About Obesity

The Nature of Obesity

Obesity is currently defined as anyone who has a body mass index (BMI) that is 30 or greater and is considered a disease by many medical professionals who work with this population.

Some of the causes of obesity are glandular malfunctions, malnutrition, emotional tension, boredom, habit, and love of food. It has also been linked to food sensitivities or food allergies and may be the result of either binge eating disorder or compulsive eating.

Obesity results from a complex interaction between genes and the environment characterized by long-term energy imbalance. Hereditary plays a primary role in the development of overweight and obesity, but lifestyle choices can be the most influential. These include lack of physical activity, a diet high in fat, sugar, and low in fiber, smoking, and stress.

Obesity develops in a society characterized by sedentary life style, mechanization, and good access to abundant food. The average American is less physically active. We are attempting to lose weight or control our weight by reducing the amount of food we eat (dieting through restriction) rather than increasing our activity levels. Americans also now consume 15-20 pounds more fat each year than we did 100 years ago. Eating fat can make you fat. So can dieting. As we've heard many times, frequent dieting is related to weight gain. A Finnish study conducted in 1999 reported that dieters were several times more likely than non-dieters to experience major weight gain (considered more than 22 pounds) during follow-up.

Treating Obesity

Treatment for obesity often consists of diet, exercise, medication, cognitive behavioral therapy — or a combination of all of the above!

Despite the well-documented success of behavioral techniques in producing temporary weight loss, treatment is typically followed by weight regain almost 90% of the time. The maintenance of treatment effects may therefore be the greatest challenge in the long-term management of obesity and weight loss and subsequent metabolic health.

For this reason, Mirasol's Alternative Weight Management Program has been very carefully and uniquely designed. The program begins with intensive treatment followed up with a Focused Continuing Care program that provides the client with ongoing treatment and support for a year after treatment. Focused continuing care includes psychological support as well as continuing support and guidance from Mirasol's certified professional trainer and dietitian.

After years of yo-yo dieting, weight loss, weight regain, and beleaguered self-esteem, our clients learn to conceptualize and experience a shift in consciousness about the way that obesity, weight, binge eating, and poor health affects their lives and how these conditions need to be treated. They experience permanent changes that will facilitate health, wellness, vitality, increase longevity, and redefine the quality of their lives.

Mirasol clients are supported by an integrative team consisting of the naturopathic physician, a nutritionist, psychotherapists, experiential and art therapists, biofeedback practitioners, bodyworkers and fitness professionals. Clients receive individualized meal plans as well as individualized activity plans. The naturopathic physician will prescribe supplements to correct food allergies, nutritional imbalances, and to help with dietary detox and cravings.

The program components include naturopathic medicine, psychotherapy and biofeedback. All of the modalities used at Mirasol have solid foundations in published studies and are also used at Stanford's Complementary Alternative Medicine Clinic in Palo Alto. A gentle exercise protocol is also incorporated which includes yoga, pool exercise, walking and psychoeducation by a certified professional trainer.

The program also includes information on the most current research available in the field on obesity, compulsive eating, and binge eating disorder. In addition, mindfulness and spirituality are carefully interwoven throughout the program. Clients are given the opportunity to rediscover a new sense of self, their spirits and their souls in the world when the former preoccupation with food, medical issues, and body difficulties and disabilities are no longer of primary concern.