According to researchers, addressing mental health when treating obesity
is essential. It is argued that obesity shares many of the same
physical causes and long-term effects as mental illness, causing the two
conditions to dovetail and exacerbate each other over time.
Dr. Arya Sharma, scientific director of the Canadian Obesity Network,
said that the relationship between the two is critical and is not often
made clear to patients. "In assessing someone for obesity, you need to
assess mental health as your number one priority before you even start
thinking about what people eat and how much people move," he said.
"Because right away you can assume that if there's a mental health
problem going on, managing weight is going to be very difficult."
In Dr. Sharma's opinion, people struggling with obesity often contend
with mental stresses, from body image issues to mood disorders, all of
which affect efforts to lose weight since mood has a direct impact on
metabolism. Thus, adding negative emotional turns can make it harder for
the body to process certain foods. For individuals seeking treatment for mental illness, obesity could pose
a very real threat. Many antipsychotic medications cause weight gain
and food is often an attractive coping mechanism. Undoubtedly,
treatments for weight loss should address both physical and
psychological health, and physicians are encouraging this holistic
approach more and more.
No comments:
Post a Comment