Is there such a thing as a 'shortcut' in weight loss? - opinion

Part of the nature of man is to find the easy way out. We innately seek pleasure and want to do things in the easiest way possible. As psychologist Dr. Doug Lisle points out, we all want to be able to accomplish our tasks with the least possible effort.

That’s fine when we can reach our goals and conserve both physical and mental energy. Yet oftentimes, the “easy way” is dangled in front of us and we run to grab it, because we can only see the immediate result. We rarely stop to think about long-term ramifications.

When it comes to our health, there are things dangled in our faces every single day. But when I pursue something that brings a quick fix, am I truly fixing the problem in the long-term, or am I just getting some short-term benefit that over time will disappear?

I don’t know of anything where this is as pronounced as weight loss. Most people are still mired in this longtime false paradigm of just eat less and just exercise more. Since the problem of overweight and obesity began to really accelerate in the 1970s, everything one can imagine has been tried to control weight. There has been a long list of every type of diet imaginable (and some unimaginable – the Cookie Diet?).

Diets as a whole are a miserable failure. Two years after losing weight, the dieter has a 95% chance of regaining all the weight lost or even more. Medications use different modes and methods to encourage weight loss. The first bypass surgery of any kind for weight reduction was in the 1950s. There have been several types of these bypass bariatric surgeries over the years, as well as bands and sleeves. But they haven’t solved the obesity epidemic.

Twenty percent of bariatric surgery patients never lose significant weight – and of those that do, 25% have gained it back by about the 10-year mark. Television, internet, and print publications of all kinds are filled with advertisements for over-the-counter supplements “guaranteed” to help you lose weight or your money back! Finally, we now have the semaglutide type drugs, injections like Ozempic and Wegovy, which are being touted as the new weight loss miracle (although the former is only approved to lower blood sugar when you have type 2 diabetes).

New discoveries

BACK IN June of 2023, I published an article in these pages about injections for weight loss. I wrote then about side-effects including gallbladder disease, pancreatitis, kidney problems, nausea, diarrhea, and the possibility of malnutrition down the road as one may not get enough calories with the loss of appetite that comes with glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist drugs.

In addition, I pointed out an undisputed point: that as soon as you stop the injections, the weight returns. Well, it is more than a year later and we have a lot more information, although still not enough. This category of drug has only been studied on a large human population for three years – not a long time. So, what is the most updated information we have on Ozempic?

If you’re reading the mainstream medical news, it seems that we have a miracle drug on our hands. You can look forward to better cardiovascular health, kidney health, less inflammation, resolving fatty liver disease, and lowering blood pressure.

That sounds great – but here is the full update. Since I wrote that article, we have learned more about stomach paralysis, “Ozempic face” (your facial skin ages and sags) and blurred vision, and more and more emergency departments are reporting more cases of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) from Ozempic users. Couple this with anesthesiologists having to extend the time they tell patients not to eat or drink before surgeries, and we can see just how detrimental this latest weight-loss “miracle” can be.

It appears that many Ozempic patients have undigested food in their stomach for prolonged periods, so fasting for the usual eight hours does not empty the stomach, putting the patient at risk. Some are now thinking that patients on Ozempic should stop the drug three weeks before a surgery. There are reports of mood disorders, and Dr. Neal Barnard from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine recently cited preliminary studies on a greater tendency toward suicidal thoughts. 

So, we come back to the usual questions. At what risk is all this benefit and is there a better way to accomplish the same results?

For most people, there is. First, though, we need a change in our mind-set. Nothing worthwhile is going to happen quickly. This takes time. When some of my obese clients over the years have asked me “how long will it take to lose this weight?” they are disappointed when I tell them that to reach all or at least most of their weight-loss goals might take a couple of years. Then I ask them: “How long did it take you to put on this weight?” I get answers like 10 years, 15 years, or even 20 years. That usually puts things in perspective.

Your body is made to make the GLP-1 hormone naturally. But in order for that to happen, you have to give it the right fuel. 

The six pillars of lifestyle medicine will help you. The emphasis needs to be on proper nutrition using a Whole Food Plant Based diet. Couple that with proper sleep, enough exercise and activity, abstinence from substances like cigarettes and alcohol, stress reduction and management, and good social connections. Following this lifestyle will usually result in weight loss and the prevention and even reversal of most chronic disease – and over time, you will create a healthy gut microbiome, which is the control center of our bodies.

A diet abundant in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes and some nuts and seeds will increase GLP-1 levels. More importantly, science has shown beyond a doubt that this dietary pattern will extend your life and, just as important, bring you an excellent quality of life allowing you to thrive. This will lead to the health and harmony our bodies and beings are craving. Unlike Ozempic and its related drugs, the only side effects you will have to face is a better quality and longer life.

We all acknowledge that this drug is appropriate for a small percentage of the population, but with all the new information coming out, it should probably not be prescribed to the masses. Learning how to incorporate the six main aspects of lifestyle medicine and avoid shortcuts that may not work will “add hours to your days, days to your years and years to your lives.”

The writer is a wellness coach and personal trainer with more than 25 years of professional experience. He is a member of the International Council of the True Health Initiative and a member of the board of Kosher Plant Based, as well as director of The Wellness Clinic. He can be reached at alan@alanfitness.com.