Why is Dieting so Difficult?

Many Americans are looking for a quick and easy fix to their weight problems which in turn can cause an even greater problem in the future. More often than not if diets don’t work it’s because they are misled in believing that they will lose weight with little to no effort.

Many Americans struggle with difficulties of weight loss, not only losing the weight but keeping it off. Different methods are used for losing weight, such as, exercise, various types of dieting and some medically needed procedures. Even though weight loss is vital to many people’s careers and futures, it doesn’t mean that it’s easier for these people than it is for you and me. The difference is that most people have a state of mind that they can’t afford to fail. So they are willing to pay thousands

“…So many people want to know about diets because so many people are going to try them, but they don’t work … some weight will be lost temporarily.” Harvey Diamond, author, was speaking. “But let me ask you something – do you want to be healthy temporarily? No. But you want to lose weight temporarily. They’re – They have failures built right into them.”

For my satire project, I focused on the topic of Obesity for which to find a humorous solution. Today obesity is an exponential problem in the United States. Americans are evolving into the laziest humans in the world because we don’t want to work towards the goal of being fit; all we want to do is take a pill and wake up skinny in a week’s time. The industry for weight loss and its advertisement has gone way too far, and they are steering us in a bad direction. Likewise, my targeted audience would be the industry of diet planning and those who fall into the trap of “losing thirty pounds a month” with a formulated shake or pills. Given these points, my purpose for this assignment is to expose the ridiculousness of the weight loss plans in today’s

“Come on! It’s simple, just get up off your butt and stop eating so darn much,” a common phrase used when with addressing modern obesity. Yet, this fairly recent epidemic continues to plague and destroy around 93 million Americans (The Issue). Although, with Michael Obama’s “Let’s Move” Campaign making a head wave, the hope for a healthy tomorrow has been restored in the hearts of many Americans. Along those same lines it seems that these days you cannot turn on the TV or Radio without seeing an ad for this Gym or that weight lost supplement. Such items and services also suggest that we as individuals can exercise and never worry about the big, bad condition known as obesity. With all these resources,

The United States of America is nation that is known for its romance with guns and food. Not the most glamorous idea to be known for but in a way the comical characteristics fit the ever growing nation. Yet this obsession with the greasy, cheesy, and always supersized holds a much grimmer reality. Obesity in America is through the roof with 36 percent of American adults being classified as obese. This alongside the rapid growth of childhood obesity has created a love for shows about weight loss and health like those of “The Biggest Loser”. These inspirational shows help to show that “it” can be done, the seemingly impossibility of losing the hundreds of pounds that need to go. Though the shows are inspirational and entertaining, they are dangerous for all of the people who have lost all this weight disillusioned that they can keep it of, furthermore the

With the weight loss industry, media, and health professionals bullying individuals by attaching harmful stigmas to individuals of certain size and weights, numerous Americans are fed the lie they must partake in the various dieting plans and drugs provided by the money-thirsty companies in order to become accepted by society. However, the truth lies not in the media’s falsities that take far too many people ransom: instead, the truth is uncloaked when the adverse outcome of what the reality of dieting and consuming weight loss drugs is examined. Not only prevaricating their ads and commercials, the weight loss industry, media, and health professionals cause psychological and physical damage to millions when they partake in their latest drugs, products, or meal plans. For this reason, America must abolish the weight loss matrix in which it is captured. Although this will be no easy task, the falsity of the obesity epidemic, dieting drugs and programs, and acceptable standards of size and shape as presented by the media can be revamped. Parents and health care providers alike must take responsibility and have discussions with today’s youth about the misconceptions portrayed by the media and the value of what true nutrition looks like. Planning family meals together to ensure

Uncontrollable weight gains lead not only obesity, but high blood pressure, high cholesterol level, and diabetes, which can ultimately cause heart failures, strokes, and even death (AHA, 2015ab; Elias-Boneta et al., 2015;

In the Ted Talk called, “Why Dieting Usually Doesn’t Work”, by Sandra Aamodt. Her thesis was that hunger and energy use is controlled by the brain and therefore regular dieting does not work. One of her claims was that dieting doesn't usually work because if you do try to lose a lot of weight by dieting then your muscles use less energy which slows down your metabolism, which will make you feel hungry all the time. Another one of her claims was about the human body being like a thermostat , because “your brain has its own sense of what you should weigh, no matter what you believe.” This is what she called the set point, it usually a range between 10 to 15 pounds. You can make lifestyle choices to move your weight up or down within the range

According to Alyssa Brown, “51% of adults want to lose weight, [but] barely half as many (25%) say they are seriously working towards that goal. This discrepancy between Americans’ weight-loss desires and behaviors has existed for years”(Brown). According to society, the definition of a healthy person is someone who exercises often and eats healthy foods. Even though people want to be healthy, becoming healthy is a hard task. Surely it is much easier to lay around at home and eat chips than to work out at the gym. Maybe this is why obesity rates are on the rise. A medical study estimates that “75% of the U.S. population will be classified as overweight or obese or obese by the year 2020” (NewsMax). People wonder, what is the solution to this

The rise of health concerns continues to proliferate throughout the country from increasing obesity rates to the astonishing number of our population with high blood pressure or diabetes. It’s enough to make anyone want to second-guess everything they eat and put in into their bodies. We ask our doctor’s, and ourselves “what can be done?” Eat right, and exercise. Those are the parameters for maintaining a healthy life. So it’s only natural that across the board we’ve got numerous exercise programs to help you lose weight fast or build lean muscle. Then we’ve got every diet under the sun, the no carb diet, high protein diet and all juice diets. Through research we can find and utilize programs and healthy habits that we can practice

Everyday it is possible to open up an issue of “Men’s Fitness” or “Muscle and Fitness” or “Modern Woman” or “TIME” or any magazine for that matter, and find the “new and/or improved” way to lose weight, improve the quality of life, or extend your years working towards the other two goals. Almost all of the methods prescribed can work; some are exercise and some are diet. For the most part though, achieving diet or exercise goals requires one to have great discipline. It has been proven, by each of these diet deveopers, that the diets they prescribe will work if the individual will just manage his caloric intake.

Barbara Printup, Senior Director of Marketing for CSP, is in charge of managing the upcoming launch for Metabical. After an analysis of a 2007 survey of overweight individuals, it concluded that 70 percent of respondents are not satisfied with their current weight, 35 percent are actively trying to lose weight, and 15 percent are comfortable using prescription drugs to help reach their weight-loss goals. Out of these respondents, 12 percent said they would immediately make an appointment with their health care provider and request a prescription. The ideal Metabical consumer was determined by Printup and found to be overweight college-educated females ages 35 to 65.

We need to communicate that a change in lifestyle is the biggest proponent of weight. In fact, studies have shown that “interventions that promote lifestyle changes…have shown better weight [loss and] maintenance than interventions that do not” (LeCheminant 348). Since ads will continue to showcase the opposite and provide examples, it falls to healthcare providers to amplify this message. Dieticians and nutritionists and even primary care physicians need to focus on explaining that putting in work is the only way for a person to lose weight in a healthy way. However, they cannot just preach this message and expect their patients to immediately comply. Doctors also need to have a background understanding of what a patient’s life includes, and meet them where they are. For example, a poor person who lives in a food desert and buys cheap, unhealthy food is going to have a harder time losing weight than a person who shops exclusively at whole foods. Miscommunication comes when there is no understanding of the everyday hardships a person faces that would prevent them for implementing healthy lifestyle changes a doctor

Everybody sees it everywhere. “Lose 60 pounds in 6 weeks!” “Skinny is what’s in!” “Detox diet plan!” It’s a fair assumption to assume that the world, especially the United States, is obsessed with being healthy. From celebrity workout programs to expensive diet systems that make people lose weight, being fit is always what’s mainly focused on in the media, daily life, and nationwide. But with obsessions, come unhealthy actions and interests. Most people that anyone knows is most likely upset with some aspect of themselves. Whether it be the way they look, how they eat, or their lifestyle, obsession happens because of the nearly-impossible body types and lifestyles found on social media. On top of this, there are also restrictions and challenges that come with eating a healthy diet that seem simply irradical to address, and unhealthier foods are more available than ever. With these slowly arising issues, anyone would think the nation is making it hard for themselves to be healthy. The society the nation lives in is making it progressively harder and harder to be healthy because of the lifestyles that are easier to achieve.