Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity. As weight loss depends on calorie intake, different kinds of calorie-reduced diets, such as those emphasising particular macronutrients, have been shown to be no more effective than one another. As weight regain is common, diet success is best predicted by long-term adherence. Regardless, the outcome of a diet can vary widely depending on the individual.
Robert Coleman Atkins was an American physician and cardiologist, best known for the Atkins Diet, which requires close control of carbohydrate consumption and emphasizes protein and fat as the primary sources of dietary calories in addition to a controlled number of carbohydrates from vegetables.
Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat, or lean mass. Weight loss can either occur unintentionally because of malnourishment or an underlying disease, or from a conscious effort to improve an actual or perceived overweight or obese state. "Unexplained" weight loss that is not caused by reduction in calorific intake or increase in exercise is called cachexia and may be a symptom of a serious medical condition.
A fad diet is a diet that is popular, generally only for a short time, similar to fads in fashion, without being a standard scientific dietary recommendation, and often making unreasonable claims for fast weight loss or health improvements; as such it is often considered a type of pseudoscientific diet. Fad diets are usually not supported by clinical research and their health recommendations are not peer-reviewed, thus they often make unsubstantiated statements about health and disease.
Low-carbohydrate diets restrict carbohydrate consumption relative to the average diet. Foods high in carbohydrates are limited, and replaced with foods containing a higher percentage of fat and protein, as well as low carbohydrate foods.
Neal D. Barnard, born 10 July 1953 in Fargo, North Dakota, is an American author, clinical researcher, and founding president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM).
Anti-obesity medication or weight loss medications are pharmacological agents that reduce or control excess body fat. These medications alter one of the fundamental processes of the human body, weight regulation, by: reducing appetite and consequently energy intake, increasing energy expenditure, redirecting nutrients from adipose to lean tissue, or interfering with the absorption of calories.
The NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, a nonprofit academic medical center in New York City, is the primary teaching hospital for two Ivy League medical schools, Weill Cornell Medicine at Cornell University and Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. The hospital includes seven campuses located throughout the New York metropolitan area. The hospital's two flagship medical centers, Columbia University Irving Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical Center, are located on opposite side of Upper Manhattan.
David S. Ludwig is an American endocrinologist and low-carbohydrate diet advocate in Boston, Massachusetts.
The Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University is Cornell University's biomedical research unit and medical school in New York City.
The Brooklyn Hospital Center is a 464-licensed-bed, full-service community teaching hospital located in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City. The hospital was founded in 1845. It is affiliated with the Mount Sinai Health System, and serves a diverse population from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds.
Lorcaserin, marketed under the brand name Belviq, was a weight-loss drug developed by Arena Pharmaceuticals. It reduces appetite by activating a type of serotonin receptor known as the 5-HT2C receptor in a region of the brain called the hypothalamus, which is known to control appetite. It was approved in 2012, and in 2020, it was removed from the market in the United States due to an increased risk of cancer detected in users of Belviq.
Wellspring Camps were a group of children's weight loss camps located in La Jolla, California, and Melbourne, Florida. The camps focused on changing behavior and eating patterns to create long-term healthy lifestyles for participants. Wellspring Camps are not currently operating.
Dr. Robert Huizenga, also known as "Dr. H" on The Biggest Loser, is a former team physician for the Los Angeles Raiders. He has been a regular contributor on multiple reality television shows, is the author of three books including one that was the basis for Oliver Stone's film Any Given Sunday, and has performed research in sports medicine, metabolism, COVID-19 treatment and age-reversal.
Management of obesity can include lifestyle changes, medications, or surgery. Although many studies have sought effective interventions, there is currently no evidence-based, well-defined, and efficient intervention to prevent obesity.
Mark Adam Hyman is an American physician and author. He is the founder and medical director of The UltraWellness Center and was a columnist for The Huffington Post. Hyman was a regular contributor to the Katie Couric Show until the show's cancellation in 2013. He writes a blog called The Doctor’s Farmacy, which examines many topics related to human health and welfare. He is the author of several books on nutrition and longevity, including Food Fix, Eat Fat, Get Thin, and Young Forever.
The Immune Power Diet is a pseudoscientific elimination diet promoted by physician Stuart M. Berger (1953–1993). The diet was based on the false idea that many people have hidden food allergies and that by eliminating certain foods and taking dietary supplements the body's immune system would be strengthened.
Thomas A. Wadden is a clinical psychologist and educator who is known for his research on the treatment of obesity by methods that include lifestyle modification, pharmacotherapy, and bariatric surgery. He is the Albert J. Stunkard Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and former director of the university's Center for Weight and Eating Disorders. He also is visiting professor of psychology at Haverford College.
Dr. Kathleen M. Foley is an American physician. She was an Attending Neurologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. She worked as a professor of Neurology, Neuroscience, and Clinical Pharmacology at Cornell University Weill Medical College. Foley made contributions toward making palliative care for cancer patients accessible. She headed the country's first pain service in a cancer center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering and was the medical director of the Supportive Care Program. In 1999, she became the director of the Open Society Institute’s Project on Death in America. Additionally, Foley was the Director of the WHO Collaborating Center for Cancer Pain Research and Education at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. She holds the Chair of the Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Pain Research and continues to work with the Open Society Institute as the Medical Director of the International Palliative Care Initiative of the Network Public Health Program of the Research.
Fatima Cody Stanford is an American obesity medicine physician, internist, and pediatrician and an associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. She is one of the most highly cited scientists in the field of obesity. She is recognized for shifting the global perception of obesity as a chronic disease.
