Columnist Haadiza Ogwude discusses the risk factors of fast weight loss.
Like most millennials, I am an avid user of Instagram. I enjoy scrolling through my timeline and looking at my friends' photos of their weekend rendezvous, latest meals and adorable pictures of their pets.
However, I have noticed recently that when I look through my explorer page, I am seeing more and more pictures dedicated to weight loss. While those achievements are great, I’ve also noticed something unusual about them. Many of those photos are sponsored by some weight loss drink, exercise machine or diet plan. I’ve also noticed that a lot of those photos highlight weight loss that was done in a very short time.
Although there is nothing wrong with wanting to lose weight, achieving that goal and sharing it on Instagram, there is a problem with companies using those photos to not only sell their brands, but to also sell an unrealistic depiction of what it means to lose weight. It’s one thing to lose 50 pounds in one year, and it's another thing to lose 50 pounds in one month.
The problem with fast weight loss is that it usually takes extreme efforts in diet and exercise. People who lose weight under those circumstances often find it difficult to maintain those lifestyle changes. Also, if you lose a lot of weight very quickly, you may not lose as much fat as you think. Fast weight loss is more likely to result in a loss of water weight or even lean tissue because it's hard to burn that many fat calories in a short period.
WebMD highlights some of the common practices used to achieve weight loss in a short time period. Those practices include: starvation diets, diet pills and supplements, very low-calorie diets, creams, devices and magic voodoo spells. However, WebMD found that aside from very low-calorie diet and weight loss surgery, no other product, pill or diet has been proven to work for fast weight loss.
They did find, however, that the prescription drug Orlistat can help, but it only works slowly with diet and exercise. If that prescription medication is something that someone is considering, it is imperative that one discusses the side effects, such as liver damage, as well as possibilities of addiction and the proper regimen for taking this drug, with a doctor.
WebMD also highlights various risks and side effects of extreme weight loss. The risks include: gallstones (which occur in 12 percent to 25 percent of people losing large amounts of weight over several months), dehydration, malnutrition, electrolyte imbalance, headaches, irritability, fatigue, dizziness, constipation, menstrual irregularities, hair loss and muscle loss.
Fast weight loss also causes some psychological side effects. Many dieters have found that very low-calorie and starvation diets result in severe hunger. Those low hunger levels may become so severe that the dieter falls into a diet/binge cycle of eating. Crash dieting may lead to eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia. A very low-calorie diet also can be socially exclusive, especially if friends and family are eating normally.
When people embark on those fast weight loss regimens, they do it for a number of reasons, but the results are, for the most part, the same. Those “lose weight quick” practices result in numerous harmful effects. They also lead to psychological issues and even eating disorders. Those lifestyles are also nearly impossible to maintain. Once the practices stop, the weight inevitably comes back.
However, in some situations, faster weight loss can be safe if it's done the right way. For example, doctors might prescribe very low-calorie diets for rapid weight loss if obesity is causing serious health problems. But an extreme diet like that requires medical supervision and can be difficult to maintain. The safest and easiest way to lose weight is through a balanced diet and exercise. The results will be more rewarding and longer lasting. A healthy diet and frequent exercise is a lifestyle change that is not only affordable, but it is a change that can be maintained over a lifetime.
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Haadiza Ogwude is a sophomore studying journalism. What do you know about fast weight loss? Tweet Haadiza @AdoreHaadiza or email her at ho299413@ohio.edu.
