It would be nearly impossible to find even one woman in our Sixty and Me community who hasn’t at some point disliked her body or called herself fat. This criticism and self-loathing is the direct result of a continuous deluge of impossible images of perfection put forth by the fashion and dieting industries. It has been a part of our history, going as far back as 400BC in Ancient Egypt.
With access to many forms of media, including audio and video broadcast, print, and a multitude of social media platforms, it’s hard to escape messages about weight loss and dieting. Despite all this, there are more overweight women in the world than ever before.
Why Is This Happening?
I don’t think women are soft, or too lazy to do the work of staying well. After all, how many of us constantly manage our own lives and that of the previous and next generations while also serving our neighbors and community? Women are powerful and productive. But we are given the wrong messages when it comes to our bodies. The focus is entirely on weight, when it should be on self-care, genuinely healthy foods and making the concept of home cooking both possible and attractive.
How many commercial diets can you name? Atkins, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Gluten Free, Keto, Paleo and Zone are just a few. Studies show 85% of diets fail, and ultimately cause women to weigh more after they diet than before. Are you getting the picture? With few exceptions, diets do not work.
Diets Don’t Work, So Now What?
So now we have a new magic bullet that is spreading like wildfire. You guessed it, the obesity drugs. There are several on the market and all have moved the economic needle for the companies and countries in which they are manufactured. But will they help women?
Studies show obesity drugs need to be taken long-term, otherwise you regain the weight you lost. They hold the food you eat longer in your stomach, making you feel full faster. This may seem like a good idea, but common side effects include nausea and vomiting. The process of peristalsis, of moving food and liquid through your digestive system, is interrupted.
Possible side effects include pancreatitis, changes in vision, low blood sugar, and kidney and gallbladder problems. Recent findings show a surge in blood sugar when coming off the drugs. These are potentially serious side effects. Once on the drug, if the choices are to remain on them indefinitely or to get off them and regain the weight you lost, what is the point?
Overlooking the Real Issue
As a health coach for women over 50, it saddens me that many women will put themselves through this experience. If you listen carefully to the messaging, it is singularly focused on weight. There is no mention of food or nutrition, which should be the real goal. Women who struggle with weight and obesity are actually struggling with malnutrition.
They are eating foods with few if any nutrients, triggering appetite as the brain recognizes that lack of nutrients and calls for more food. Women who are overweight need help that leads to a lasting solution, not a drug that may further complicate their suffering.
There Is a Magic Pill
In short, there is a ‘magic pill’. It is real food. It is the gradual elimination of highly processed foods that come in packages, replacing them with simple whole food like wild seafood, meat without added hormones or antibiotics, fruits, vegetables, grains and seeds and copious amounts of water.
These are the basics, and when they are a regular part of your daily menu, hunger will subside, energy will increase, and your mind will be clearer. And with the absence of highly processed low nutrient foods, your body will slowly begin to heal and lose excess weight.
Isn’t that what we all want? So while the pharmaceutical companies are flooding the market with ads for their pills, I ask you to consider what is best for you, while also remembering to honor our unique physique. Not everyone is designed to be a size 6; it would be a very boring world if that was the case.
If you’re a little rusty with your cooking skills or feel you don’t have time to cook, I have written a book of nutritional recipes you can try. They are all fairly simple and designed for quick preparation.
Let’s Have a Conversation:
Has weight always been an issue for you? Are you food and nutrient focused or diet focused? Have you considered one of those diet pills that are popping on the market? Do you know anyone who has tried them? Please share your thoughts.
