PILLS AND FAD DIETS ARE NOT WORKING OUT FOR WEIGHT WATCHERS, STUDY FINDS
▶ Dangers of unsupervised weight-management plans revealed in survey carried out by University of Sharjah
Nine out of 10 people in the UAE are trying to manage their weight, but too many are on fad diets using diet pills or starving themselves, doctors said.
A desire to avoid the hard work of exercise is leading people to unhealthy and dangerous weight-loss methods, according to medical professionals.
The University of Sharjah surveyed 1,275 people from all over the country and found respondents were skipping meals and not seeking help from dieticians, partly because they were often not covered by health insurance.
Dr Fiona Rennie, a family medicine consultant at Valiant Clinic in Dubai, said she had seen many people who had gone to hospitals and clinics in other countries for diet pills.
These pills are usually a combination of sleep medicine, hormones, diuretics – which cause increased urination – and anti-depressants.
“I have seen this a lot and it’s a really dangerous practice,” Dr Rennie said.
“Another thing I see a lot is people using meal replacement shakes, which reduces calorie consumption to dangerous levels. These lead to rapid weight loss, but that weight returns.
“People want fast results without any hard work. They don’t want to exercise or eat healthily, they just want to lose weight. I see lots of people on diets, reducing calories to dangerous levels and over-exercising.
“The most dangerous is people taking prescription medication that isn’t designed for weight loss. People are deterred by the cost of going to a dietician. But what they don’t realise is that they will save money instead of spending enormous amounts on diet pills.”
Dr Amita Attlee is the lead author of the study, Assessment of Weight Management Practices among Adults in the UAE. Respondents to the survey were all over 18, and most under 45.
Of the 1,275 people, 88.3 per cent had a weight management goal. Of those, 55.4 per cent were trying to lose weight, 36.2 per cent wanted to maintain weight and 8.4 per cent were trying to gain weight.
Only 12.3 per cent of them visited a dietician for information on how best to lose weight, 17.1 per cent were taking supplements to manage their weight, while 13.2 per said they were following a popular diet.
Just more than 10 per cent chose to starve themselves, while 6.7 per cent used replacement foods and 5 per cent were using some form of drug.
More men were taking up physical activity, such as joinng a gym, while the study showed that women preferred fewer calories, skipping meals, taking natural herbs and teas or visiting a dietician.
Dr Attlee, who works at the nutrition and health department at UAE University, said people were turning to unhealthy methods because they wanted a quick fix and because of “easy access to unauthenticated information on weight management on the internet and social media, and online access to drugs, supplements and diet products”.
She said greater awareness of risks could deter more people and health insurance cover for dietician visits would also help.
Dr Attlee said solutions included introducing health insurance coverage for visits to dieticians, education on the need for a healthy, active lifestyle to avoid weight problems and improving community health policies and strategies.
Roisin Thomas, a professional cyclist and personal trainer in Abu Dhabi, said she had seen people starve themselves to lose weight.
“Women go to their family and friends for advice, whereas they should be going to a dietician or a health professional,” Ms Thomas said.
“I have seen people subscribing for months to weight-loss tea. They are throwing their money away and having the same food, not training and just having tea.”
Dr Arun Thangaraj, a gastroenterologist at Aster Clinic in Karama, Dubai, said that going on a crash diet made you prone to gall stones, while taking diuretics could alter the body’s potassium and sodium levels.
People want fast results without any hard work. They don’t want to exercise or eat healthily, they just want to lose weight DR FIONA RENNIE Family medicine consultant at Valiant Clinic in Dubai