweight. One study found that the majority of people who were hospitalized with COVID were overweight or obese. Obesity accounts for more than a third of the cost of healthcare in this country.
The good news about obesity is that it can be controlled for most affected individuals. Unless a patient has metabolic or hormonal problems (which are rare), obesity can be addressed by eating less and exercising more (with a goal of at least 30 minutes of near-daily moderate aerobic activities). Emphasis needs to be put on controlling the diet because it’s easy to overeat.
For example, to gain an extra 50 pounds in 5 years, all that is required is to eat 100 calories a day more than you need. One slice of cheese or one slice of bread contains 100 calories. This is why it’s so easy to gain weight. A large chocolate chip cookie might have 250 calories. A large muffin might have 500 calories. In contrast, moderate exercise for an hour uses up only 300 calories.
It should be acknowledged that obesity can be made more difficult to address because of factors such as our prenatal environment, genetics, chemical exposures, certain medications, and exposure to antibiotics that change our gut flora. However, in all of these situations, affected individuals can nonetheless achieve control of their obesity through careful and consistent attention to their health.
How to Control Overeating
People overeat for many reasons including that food helps them feel better, including in dealing with anxiety, sadness, depression, loneliness, or anger. Another reason is that eating is a social activity, and often people do not pay attention to what they are eating. Stress often leads to overeating because it causes hormonal changes that lead to increased hunger.
There are many ways to control overeating behavior. These include planning what you are going to eat before you start a meal, taking small portion sizes, eating on smaller plates, eating mindfully while paying attention to your food and chewing slowly, avoiding tempting foods, eating foods with high fiber (oats, grains, vegetables) or protein (nuts, milk products) content, and drinking lots of water.
How Hypnosis Can Help
Since stress leads to overeating, hypnotic stress reduction techniques can be very helpful. Hypnotic suggestions also can be used to encourage patients to eat in a healthier way and exercise.
Hypnotic suggestions can be made that the patients can become healthier and feel better about themselves by right-sizing. Patients can imagine a future in which they are healthier and how good they will feel about themselves at that time.
If patients are stressed because of poor self-esteem, the use of hypnosis can help by boosting their self-confidence as patients learn that they can regulate their emotions and behaviors better than they had believed possible.
Patients can learn to better trust and support themselves in their weight control efforts by partnering with their subconscious through hypnosis. The subconscious can help patients identify and address reasons that may have led to their becoming overweight or perpetuated their obesity.
Even positive self-talk can help, such as when patients experience hunger while reducing their weight. I tell patients that when they feel hungry, this means their bodies are using up some of their fat and thus they can associate this feeling with a couple of other “h” words: “happy” and “healthy.”
A recent literature review (Roslim, 2021) concluded that while a small number of published studies about the use of hypnosis for obesity have reported significant benefits, many of them had methodological flaws. Thus, well-designed studies need to be performed to verify the extent of hypnosis' effectiveness in the treatment of obesity.
Takeaway
Control of obesity is in the hands of many patients. Hypnosis can be used to improve weight through the use of stress reduction techniques and self-suggestions that promote healthy eating.
Copyright Ran D. Anbar
References
Roslim, Nurul Afiedia, et al. 2021. “Hypnotherapy for overweight and obese patients: A narrative review.” J Integr Med. 19:1-5.
More information about hypnosis and how it can be used to help with weight reduction is available in the 2021 book, "Changing Children’s Lives with Hypnosis: A Journey to the Center," by Ran D. Anbar, Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
