Being overweigh or obese is usually caused by malfunctioning digestive organs and/or overeating. Being overweight is weight of five to ten pounds above normal weight. Obesity is the accumulation of excess fat. A person can have obesity and not be overweight. A person can be overweight and obese. A body builder with large muscles is considered overweight (i.e., Arnold Schwarzenegger). Fat accumulates around the gut because the liver is too stresses to break down the fat, the pancreas is weak, excess protein is turned to fat, overeating and/or a diet of junk foods. However, the reason for overeating must be wholistically solved or else the overweight/obesity will continue. Excess weight (fat) is actually extra cells the body has to maintain. These cells are homes for toxic waste. Fat steals energies that could be used for immunity. The fat tries to insulate the weak organs by keeping their low energy production protected. The fat increases as the organs’ functions decrease. Fat becomes a storage place for waste and the fat cells stop the body’s abilities to CLEANSE and maintain health.

The appestat (appetite control mechanism) can be imbalanced by emotional stress, physical shocks (diseased organs) and spiritual causes. Cases of over waste (overweight) due to glandular disorders are infrequent, whereas cases of over waste obesity are caused by the malnutrition of eating the wrong foods and junk foods. Undernourishment causes deteriorated organs to accumulate waste, toxins and fat. This begins to choke the healthy cells, decrease cell life and alter the path of the nutrients in the blood supplies. The body allocates nutrients to the fat cells and decreases nutrients to the healthy cells. The fat of obesity is another symptom of nutrient starvation and disease.

Weight Loss

Losing weight and keeping it off is a real challenge for most people. That's why it's important to begin a weight loss program with the help of your health care team, including, if possible, a dietitian. They can help you find ways to decrease calories but still consume the foods you enjoy. And they can suggest strategies to help you change old habits for new ones. It's important to remember that losing even a relatively small amount of weight can make a real improvement in reducing your risk for diabetes and other serious conditions.
-The American Heart Association.

Medicare declares obesity to be a disease, stripping away patient responsibility and power

By Mike Adams

Medicare has now officially declared obesity to be a disease, opening the floodgates for obesity treatments to be covered by federal and private health insurers. To many overweight patients, it's a welcome change, since they were unable to obtain medical treatment for their obesity unless they also suffered medical complications such as diabetes or heart disease.

But wait a minute. Is obesity really a disease? Malaria is a disease. Diabetes is a disease. Cancer is a disease. — but obesity? I argue that it's not a disease at all but rather the natural result of a person making extremely poor decisions about food choice and physical exercise. It's something that can be entirely reversed in virtually 100% of the cases by changing these two simple things. As a result, it rests firmly under the control of the patient, especially if they are educated about healthy nutrition and how to make intelligent choices about what foods and groceries they consume.

To call obesity a disease is a "dumbing down" of the very idea of what a disease is. And unfortunately, it implies that the patient is helpless to do anything about it. This idea is reinforced by language from doctors and health care providers who say things such as, "Oh, you now have obesity," which sounds like you've been afflicted with some sort of external invader that has taken over your health and made you powerless to do anything about it.

When it comes to obesity, however, you have all the power to do something about it. You can change your lifestyle starting right now. Give up all refined carbohydrates and added sugars. Stop drinking soft drinks. Start reading ingredient labels and avoid all foods with hydrogenated oils and other metabolic disruptors. Give up processed foods, junk foods, snack foods and fast foods. Stay away from red meat and cow's milk.

Instead, give yourself optimum nutrition: fresh fruits and vegetables, lots of water, whole grains, and super foods like chlorella, broccoli, garlic, sprouts, onions and soy products. Do these things and you'll automatically and naturally lose weight. Add in a daily dose of regular exercise and your weight loss will accelerate even further. Get some natural sunlight on your skin on a frequent basis and you'll start losing weight faster still.

In fact, this is the only treatment anybody really needs for obesity: nutrition, diet and physical exercise. And yet, sadly, this is almost never the treatment people will get. Instead, they'll be given an array of highly toxic prescription drugs with dangerous side effects. They'll be offered expensive surgical procedures like gastric bypass surgery that maim you for life. They'll be told that obesity has no cure, and that lifelong treatment with prescription drugs is the only option. (We'll even see fundraising activities like, "The walk to find a cure for obesity" during which you'll see brochures with headlines saying absurd things like, "With more money, we can find a cure for obesity...") These lies will generate billions of dollars in profits for hospitals, surgeons and pharmaceutical companies, and yet they will do little or nothing to actually improve the lives of patients. This new decision by Medicare to classify obesity as a disease will actually reward practitioners of modern medicine for convincing patients to undergo the most radical and expensive treatments possible, such as surgery.

Here in America, our modern medical system is rather insane. Shouldn't we be spending money that teaches people how to eat healthy in the first place rather than paying $50,000 a whack to slice them open and staple their stomachs shut? Shouldn't we ban the use of ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup that we now know is directly linked to obesity and diabetes? Shouldn't the FDA at least require warning labels on all foods made with high-fructose corn syrup?

Shouldn't restaurants be required to place nutritional information on their menus so customers know how fat they're getting from eating those foods? Shouldn't soft drink vending machines be banned from public schools to protect our children from obesity? Shouldn't we be teaching physical education classes in our schools? These and many more questions need to be asked publicly, loudly and persistently. Because right now, when it comes to medicine and public health, our priorities are all backwards: we spend fortunes treating people after they become obese and diseased, but as a nation, we refuse to spend even 1% of that in an effort to prevent these diseases in the first place. And disease prevention is far less expensive than disease treatment.

But once again, the reason this exists is well known: we are a country dominated by pharmaceutical companies. Disease prevention is not in the financial interest of these companies, since a population that isn't diseased doesn't need prescription drugs. As a result, we see the prevention of prevention taking place at the highest levels. Drug companies actually want to keep the population diseased in order to generate more profits, and obesity is just one of many such diseases that promise to enrich these companies for decades to come.

The slogan for the pharmaceutical industry should be, "Stay diseased, America. Tens of thousands of jobs are depending on it!"

Over-the-Counter and Herbal Remedies for Weight Loss

Most over-the-counter medicine for weight-loss consists of appetite suppressants. They work by "tricking" the body into thinking that it is not hungry. This can be effective; however, long-term use can lead to addiction and may cause health problems. In addition, weight loss only occurs while you are taking the medicine, unless other behavioral changes such as improved diet and increased exercise are made.

Below are some commonly used over-the-counter weight loss drugs and appetite suppressants. Be sure to talk to your doctor before taking any of these over-the-counter drugs, as some could be a waste of money, or worse, dangerous.

• Ephedra (ma-huang) and its active ingredient ephedrine were commonly found in herbal dietary supplements used for weight loss. Ephedrine is used in asthma medicine, as well as to make methamphetamine, more commonly known as speed. In fact, there's only a slight difference chemically between methamphetamine and ephedrine. Ephedrine can slightly suppress your appetite, but no studies have shown it to be effective in weight loss. Ephedrine can also be dangerous. It can cause high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, insomnia, nervousness, tremors, seizures, heart attacks, strokes and even death. Ephedrine can also interact with many prescription and over-the-counter medications. In February 2004, the FDA officially banned the sale of ephedrine in any dietary supplement in the U.S. due to the risk of illness or injury.
• St. John's wort. This herbal product is primarily used as an antidepressant. Few studies have evaluated its effectiveness for promoting weight loss. St. John's wort and ephedra are the two primary ingredients in herbal phen-fen. If you are taking St. John's wort, you should avoid tyramine-containing foods (for example, aged cheese, cured or aged meats, wines, etc.). You should also check with your doctor before taking any other medications, since it has many potential harmful interactions with antidepressants, birth control pills, blood thinners, heart medications and dextromethorphan (contained in various cold remedies). The use of St. John's wort for weight loss is potentially very dangerous. There are no clinical studies to support the use of St. John's wort for weight loss.
• 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP). Found in some over-the-counter weight loss formulas, this extract from a West African plant seed has replaced tryptophan supplements after the FDA banned sale of tryptophan due to its link to a rare and potentially deadly blood disorder. 5-HTP has not been proven to effectively promote weight loss and is under constant scrutiny for safety. In larger doses, 5-HTP may have a negative effect on the liver.
• Chitosan (KITE-o-san). This dietary supplement is made from chitin, a starch found in the skeleton of shrimp, crab, and other shellfish. Chitosan cannot be digested; therefore it passes through your intestinal tract unabsorbed without adding any calories. The chemical nature of Chitosan makes it bind with fatty foods, removing some of the fat from your body as it passes though rather than allowing it to be absorbed. Several studies, however, found no more weight loss from Chitosan than from a placebo (sugar pill).
• Chromium is thought to enhance the effect of insulin and therefore the breakdown of carbohydrates. It has been touted as a weight loss aid and a fat burner. Much of the evidence is inconclusive on chromium's effect on weight loss. Several studies have failed to show any benefit in weight loss after taking this mineral.
• Pyruvate. Pyruvate is formed in the body during digestion of carbohydrates and protein from food. It may have a slight effect in helping you shed pounds, according to some studies. Found in the form of pyruvic acid, pyruvate can be found in various foods including red apples, cheese and red wine. Pyruvate appears to be safe, but claims of boosting metabolism, decreasing appetite and aiding in weight loss need further study.
• Aloe. Most often used as a topical product for wound healing, oral forms of aloe are added to herbal weight-loss products. Oral aloe produces a strong cathartic response (producing bowel movements) and many aloe weight-loss products are marketed as "internal cleansers." However, aloe or aloe-containing products should not be ingested orally if you have intestinal problems like Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis or abdominal pain of an unknown reason. Use of this agent orally has lead to side effects such as abdominal cramping, diarrhea and problems with the body's mineral balance. In addition, it can interact with medications such as Lanoxin (digoxin), a medicine used to treat heart failure. The use of aloe has not been proven to keep weight off.
• Cascara. Cascara is a common ingredient used in weight loss products. One of the few herbs approved as an over-the-counter drug by the FDA, it is a strong stimulant laxative. Misuse of this herb has caused problems with the body's minerals (such as potassium, sodium). It should not be taken if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. Cascara may interact with medications such as Lanoxin and diuretics (water pills, used to treat hypertension and other health problems).
• Dandelion. Dandelion is a natural diuretic. It may produce significant weight loss by decreasing body water. However, it can cause allergic reactions and heartburn.
• Glucomannan. Made from the root of Amorphophallus Konjac, glucomannan is said to contribute to weight loss by delaying the absorption of glucose from the intestines. Small limited studies have shown glucomannan to be effective in decreasing body weight. This effect is believed to be due to a "feeling of fullness" which may be due to the swelling of the glucomannan in the gut once it has been exposed to liquids. However, esophageal obstruction has been reported in several people taking glucomannan. Glucomannan and glucomannan-containing products have been banned in several countries due to the high incidence of gastrointestinal obstruction. People with a previous history of gastrointestinal obstruction should not use Glucomannan, and caution should be used in diabetics.
• Guarana. Made from the seeds of a plant native to Brazil, guarana speeds up the brain's activity and is used to promote weight loss due to its stimulant and diuretic effect. Guarana contains 3% to 5% caffeine and may cause high blood pressure. Some of the extracts have been known to cause prolonged bleeding and interact with blood thinner medication such as Coumadin. Many advertisements state guarana is free from side effects; however, this statement is not true. Side effects from guarana may include nausea, dizziness and anxiousness.
• Garcinia (hydroxycitric acid). An ingredient found in at least 14 weight loss supplements comes from a plant native to India and Southeast Asia. To date, the best available data show this product is not effective in weight loss.
• Yerba Mate. Also known as Paraguay tea, yerba mate is a strong brain stimulant (the doses typically used mimic that of 100 to 200 mg of caffeine). The principle side effects reported are excessive stimulation and high blood pressure. It has not been proven to promote weight loss. Some case reports of poisoning (leading to hospitalization) with this agent have been reported and excessive use may be linked to cancer of the esophagus.
• Guar Gum. Also known as guar, guar flour, and jaguar gum, guar gum is a dietary fiber obtained from the Indian cluster bean. Guar gum has been commonly used in small amounts as a thickening agent for foods and medications. It has been noted to decrease appetite by providing a "feeling of fullness." However, like glucomannan, guar gum may cause obstruction of the esophagus. The water-retaining capacity of the gum permits it to swell to 10- to 20-fold and has led to gastrointestinal obstructions. Reviews of multiple studies show it has no effect on weight loss.
• Herbal Diuretics. There are many varieties of herbal diuretics that are commonly found in over-the-counter weight loss products as well as herbal weight loss preparations. Most of the diuretics used in over-the-counter treatments are derived from caffeine. Most of the herbal diuretics are not toxic but have been known to interact with medications (for example, lithium [Lithobid, Eskalith], Lanoxin or conventional diuretics such as Lasix or Esidrex). Herbal diuretics do not provide enough water loss to be considered effective in losing weight.

Common Sense Advice for Taking Herbal Medicines

• If you become ill while taking an herbal remedy, see a doctor or consult with a health care professional.
• Do not take herbs if pregnant or attempting to become pregnant.
• Do not take herbs if you are nursing.
• Do not give herbs to a baby.
• Do not take large quantities of any one herbal preparation.
• Do not take any herb on a daily basis.
• Buy only preparations in which the plants are listed on the packet (Note: There is no guarantee attached to any product.)
• Do not take herbal remedies if you are taking medicine for a chronic condition (for example, high blood pressure or depression). If you are unsure consult with your doctor prior to taking any herbal preparation.
• Do not take herbal remedies without first talking to your doctor.
• Always advise your doctor of any herbal remedy or alternative medicine you are taking.

Keep in mind that herbal preparations will not provide permanent weight loss and there are multiple ingredients in herbal weight loss preparations, some of which have serious side effects and can lead to dangerous toxicities. The use of herbal remedies to lose weight is not recommended by the medical community due to the high risk of toxicities and lack of clinical effectiveness.

Get tips to help you find a safe weight loss program. 
Learn how to control portion size.

View the full table of contents for the Weight Loss Guide.

Reviewed by the Department of Nutrition Therapy at The Cleveland Clinic (2005).

For treatment and diet instructions order the "Weight Loss & Obesity" DVD or the book African Holistic Health. For diet order the "Crossover Diet Cookbook."

SOURCES: University of Maryland Medical Center. National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Vanderbilt University. American Academy of Family Physicians. Supplementwatch.com. PDR Health.

Recent Features