Weight obsession

[Dunc]

Hi All,

I haven't been on here in donkey's years...well, months. This is my second post. I'm hesitant to ask as this topic seems incredibly self-indulgent. Still...

I've been symptom-free for a good 5 months. And the weight has really piled on. Truthfully, the only thing that saved my sanity during a flare was the weight loss. I liked being a size 6.

Does anybody else obsess over weight?

thanks,
Diane

[DJ]

I was frightened by the rapid weight loss and felt safer when the weight returned. Now I'm gaining too much weight. I have not fully adjusted to my new diet. Prior to becoming ill, I didn't have bacon and potato chips in the house. Now rather than eating raw veggies, I eat potato chips. My first goal is to remain stable while I work my way off of Entocort. A year ago, my weight would have mattered more to me. When I start to obsess about my weight I will consider it a sign of recovery

I'm happy that things are going well for you, Diane!

Happy Thanksgiving!

[JFR]

I decided a long time ago that I was not going to spend a lifetime battling my body to get it to the "perfect" weight. Instead I eat what seems to me to be a healthy diet, no junk food, no foods to which I am sensitive, and let my weight take care of itself My weight remains steady this way. I am definitely not thin but really, so what? I guess I have just decided to prioritize health over weight. I have found it easier to change my attitude about how bodies should look than it is to keep trying to change my body to conform to some arbitrary standard of beauty. It is possible to change the way you think about things but it takes some work because when it comes to weight you have to go against the grain of the very strong cultural standard of the thinner the better. I would say better for the diet industry but not better for health. I know this is not what you were looking to hear but I wanted to offer my alternative approach to weight.

Jean

[tex]

Diane,

Obsessing about excess weight is usually counterproductive. Despite distorted perceptions by many people who strive to be among today's fashion-conscious elite, the body mass index ranges long claimed by doctors and other health "experts" to be "healthy", are actually quite unhealthy. The truth is, longevity is associated with what most so-called health "experts" refer to as overweight. It's beginning to appear that virtually all of the "expert" health advice that we have been exposed to for the last 30 or 40 years or so is simply wrong.

A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that overweight people are the least likely to die from any cause -- even when compared to those who are of normal weight.

Extra Weight Linked To Longevity

Here are the conclusions of that study, and a link to the full study. The red emphasis in the quote is mine.

Conclusions and Relevance Relative to normal weight, both obesity (all grades) and grades 2 and 3 obesity were associated with significantly higher all-cause mortality. Grade 1 obesity overall was not associated with higher mortality, and overweight was associated with significantly lower all-cause mortality. The use of predefined standard BMI groupings can facilitate between-study comparisons.

Association of All-Cause Mortality With Overweight and Obesity Using Standard Body Mass Index Categories

Some researchers believe that our weight at the age of 21 determines our outlook for longevity:

Weight at 21 is key to longevity

Note that the study mentioned above showed that vitamins and nutritional supplements do not generally offer any longevity advantage (but remember that this is based on a cohort of subjects who generally do not need any vitamins or other nutritional supplements in order to maintain normal health):

However, use of vitamins and other nutritional supplements did not appear to greatly increase chances of survival to very old age, the study concluded.

Not only that, but there are plenty or research data to support the position that extra weight greatly increases our odds of survival whenever we are subjected to extreme trauma, such as a serious disease, or major surgery. Being overweight increases our odds of survival in those situations.

Surgical patients with a body mass index at the lower end of the normal range were more likely to die within 30 days of the procedure than those in the moderately overweight range, researchers found.

Surgery Outcomes Better With Some Fat on the Bones

Tex

[fatbuster205]

I have to confess to worrying about my weight as I have gained a stone having lost three! I still need to lose more to get to the top end of the healthy BMI for my height! I don't want to be super thin but I don't like carrying extra. When I am flaring I lose and that makes me feel good about my image even though I feel ill! We are so conditioned!

[Jeanemcl]

I know ....the silver lining of this is I can wear skinny pants. How vain is THAT????
Jean