A Closer Look at Medically Supervised Weight Loss

Being overweight or obese is a global problem: Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that, as recently as 2022, 43% of adults were overweight and 16% were considered obese. The numbers are also alarming for children, with 390 million being overweight, and of that number, 160 million were obese.

This burden also carries a significant medical risk, and trying to lose that extra weight is a struggle for millions of people. If you’re one of the millions trying to live healthier and shed some pounds, medically supervised weight loss can offer solutions you may not find on your own. 

Let’s find out more about the struggle to get thinner, the medical problems that come with the weight, and how medically supervised weight loss can benefit you. Dr. John Monroe and the team at Healthy Life Family Medicine help residents of Goodyear, Arizona, with a range of medical issues, including weight loss.

Reasons people struggle with weight

It’s easy to dismiss being overweight as an overeating problem, but weight issues are complex, and several factors play a role in how they develop:

Genetics

The chances of being overweight increase if your parents are also overweight, though it’s not guaranteed to happen.

Highly processed foods

Many processed snacks are inexpensive and filled with additives to make them more appealing, even though they’re terrible for your health. 

Addiction

High-fat and high-sugar junk foods activate your body’s reward system in a way similar to frequently abused controlled dangerous substances, making you continue eating and preventing you from stopping.

Hormone resistance

Insulin regulates blood sugar, and leptin controls appetite, and overeating affects both hormones, leading to resistance to them.

Complications of being overweight

Gaining weight and maintaining excess pounds increases the risk of several health issues problems:

• Cardiovascular conditions: stroke, heart disease, and hypertension are at higher risk

• Type 2 diabetes: too much blood sugar eventually leads to this chronic condition

• Hyperlipidemia: high cholesterol and lipids like triglycerides can lead to heart disease

• Kidney disease: obesity increases the risk of diseases that affect your kidneys

• Joint problems: extra weight puts a lot more work on your joints, causing osteoarthritis

• Mental health problems: struggling with weight often leads to depression

• Cancer: 13 types of cancer are at a higher risk because of obesity

• Breathing issues: overweight increases the risk of obstructive sleep apnea and asthma 

Clearly, maintaining a healthy weight is critical for your overall health, but if you’ve tried to lose fat and tone muscle with no success, you may need professional medical assistance.

How medical weight loss helps

This term broadly refers to a system that combines increased physical activity, dietary changes, therapy, and, if necessary, medications or surgery to manage weight issues. We discuss target weight goals, set up a program that works for your needs, and schedule routine check-ins to see how you’re progressing.

Medications to help manage weight loss often include GLP-1 agonists, originally designed to treat diabetes but shown to be effective for weight loss. If surgery becomes necessary to reduce weight, the most common procedures are gastric bypass, gastric banding, or sleeve gastrectomy. 

No one system is guaranteed to work for everyone, so to find the solution that helps you achieve your weight goals, schedule an appointment with Dr. Monroe and the Healthy Life Family Medicine team today.