Dr. Veronica Weighs-in About Weight Watchers

Weight Watchers: another diet fad program… or a system that’s really worth something? My opinion is the latter of the two. I think it is a solid program that teaches people when diligent how to read food labels to pick the right foods to add and subtract from their eating plans. Personally, I think Weight Watchers works great for lots of folks.

I can speak from personal experience on this – I have used the Weight Watchers program successfully, myself. I love that you can eat anything really, but the choice is left up to you. If you decide to splurge, though, you use more points and end up eating less food. So typically, the choice is made to eat healthier and spend the allotted points on full meals. The program also gives extra incentive to movement and exercise. The support groups provide incredible accountability and counseling for those trying to change their eating patterns.

According to a report by MedPage Today, overweight people who invested time and money in joining Weight Watchers showed significant improvements in their disease risk factors like blood lipids and insulin sensitivity. “After one year, those randomized to the program lost an average of 5.06 kg (11.1 lbs), compared with an average loss of 2.25 kg (5.0 lb) with standard care,” the study reported. Birmingham doctors quoted in the article even stated that this proves that commercial weight loss care has proven to be more effective than primary care management, which is funded by our taxes and healthcare.

As a result, with the proven success that Weight Watchers has shown, I believe healthcare plans should cover the cost of weight loss plans like this. Rather than paying for the medicinal treatment of weight-related diseases, insurance could be spending their dollars on preventative measures that would not only lead to saved lives, but more than that – better lives by reduced suffering.

Click here for the full story: http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/Obesity/28397