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Alexandra Murcier (Liberal dietitian-nutritionist)
An obese person who wishes to lose weight must be able to benefit from specialized care. According to a study, the advice given by doctors tends to be “vague and useless” and often boils down to “eat less and exercise more”. The opinion of Alexandra Murcier, dietician nutritionist and member of the committee of experts of Doctissimo.
Eat less and exercise more. These are often the two pieces of advice given by GPs when an obese person wants help to lose weight. In any case, this is what emerges from a study published in the journal Family Practice.
Few practical and personalized advice
In their study, the Oxford researchers looked at 159 audio recordings of consultations between obese people and general practitioners. They found that during these exchanges, the advice given by doctors rarely included effective methods for losing weight and, in the majority of cases, consisted of telling patients to eat less and exercise more. Moreover, advice was generally generic and rarely adapted to patients’ existing knowledge and behaviors.
Professional support is required
The results of this study are not surprising for Alexandra Murcier, dietician nutritionist member of the committee of experts of Doctissimo. “The management of weight loss is something quite specific. Nowadays, everyone has an opinion on food: doctors, coaches, the general public… Whereas in reality a weight gain can hide different health problems: thyroid problems, bad eating habits, sedentary lifestyle, eating disorder…”
NO to diets, YES to WW!
Consider behavior
The other important point raised by the dietitian-nutritionist is the lack of support from the point of view of the patient’s behavior. “The behavioral aspect of eating is often overlooked” she adds. “Very often, the patients that I follow have already tried to lose weight, by restricting themselves or doing more sport. And by depriving themselves too much, they end up not losing weight, because of a lack of nutrients. This is where personalized support should come in“concludes the specialist.