COVER STORY
THE CASE FOR HEALTH GAIN AND BODY RESPECT IN HEALTHY WEIGHT SERVICES Lucy Aphramor Dietitian, Consultant and trainer, Visiting research fellow University of Chester Lucy Aphramor PhD is committed to bringing compassion and social justice into dietetics’ lifestyle conversation. She is a founder member of Critical Dietetics and nominated to the BDA roll of honour.
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An increasing number of dietitians are adopting an approach to nutritional wellbeing that promotes health gain and body respect for all, as an alternative to weight management. This shift in focus characterises an approach known as the ‘Well Now’ way. This article explores the rationale behind Well Now’s innovation and illustrates some of its hallmark features in practise. Imagine that Jay comes to clinic with newly diagnosed hypertension. We see her again six weeks later, during which time she has made significant changes to her eating and activity behaviours, taken up mindfulness practise and changed jobs. She told us that her BMI when we first met was in the range 3035. She still has no wish to be weighed and we don’t know if her weight has changed or not. Using the column headings in Figure 1, we can consider how change in behaviours may impact health and whether or not Jay’s weight is reduced. For instance, we know that diet can influence hypertension regardless of weight loss.1 In fact, improved health behaviours impact wellbeing
independently of weight loss across a range of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Jay told us that the reason she changed jobs was that she was being bullied and discriminated against. She feels valued in her new job and team morale is high. But how is this relevant to hypertension? Can respect impact NCDs? There is a vast amount of research showing that how we are treated by society has metabolic consequences.2-5 That is, stress has embodied impact even if health behaviours are unaltered. In acute stress, cortisol is released and when the stress passes, levels of cortisol and adrenaline return to base line. But,
Figure 1: The Well Now Table for untangling health behaviours, respect, weight and wellbeing
NHDmag.com August / September 2016 - Issue 117
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