Summon Health

I have learned from my patients with type 1 diabetes that there are many things that I take for granted that they think about daily.

In fact, multiple times a day.

And while on some days these thoughts and decisions are no big deal and easy to address, there are also days or weeks at a time where these frequent decisions can feel like a lot.

Like, a real lot.

For those of us who don’t use insulin, I think we benefit from gaining some insight into the difficulty these decisions pose and the decision fatigue they can cause.

Reach out to someone with diabetes on insulin and see if these questions are familiar to them. They may be so relieved to have someone to talk to about this.

Remember, not all questions need answers.

Sometimes, individuals just need validation that the questions are difficult.

One of the biggest nutrition misconceptions is by far the notion that nutrition has to be an all or nothing approach: ranging from calories to carbohydrates.

Some individuals will seek extreme nutrition measures for a desired outcome.

While this may be possible at the beginning, many frequently realize that this extreme approach is unsustainable and in some cases, frankly, unhealthy.

Healthy nutrition has to be sustainable and extreme measures rarely are.

Choose real foods (meaning avoiding processed foods), high in fiber, high in vitamins and minerals (fruits and veggies are great examples).

Pay attention to your hunger cues and the settings in which they set in.

Are you stressed and therefore grabbing for food?

Have you gone too long without eating and do you now feel ravenous?

Plan your meals and snacks and this time invested in planning will lead to greater satisfaction with the food choices you make during the week.

Individuals with obesity frequently face discriminatory acts and attitudes based off their weight or size - which is what weight stigma is.

Unfortunately, weight stigma manifests in the healthcare setting, a setting where individuals frequently are coming when they are feeling vulnerable and seeking assistance for improving health!

Ways in which weight stigma appears in the healthcare setting:

*Chairs that cannot accommodate all weights and sizes
*Exam tables that are difficult to get on
*Gowns that incompletely cover the patient
*Blood pressure cuffs that are not the appropriate size
*Not using people first language (a person HAS obesity, we should NOT say, “obese person”)
*INSURANCES NOT COVERING ANTI-OBESITY MEDICATIONS (AOMs) ON THEIR FORMULARY

We can do better - especially in the healthcare setting.

My call to action:
✅ Insurance companies: re-evaluate the stigma you are creating and recognize the important role that anti-obesity medications play in treating obesity. By covering these medications, we can reduce obesity, its complications, and in the long-run, reduce healthcare costs.
✅ Healthcare colleagues: please be mindful of the language you use. Please use people-first language when discussing obesity as the medical condition that it is.
✅ Healthcare systems: please ensure that the equipment you have in the office is mindful of all body sizes

To learn more about this, I recommend visiting: https://www.worldobesity.org/what-we-do/our-policy-priorities/weight-stigma

My top 7 obesity myths!

Myth #1: It’s a person’s fault they have obesity
This is the number one, most INCORRECT statement there is about obesity
- FACT: obesity is a multifactorial disease and is - NOT a personal choice

Myth #2: All you have to do is eat less and exercise more
- This speaks to the misguided belief that weight is just the result of a simple equation - calories in and calories out
- But if it were as easy as that, then the prevalence of obesity would not be what it is

Myth #3: You haven’t tried hard enough if you have to use weight loss medicine
- Using a weight loss medicine, in no way, implies the person has not tried hard enough. Physiology is leading to excess weight imbalance and medicines help counter this resistance
- Having a board certified Physician prescribe them is important, to make sure you are getting FDA approved medicines that have been properly tested and shown to be safe and effective

Myth #4: Sleep has nothing to do with weight management
- Disordered sleep impacts hormone secretion in a way that makes weight loss more difficult

Myth #5: You can’t lose weight if you are eating fruit and whole grains
- There is a big misconception that these foods have to be dramatically eliminated in order for there to be weight loss, but this is false
- The high fiber content actually facilitates satiety and aids in weight loss

Myth #6: It’s all the thyroid’s fault
- Honestly, it would be so easy if it was - we would treat it, and then excess unhealthy weight would go away.
- There are MANY variables involved in metabolism and weight balance. The thyroid function is one of those, but only having tunnel vision on this and not considering the other factors is one of the many reasons why weight loss efforts stall

Myth #7: If the number on the scale stalls, no change in happening
- The number on the scale is a quick and easy way to track progress. It is also important to remember that it is unable to reveal all the change that is happening
- If the number on the scale stays the same, but you are still noticing improvement in movement or in how clothes fit, then this is real and likely positive changes in body composition are occurring