Obesity in America: Behavior Expert Reveals ‘Hidden’ Cause and How to Address It
San Diego, California (PRWEB) July 02, 2013 -- According to cognitive behavioral change expert and founder of SelfHelpWorks, Lou Ryan, we need to approach America’s obesity epidemic differently if we want to reverse it. Impressive weight loss results achieved by obese wellness program members who used Ryan’s techniques suggest he’s right.
“Most people who want to lose weight understand the importance of eliminating behaviors such as overeating or eating fatty, sugar-laden foods,” says Ryan. “But using willpower to change eating behavior is only a temporary fix. That’s why programs like Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and NutriSystem don’t have better long-term success rates. They do a good job of directing participants what to eat but they don’t deal with the core reason that overweight people struggle to stick with the program ... 'heat-of-the-moment' cravings and how to deal with them.”
According to Ryan, the real reason overweight or obese people struggle to control their eating habits is the presence of a ‘hidden’ emotional switch that turns on food cravings. And until the switch is deactivated, these people will always battle to control their weight.
“Certain triggers create an emotional response in overweight people that lean people generally do not experience,” explains Ryan. “This response is due to a conversation that occurs within the individual, deep down at a subconscious level that they are not even aware of - and it creates food cravings. The longer the person fights the food cravings the stronger the cravings get – until they become so overwhelming the person can no longer resist them. That’s why the vast majority of people who lose weight end up gaining it back: their weight loss methods address the symptoms but not the real cause.”
Ryan, the founder & CEO of digital health coaching company SelfHelpWorks, has spent the last three decades developing weight loss and other programs that deactivate the emotional response mechanism. And based on the evidence, the SelfHelpWorks programs work well. According to a before-and-after comparison of the annual Health Risk Assessments of a large population of wellness program members, 53% who participating in SelfHelpWorks’ LivingLean online coaching program decreased their body mass index (BMI) by more than 5%. Of just those members initially considered obese (BMI > 30) 62% reduced their BMI, and the average BMI reduction was 12%.
“Obesity costs our nation a fortune,” said Ryan, “Not only financially but in things like lost workplace productivity, lowered quality of life and disruption of the family unit. The solution is really quite simple when you think about it. Eliminate the subconscious emotional response at the root of unwanted eating behaviors and they naturally disappear. And the good thing is that with a little ongoing support, there’s a good chance they will not come back. The potential impact is staggering.”
For more about the science, including a summary of studies involving SelfHelpWorks digital health coaching programs, please visit the Science page on the SelfHelpWorks website, at http://selfhelpworks.com/corporate/science.aspx
ABOUT SELFHELPWORKS, INC.
SelfHelpWorks delivers evidence-based digital health coaching courses designed to produce permanent results in areas such as weight loss, exercise, alcohol management, tobacco cessation and stress management. Whereas other online coaching courses typically provide education, SelfHelpWorks' time-tested Structured Cognitive Behavioral Training approach produces genuine transformation. Since 1979 SelfHelpWorks founder Lou Ryan’s courses and process have been licensed by insurance companies, government agencies, major hospitals and corporations nationwide. Now, thanks to modern technology, all of the SelfHelpWorks courses are delivered conveniently and affordably via the Internet so that virtually anyone can take advantage of them.
Bryan Noar, SelfHelpWorks, http://www.selfhelpworks.com, 619-296-6001 Ext: 248, [email protected]
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