| Positive, Healthy Program |
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Fad Diet or Unhealthy "Fat Camps" |
| Sets reasonable, realistic goals |
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Promises "fast" weight loss |
| Emphasizes importance of exercise and physical activity |
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Doesn't emphasize exercise or even tells you that you can lose weight without exercise. |
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| Clinical staff, counselors, or directors have proven track record in helping people achieve permanent weight loss in a healthy way and the credentials to back up their advice |
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Staff has little knowledge about nutrition or how to effectively lose weight in a healthy way that results in long-term weight loss; they lack medical or health care training and have little knowledge of the medical and health issues of dieting, nutrition, and obesity. |
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| The program either requires doctor's approval for participation or screens participants for issues such as high blood pressure, diabetes, or other factors that could impact health during weight loss. |
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Program only says you should have a doctor's approval before starting any diet, and does not make any attempt to confirm a participant's health status before starting the diet. |
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| The plan includes a healthy variety of foods that are easy to find and relatively easy to prepare. |
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Requires that you eat their specially packages diet foods and limits your ability to choose from a wide variety of healthy choices. |
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| Personalizes plans for individuals based on age, general health, and other factors that may influence your individual nutritional needs and your taste preferences. |
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One-size-fits-all diet that does not take into account your personal preferences or special dietary needs (e.g., a growing teen girl has very different nutritional needs than a 40-year-old man |
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| Has a plan to help you transition from weight loss to maintenance, offering follow up or aftercare |
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The emphasis is on weight loss and very little attention is paid to weight maintenance for the long term. |
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| Behavior modification that includes examination of the psychological and emotional components of being overweight or obese. May include stress management techniques and tools for coping with life's daily obstacles that could cause you to overeat. |
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It's all about the food plan, and only cursory attention is paid to the emotional and psychological issues. They may simply say, don't eat when stressed out, but will not help you learn viable ways to deal with the stress in other ways. |
