07/04/2010
Elderly could have weight loss hypnotherapy with no problems - and benefit to boot
by William Hobson
Established wisdom has long held the belief that it can be dangerous for the elderly to lose weight. However, a new study reveals that not only could older people who want to be slimmer see success through methods such as weight loss hypnotherapy without any ramifications, it could even help extend their lifespans.
Researchers at Wake Forest University in the US found that elderly people who lose weight can be nearly twice as likely to live longer than those who don't.
"We found that there were far fewer deaths - half the number - in the group of participants who lost (more) weight compared to the group that did not," says lead author Kyla Shea. "Our data suggests that people should not be concerned about trying or recommending weight loss to address obesity-related health problems in older adults."
318 people over the age of 60 were involved in the study, which lasted over 18 months and will be published in the journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences later this year. Those given a weight loss program lost an average of 10.5 pounds and had a lower mortality rate than those in the other group, who had no such programme and lost an average of only 3.1 pounds.
The researchers saw that they saw the same results at the upper age range of the study, when they only looked at those aged 75 or older.
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