A recent study conducted in Japan, concluded that certain psychological characteristics, in principle positive, could be a difficulty in losing weight. The reason could be that, in so far as they have, people would be more refractory to let guide or advise.
The research was conducted in the Kansai Medical University Hospital (Japan) on 101 obese patients. Was exposed for 6 months to a therapy combining weight-loss advice, diet and exercise.
We conducted a psychosocial profile of the same before and after therapy. This research, led by Hitomi Saito, has been published in “Biopsychosocial Medicine.
One of his conclusions was that patients had a higher level of self-orientation and optimism lost less weight than the rest. By contrast, those who could improve their self-consciousness through counseling lose weight more easily.
These results reinforce findings from previous research indicating that certain negative emotions allow a change of behavior easier to therapy. It seems that if you are more pessimistic is more concerned about the disease and is more permeable to the advice and guidance of professionals, which is not without its logic.
Similarly, a higher self-esteem or have a higher opinion of ourselves we would be more reluctant to change or accept and follow certain guidelines from the experts, in this case in terms of weight loss. It also seems logical.
These findings, however, should not be understood as an additional complication, if they are optimistic people who are overweight or obese. Rather, they should make us more aware that our optimism and / or high self-esteem should not blind us to accept when we have something to improve, and that, for this, we meet and follow the guidance of experts.
However, another conclusion of that study is that these characteristics (optimism, self-esteem …) than before treatment could hinder weight loss, develop and increase during therapy. But in this case, serve to maintain and establish the objectives achieved.
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