Being overweight or obese puts men at a greater risk of dying prematurely than women, the largest-ever study on obesity and death suggests. According to the BBC, scientists say, while the reasons behind the trend are unclear, the study supports others that suggest obese men are at higher risk of diabetes and have higher levels of dangerous liver fat.
The authors of the report, which appeared in The Lancet, say second to smoking, obesity is the most significant cause of death in Europe and North America.
But while many desperate people seek diets, exercise and even surgery for gastric bands to lose weight, clinical hypnotherapy can do the job in a non-invasive way.
The National Council for Hypnotherapy (NCH) points out that hypnotherapy is an evidence-based therapy, with over 70,000 research references worldwide.
But the nation-wide body which represents over 1,800 therapists across the UK says hypnotherapy is often misunderstood by the public.
“It is important to understand that hypnotherapy is not a magic pill. It requires that the client be committed to change and prepared to make the effort to make that change a reality,” the NCH says.
The Lancet report said a global consortium of researchers pulled together data from 189 studies across the world, involving almost four million people and, overall, they found the risk of death increased the more overweight a person was. And the links between obesity and death were strongest for men.
Professor Sir Richard Peto said: “Smoking causes about 25% of all premature deaths in Europe and North America, and smokers can halve their risk of premature death by stopping.
“But overweight and obesity now cause about one in seven of all premature deaths in Europe and one in five of all premature deaths in North America.”
The data also suggests the risk of death increases at the other end of the spectrum, for people with lower body masses.
However, the NCH says managing weight loss is one of the most effective results of hypnotherapy. But it also advises people to be wary of therapists who offer amazing weight loss in one session.
“Hypnosis for weight loss is about changing lifelong negative habits around food and body image; the best results are often when committing to a programme of treatment,” the body says.
Warning against fad diets, the NCH adds: “Rather than just reducing calories that you are likely to put on again in the longer term, hypnosis gets you in touch with the reasons why you unconsciously eat.
“If you are the type of person that struggles to stop after a small piece of chocolate and feels compelled to finish the packet then a hypnotherapist can help you understand why and help you create new healthy self-management techniques.”
“Losing weight with hypnotherapy is essentially about teaching you to feel good about yourself, whatever size you are. It focuses on making healthy changes to your diet and lifestyle that will remain with you for the rest of your life,” says the NCH.