I have a wife with bulimia and it was getting to the point where I couldn't take it any more. She needed bulimia treatment badly, but I didn't know where to turn. Through the internet I came across your site and sent my wife for bulimia treatment at your center.
Whoever she first spoke with made her feel so comfortable, she even became excited about the possibility of not having to binge and purge any more. The change in her is amazing. I know she will always be recovering, but I am proud to say she is the most courageous person I know. Thank you for all of your help.
-- Preston V., Nashua, New Hampshire
I needed to find an eating disorder clinic so badly. I used to eat compulsively and had swung over completely to purging and laxatives. I felt so bad about myself, the shame and guilt was just killing me. I had been to an eating disorder clinic before, but they really did not address my mood swings, that I have since understood them to be a bipolar disorder.
Your staff kept telling me that my eating behavior was a symptom of other problems. Well even though I didn't believe them they turned out to be right. I don't use laxatives, I have even learned to exercise moderately. Thank you so much. By the way, it has been ten months since I last purged.
-- Bonnie S., Boston, Massachusetts
Well Shelly, I told you I would write when I had one year in recovery and here I am. Who would have guessed. I have so much gratitude for you taking your time and referring me to a great facility. I knew from the moment I walked in there that I was in the right place. The next time I come by it will be to visit, not as a patient. You are absolutely the greatest.
-- Venessa C., Raleigh, North Carolina
Obesity Treatment
Obesity Disorder and Treatment Options
Effective obesity treatment is within your reach. Call our nationally recognized toll-free eating disorder helpline at 1-800-941-5313. Get the help you need to recover your health and reclaim your life. Caring professionals are standing by 24/7 to assist you and all calls are confidential.
What is Obesity?
Obesity is a disease that affects nearly one-third of the adult American population (approximately 60 million). The number of overweight and obese Americans has continued to increase since 1960, a trend that is not slowing down. Today, 64.5 percent of adult Americans (about 127 million) are categorized as being overweight or obese. Each year, obesity causes at least 300,000 excess deaths in the U.S., and healthcare costs of American adults with obesity amount to approximately $100 billion.
The "official" definition of obesity is the state of having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or higher. BMI is a measurement of a person's body fat and weight in relation to their height.
Obesity is the second leading cause of unnecessary deaths.
Despite its toll taken in death and disability, obesity does not receive the attention it deserves from government, the health care profession or the insurance industry.
Research is severely limited by a shortage of funds.
Inadequate insurance coverage limits access to treatment.
Discrimination and mistreatment of persons with obesity is widespread and often considered socially acceptable.
If the process of locating the best obesity treatment program for you becomes confusing and a bit overwhelming, you can always call the national eating disorder helpline at 1-800-941-5313.
Is Obesity a Disorder or Disease?
The American Obesity Association (AOA) considers obesity as a disease. However, the term "obesity disorder" is sometimes used because obesity can be caused by eating disorders such as binge eating disorder, food addiction or compulsive overeating disorder. Obesity is serious, as serious as any other disease of epidemic portions.
If the process of locating the best eating disorder treatment program for you becomes confusing and a bit overwhelming, you can always call the national eating disorder helpline at 1-800-941-5313.
Obesity Treatment
A statistic frequently used about obesity treatment is that 95 percent of people who lose weight gain it all back. That statistic, based on a small study from 1959, is no longer valid. Much has changed in the way of obesity treatment since then. Thousands of people have succeeded in losing weight and keeping it off -- an encouraging fact for many that are discouraged by outdated information. There are several different types of effective obesity treatment options to manage weight including: dietary therapy, physical activity, behavior therapy, drug therapy, combined therapy and surgery.
Weight loss of about 10 percent of body weight is proven to benefit health by reducing many obesity-related risk factors. Recommendations for obesity treatment are now focusing on 10 percent weight loss to help patients with long-term maintenance of weight loss. Health professionals including physicians, nutritionists, exercise physiologists, psychologists and bar iatric surgeons help persons with overweight and obesity to determine the most appropriate obesity treatment. This being said, surgery should be the last resort.
As stated earlier, obesity is a disease and should be treated as such. Obesity is usually the direct result of food addiction, compulsive eating or compulsive overeating which have been effectively treated for years by various types of eating disorder treatment programs.
Due to the medical problems that accompany obesity and the difficulties managing the cravings and mental health issues, residential eating disorder programs are usually recommended after the person has tried managing their obesity through dieting, outpatient counseling, exercise and other regimens. An obesity treatment program in an eating disorder center understands that recovery from obesity is more than willpower and that there are physical, psychological and even spiritual components to recovery. It has been well documented that food addiction and binge eating are compulsive disorders that can be treated and treated effectively in an eating disorder treatment center.
