Weight Gain During The Holiday
What’s the Latest on Holiday Weight Gain?
I’ve
always believed that the average amount of weight gained during the holiday
(Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day) ranged from five to 10 pounds. However, according to the article “What’s the
Latest on Holiday Weight Gain”, there is no research to support this belief. A study conducted by the New England Journal
of Medicine proposed that on average, the gain is only about one pound.
The study was based on 195
participants who were weighed at six week-intervals before, during and after
the holiday season. Although most of the
participants believed that they had gained at least four pounds, most only
gained one pound. Only 10% gained more
than five pounds during the holidays.
Participants who gained five or more pounds were overweight or obese
before the holidays. This may be an indication that the holiday season may
present special challenges for those individuals who are already overweight or
obese.
Participants, who engaged in
physical activity, experienced less weight gain during the holidays. This
suggests that physical activity can be a successful way to reduce the chance of
weight gain during “high-risk times such as the holiday season. Another way to
reduce the chance of weight gain was noted in an article published in August,
2013.
The article compared the success of
counseling of overweight women by registered dietitians to maintain their
weight during the holiday season versus the standard of care offered by the
primary care physician suggesting they lose weight and adopt a healthy
lifestyle. It was found that encouraging
women to maintain their current weight while providing them with individual
goals was more successful than general recommendations to lose weight. The study shows the importance of registered
dietitians in “facilitating behavior change strategies that can lead to weight
loss or maintenance”. Primary care
physicians are just not equipped to address the issues involved in helping the
client to maintain or lose weight. Registered dietitians are trained to help
clients learn new ways to think about the holidays, which can help them
maintain control of their weight during the holiday season and other “high-risk”
times.
Cunningham, E. (2013). What's the latest on weight gain? The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2013.09.007.
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